Until recently lowland heathland dominated the area between Lowestoft in the north to Ipswich in the south - and between the East Suffolk railway line in the west and the sea. This is the area known as the Sandlings.

The map shows the broad geographical area covered by the Sandlings, but also the loss in the last 120 years.

The map furthest to the left is heathland in 1881, whereas that on the right shows what remains now. Heathland habitat is represented by dark patches on the map.