Orwell Estuary

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Orwell Estuary
Site of Special Scientific Interest
Pin Mill foreshore - geograph.org.uk - 721349.jpg
Area of Search Suffolk
Grid reference TM 221 380 [1]
InterestBiological
Area1,335.5 hectares [1]
Notification 2003 [1]
Location map Magic Map
Designations
Official nameStour & Orwell Estuaries
Designated13 July 1994
Reference no.662 [2]

Orwell Estuary is a 1,335.7 hectare biological Site of Special Scientific Interest which stretches along the River Orwell and its banks between Felixstowe and Ipswich in Suffolk. [1] [3] It is part of the Stour and Orwell Estuaries Ramsar site internationally important wetland site [4] [5] and Special Protection Area under the European Union Directive on the Conservation of Wild Birds. [6] [7] It is also in the Suffolk Coast and Heaths Area of Outstanding Natural Beauty. [8]

The estuary is described by Natural England as of national importance for its breeding avocets, its other breeding and wintering birds, its vascular plants and its intertidal mud habitats. It also has a rich and diverse assemblage of invertebrates and a nationally important community of algae. [9]

Related Research Articles

Suffolk Wildlife Trust

Suffolk Wildlife Trust (SWT) describes itself as the county's "nature charity – the only organisation dedicated wholly to safeguarding Suffolk's wildlife and countryside." It is a registered charity, and its headquarters is at Brooke House in Ashbocking, near Ipswich. It was founded in 1961, and is one of 46 wildlife trusts covering the Great Britain and Northern Ireland. As of March 2017, it has 13,200 members, and it manages 3,120 hectares of land in 60 nature reserves, most of which are open to the public. It had an income of £3.9 million in the year to 31 March 2017.

Deben Estuary

Deben Estuary is a 981.1 hectare biological Site of Special Scientific Interest (SSSI) covering the River Deben and its banks 12 kilometres from its mouth north of Felixstowe to Woodbridge in Suffolk. It is a Ramsar internationally important wetland site and a Special Protection Area under the European Union Directive on the Conservation of Wild Birds. It is also in the Suffolk Coast and Heaths Area of Outstanding Natural Beauty. It partly overlaps two geological SSSIs, Ferry Cliff, Sutton and Ramsholt Cliff.

Alde–Ore Estuary

Alde–Ore Estuary is a 2,534 hectare biological and geological Site of Special Scientific Interest which stretches along the Suffolk coast between Aldeburgh and Bawdsey, and also includes parts of the Alde, Ore and Butley Rivers. It is in the Suffolk Coast and Heaths Area of Outstanding Natural Beauty, and is a Grade I Nature Conservation Review site, a Special Area of Conservation, a Ramsar internationally important wetland site, and a Special Protection Area under the European Union Directive on the Conservation of Wild Birds. It includes two Geological Conservation Review sites, "Orfordness and Shingle Street" and "The Cliff, Gedgrave", and two nature reserves managed by the Suffolk Wildlife Trust, Alde Mudflats and Simpson's Saltings. The coastal part of the site is Orfordness-Havergate, a National Nature Reserve, and Orford Ness is managed by the National Trust, while Havergate Island is managed by the Royal Society for the Protection of Birds.

Trimley Marshes

Trimley Marshes is a 77 hectare nature reserve west of Trimley St Mary, on the outskirts of Felixstowe in Suffolk. It is managed by the Suffolk Wildlife Trust. It is in the Suffolk Coast and Heaths Area of Outstanding Natural Beauty, the Orwell Estuary Site of Special Scientific Interest, the Stour and Orwell Estuaries Ramsar site internationally important wetland site and Special Protection Area under the European Union Directive on the Conservation of Wild Birds.

Alde Mudflats

Alde Mudflats is a 22 hectare nature reserve west of Iken in Suffolk. It is owned by the Crown Estate and managed by the Suffolk Wildlife Trust. It is in the Suffolk Coast and Heaths Area of Outstanding Natural Beauty, and part of the Alde-Ore Estuary Site of Special Scientific Interest, Ramsar internationally important wetland site, Special Area of Conservation, Special Protection Area under the European Union Directive on the Conservation of Wild Birds, and Grade I Nature Conservation Review site,

Dingle Marshes English nature reserve

Dingle Marshes is a 93 hectares wildlife reserve on the North Sea coast of the English county of Suffolk. The reserve is located between Dunwich and Walberswick, approximately 4 miles (6.4 km) south-west of Southwold. The marshes make up part of the Suffolk Coast National Nature Reserve along with reserves at Walberswick and Hen Reedbeds. They are owned jointly by the RSPB and Suffolk Wildlife Trust and are managed by these two organisations and Natural England. The site is in the Dunwich Heaths and Marshes Nature Conservation Review site, Grade I, the Minsmere-Walberswick Ramsar internationally important wetland site, the Minsmere to Walberswick Heaths and Marshes Special Area of Conservation, and the Minsmere-Walberswick Special Protection Area under the European Union Directive on the Conservation of Wild Birds.

Simpsons Saltings

Simpson's Saltings is a 25 hectare nature reserve on the Suffolk coast east of Hollesley. It is managed by the Suffolk Wildlife Trust. It is in the Suffolk Coast and Heaths Area of Outstanding Natural Beauty, and part of the Alde-Ore Estuary Site of Special Scientific Interest, Ramsar internationally important wetland site, Special Area of Conservation, Special Protection Area under the European Union Directive on the Conservation of Wild Birds, and Grade I Nature Conservation Review site,

Sutton and Hollesley Heaths

Sutton and Hollesley Heaths is a 483.3 hectare biological Site of Special Scientific Interest south-east of Woodbridge in Suffolk. Most of the site is managed by the Suffolk Wildlife Trust as Sutton and Hollesley Commons. It is part of the Sandlings Special Protection Area under the European Union Directive on the Conservation of Wild Birds, and the Suffolk Coast and Heaths Area of Outstanding Natural Beauty.

Castle Marshes

Castle Marshes is a 71 hectare nature reserve west of Lowestoft in Suffolk. It is managed by the Suffolk Wildlife Trust. It is part of the Barnby Broad and Marshes Site of Special Scientific Interest the Broadland Ramsar internationally important wetland site, the Broadland Special Protection Area under the European Union Directive on the Conservation of Wild Birds, and The Broads Special Area of Conservation.

Stour Estuary Estuary in England

Stour Estuary is a 2,523 hectare biological and geological Site of Special Scientific Interest which stretches from Manningtree to Harwich in Essex and Suffolk. It is also an internationally important wetland Ramsar site, a Special Protection Area and a Nature Conservation Review site. It is part of the Suffolk Coast and Heaths Area of Outstanding Natural Beauty, and there are Geological Conservation Review sites in Wrabness, Stutton, and Harwich Part of the site is managed by the Royal Society for the Protection of Birds, and a small area is Wrabness Nature Reserve, a Local Nature Reserve managed by the Essex Wildlife Trust.

Sprats Water and Marshes, Carlton Colville

Sprat's Water and Marshes, Carlton Colville is a 57.1 hectare biological Site of Special Scientific Interest on the western outskirts of Lowestoft in Suffolk. It is part of the Broadland Ramsar internationally important wetland site, and Special Protection Area under the European Union Directive on the Conservation of Wild Birds, and part of The Broads Special Area of Conservation. The northern part of the site is Carlton Marshes, which is part of Carlton and Oulton Marshes, a nature reserve managed by the Suffolk Wildlife Trust.

Carlton and Oulton Marshes

Carlton and Oulton Marshes is a 151 hectare nature reserve in Lowestoft in Suffolk. It is managed by the Suffolk Wildlife Trust. Carlton Marshes is part of the Sprat's Water and Marshes, Carlton Colville Site of Special Scientific Interest, the Broadland Ramsar internationally important wetland site, the Broadland Special Protection Area under the European Union Directive on the Conservation of Wild Birds, and The Broads Special Area of Conservation.

North Cove Nature Reserve

North Cove is a 15.5 hectare nature reserve between Beccles and Lowestoft in Suffolk. It is managed by the Suffolk Wildlife Trust. t is part of the Barnby Broad and Marshes Site of Special Scientific Interest the Broadland Ramsar internationally important wetland site, the Broadland Special Protection Area under the European Union Directive on the Conservation of Wild Birds, and The Broads Special Area of Conservation.

Leiston - Aldeburgh

Leiston - Aldeburgh is a 534.8 hectare biological Site of Special Scientific Interest which stretches from Aldeburgh to Leiston in Suffolk. Part of it is The Haven, Aldeburgh Local Nature Reserve, and another area is the North Warren RSPB nature reserve. There is also a prehistoric bowl barrow on Aldringham Common, which is a Scheduled Monument. The site is in the Sandlings Special Protection Area under the European Union Directive on the Conservation of Wild Birds, and the Suffolk Coast and Heaths Area of Outstanding Natural Beauty.

Pakefield to Easton Bavents

Pakefield to Easton Bavents is a 735.4 hectare biological and geological Site of Special Scientific Interest which stretches along the Suffolk coast between Lowestoft and Southwold. It includes three Geological Conservation Review sites, and part of the Benacre National Nature Reserve. An area of 326.7 hectares is the Benacre to Easton Bavents Lagoons Special Area of Conservation, and 470.6 hectares is the Benacre to Easton Bavents Special Protection Area under the European Union Directive on the Conservation of Wild Birds. The site is also partly in the Suffolk Coast and Heaths Area of Outstanding Natural Beauty.

Sandlings Forest

Sandlings Forest is a 2,483.8 hectare biological Site of Special Scientific Interest in two large blocks, Rendlesham Forest and Tunstall Forest, and two small ones, between Woodbridge and Aldeburgh in Suffolk. It is partly in the Sandlings Special Protection Area under the European Union Directive on the Conservation of Wild Birds. It is in the Suffolk Coast and Heaths Area of Outstanding Natural Beauty.

Snape Warren

Snape Warren is a 48 hectare biological Site of Special Scientific Interest east of Snape in Suffolk. It is part of the Sandlings Special Protection Area under the European Union Directive on the Conservation of Wild Birds, and in the Suffolk Coast and Heaths Area of Outstanding Natural Beauty.

Tunstall Common

Tunstall Common is a 36.6 hectare biological Site of Special Scientific Interest east of Tunstall in Suffolk. It is part of the Sandlings Special Protection Area under the European Union Directive on the Conservation of Wild Birds, and the Suffolk Coast and Heaths Area of Outstanding Natural Beauty.

Medway Estuary and Marshes

Medway Estuary and Marshes is a 4,748.8-hectare (11,735-acre) biological Site of Special Scientific Interest which stretches along the banks of the River Medway between Gillingham and Sheerness in Kent. It is a Nature Conservation Review site, Grade I, a Ramsar internationally important wetland site, and a Special Protection Area under the European Union Directive on the Conservation of Wild Birds.

References

  1. 1 2 3 4 "Designated Sites View: Orwell Estuary". Sites of Special Scientific Interest. Natural England. Retrieved 6 June 2017.
  2. "Stour & Orwell Estuaries". Ramsar Sites Information Service. Retrieved 25 April 2018.
  3. "Map of Orwell Estuary". Sites of Special Scientific Interest. Natural England. Retrieved 6 June 2017.
  4. "Information Sheet on Ramsar Wetlands (RIS): Stour and Orwell Estuaries" (PDF). Joint Nature Conservation Committee. Retrieved 4 May 2017.
  5. "Designated Sites View: Stour and Orwell Estuaries". Ramsar Site. Natural England. Retrieved 10 May 2017.
  6. "Designated Sites View: Stour and Orwell Estuaries". Special Protection Area. Natural England. Retrieved 10 May 2017.
  7. "Special Protection Areas under the EC Birds Directive. Stour and Orwell Estuaries" (PDF). Joint Nature Conservation Committee. Retrieved 4 May 2017.
  8. "Suffolk Coast & Heaths Area of Outstanding Natural Beauty Management Plan 2013–2018" (PDF). Suffolk Coast & Heaths AONB. p. 76. Archived from the original (PDF) on 15 August 2016. Retrieved 6 August 2016.
  9. "Orwell Estuary citation" (PDF). Sites of Special Scientific Interest. Natural England. Retrieved 6 June 2017.

Coordinates: 52°00′N1°14′E / 52°N 1.23°E / 52; 1.23