| Site of Special Scientific Interest | |
 View across the River Roach | |
| Location | Essex |
|---|---|
| Grid reference | TR030905 |
| Interest | Biological |
| Area | 10,702 hectares |
| Notification | 1993 |
| Location map | Magic Map |
Foulness SSSI is a 10,702 hectare biological Site of Special Scientific Interest covering the shoreline between Southend-on-Sea and the Crouch estuary in Essex.
It is a key site in A Nature Conservation Review , [1] [2] and is part of the Essex Estuaries Special Area of Conservation. [3] It covers two Ramsar wetland sites of international importance, 'Crouch and Roach Estuaries' and 'Foulness'. [4] An area of 6.4 hectares is Shoeburyness Old Ranges, a Local Nature Reserve [5] [6] managed by the Essex Wildlife Trust. [7]
Most of the site is owned and managed by the Ministry of Defence. Natural England describes it as "extensive intertidal sand-silt flats, saltmarsh, beaches, grazing marshes, rough grass and scrubland". The flats are of international importance for nine species of wildfowl and waders, such as dark-bellied brent geese. Rare plants include soft hornwort and spiral tasselwood, and the site is also important for invertebrates, with 71 nationally rare species. [1]
