Introduction

Limestone pavements are outcrops of rocks where the surface has been dissolved by water over millions of years into 'paving blocks.' They are also home to a number of rare and unusual plants. Globally they are a rare habitat threatened by extraction for the rock garden and water feature trade and are often degraded by poor land management.

There is very little limestone pavement found anywhere in the world, but Britain and Ireland have much of this habitat.

Geology page: learn about the geology and geomorphology of limestone pavements
Ecology page: find out about the plants that live on the pavements
Limestone pavement distribution: where are pavements found in the UK and Ireland
Legal protection of limestone pavement: discover how and why pavements are protected
“Our Fragile Heritage” a booklet published by the Limestone Pavement Action Group about limestone pavement can be found here (342kb, .pdf file so you will need Adobe Acrobat)
“On Stony Ground” Read about the trade in limestone pavement in this report by TRAFFIC International (.pdf file 1.2MB download)
A concise list of academic papers about limestone pavements can be found here (updated Jan '06). A comprehensive bilbliography can be found here (updated May '09).