The heather moorlands and blanket bogs of the South West are a refuge for many species of plants and animals that otherwise have their British centres of distribution in the uplands of Wales, northern England and Scotland. They can best be described as areas of open, infertile ground above 250–300 m dominated by dwarf shrubs such as heather Calluna vulgaris, western gorse Ulex gallii and whortleberry Vacciniium myrtillus.

Along these areas, upland heath also includes blanket bog and open acidic grassland. Blanket bog is restricted to higher areas where very high rainfall and cool conditions combine to allow the development of layers of peat. It also has a high proportion of dwarf shrubs and additionally supports special plants of acid waterlogged conditions such as bog mosses Sphagnum spp and cottongrass Eriophorum spp. Acid grassland is included because it is generally develops from upland heathland as a result of excessive grazing or burning. Scattered trees and scrub form part of the upland heathland habitat system and are of particular importance for a range of breeding birds.

The great majority of the South West upland heathland is concentrated on Dartmoor and Exmoor, with an additional area on Bodmin Moor.

The upland heathland, blanket bog and acid grassland areas in South West England total c45,600 ha, representing a small amount of the UK total.

NB These figures do not include bracken-dominated areas.

The following are examples of species that depend on upland heathland, some of which are of conservation concern:

There has been a considerable decline in the quantity of upland heathland in the South West during the present century.

On Exmoor, approximately 4,856 ha of moorland were lost in the period 1947–1976, representing a total loss of 20% of the moorland area. Of this figure, 3,845 ha were agriculturally 'improved' by ploughing and fertilising, with the remaining 1,011 ha being lost to commercial forestry. In addition, considerable degradation of the remaining upland heath has resulted from the frequent and uncontrolled burning of heather moorland, this being a continuing problem on Exmoor. More locally, damage has been caused by overgrazing, particularly where winter feeding of cattle has occurred. Conversely, losses have also resulted from under-management, resulting in the replacement of heath with bracken, scrub and woodland.

On Dartmoor, the primary cause of habitat loss has been the overgrazing of upland heath, resulting in its replacement with grass moorland, though here too insensitive burning may have contributed to the decline. It is estimated that such unsympathetic management has resulted in the loss of heathland from 31% of Dartmoor's upland commons this century. Furthermore, on roughly half of the remaining upland heaths, loss of heather is still thought to be occurring due to the high levels of grazing.

On Bodmin Moor, although loss of upland heath has not been documented, agricultural improvement, forestry and excessive grazing pressure are all implicated in what has almost certainly been a massive decline. Only very small areas of upland heath now remain on Bodmin Moor. Over and/or under management of upland heathland; the most important factors being grazing and burning.

Dartmoor and Exmoor National Parks and the National Trust provide protection for our upland heaths by owning substantial areas with management for conservation purposes being one of the primary objectives.

Both Dartmoor and Exmoor have been declared Environmentally Sensitive Areas. This means that money is available for farmers to manage their land in a way that supports local diversity as well as allowing the farmer to produce food. Alongside this the majority of the South West upland heath lies within Sites of Special Scientific Interest by which the government recognises the importance of these areas for their wildlife (and also their geology). In some areas payments through the government’s Countryside Stewardship scheme are also available.