Wallasea Island

At a glance

Location

Canewdon, Essex

Area

0.84 km²

Start date

2015

Scale

Marine

Habitats

Grassland and meadow, Intertidal marine (e.g. salt marsh, mud flats) and Saline Lagoon

Key species

Short eared owl, Spoonbill, Redshank, Avocet, Black-tailed godwit, Marsh Harrier and Common seal

Rewilding actions

Habitat restoration and Managed realignment

Engaging people

Volunteering and Recreation

RSPB Wallasea Island is a stunning landscape of marshland, lagoons, ditches and sea. The landscape has been restored through a managed realignment project. This ambitious project used more than three million tonnes of earth from the tunnels and shafts created by the Crossrail project in London. The material has allowed the project to create a new 115 ha intertidal area of saltmarsh, mudflats and islands. This has created an important habitat for a wide range of species – from plants, to birds and invertebrates. The whole area now supports an abundance of species rich habitat.

Wallasea Island sits within a Special Protection Area which covers the Crouch and Roach estuaries, and which is special for overwintering waders and wildfowl including brent geese. It is also part of the Wild Coast project.

NATURE BASED ENTERPRISES

Grazing animals on site provide an income stream to the farmer. The project offers guided walks and nature trails, and this increase in visitors has benefitted local shops.

KICK-STARTING REWILDING

A managed realignment scheme was undertaken on the site, which included the creation of new peripheral embankments, raising of land levels, creation of channels and lagoons with islands.

The site previously supported a mixture of arable land and saltmarsh. Mixed cattle have also been introduced to the site to create biodiverse wet grassland habitats.

Images: RSPB Copyright, U D Suragh and Malcolm Ausden

Future Plans