BOOK ESSEX HOTELS

Rainham Marshes, Essex

Rainham Marshes
Rainham Marshes is one of a handful of ancient landscapes that has survived in the Greater London area. The medieval marshes are now an RSPB nature reserve and are situated adjacent to the Thames Estuary in Purfleet , Thurrock, in the east of London . The marshes were closed to the public for over 100 years during which time they were used as a military firing range. Partly due to its former life as a firing range, the marshes have retained much of its medieval landscape. It forms the largest single area of wetland to be found along the upper reaches of the Thames Estuary . The RSBP acquired the site in the year 2000 and have transformed it into a valuable habitat for nature, as well as place for people to visit. The marshes are now home to breeding wading birds in spring and summer, and large flocks of wild ducks can be seen there in winter. Birds of prey and other rare birds are also regularly sighted at the marshes. Water voles, now a threatened species in the UK, live in the in the ditches and rare dragonflies enjoy the protection of the nature reserve. In December 2005 the marshes were host to a Sociable lapwing, a rare visit which drew crowds of bird watchers to the reserve.

More British Natural features?

Other Essex Naturals

Thames Estuary
Dedham Vale
River Colne
Lee Valley
Northey Island
Copt Hall Marshes
Mersea Island
Foulness Island

Brit Quote:
Music is everybody's possession. It's only publishers who think that people own it. - John Lennon
More Quotes

On this day:
Luther Posts His 95 Theses - 1517, Sherlock Holmes 1st Published - 1892, The Worcesters Charge at Ypres - 1914, Official end of the Battle of Britain - 1940, Huddersfield Factory Fire - 1941, Zebra Crossing Introduced - 1951
More dates from British history

click here to view all the British counties

County Pages

England:
Bath
Bedfordshire
Berkshire
Bristol
Buckinghamshire
Cambridgeshire
Cheshire
Cleveland/Teesside
Cornwall
County Durham
Cumbria
Derbyshire
Devon
Dorset
Essex
Gloucestershire
Greater Manchester
Hampshire
Herefordshire
Hertfordshire
Kent
Lancashire
Leicestershire
Lincolnshire
London
Merseyside
Norfolk
Northamptonshire
Northumberland
Nottinghamshire
Oxfordshire
Rutland
Shropshire
Somerset
Staffordshire
Suffolk
Surrey
Sussex
Tyne & Wear
Warwickshire
West Midlands
Wiltshire
Worcestershire
East Yorkshire
North Yorkshire
South Yorkshire
West Yorkshire
Scotland:
Angus & Dundee
Argyll
Ayrshire & Arran
Borders
Dumfries & Galloway
Edinburgh & the Lothians
Fife
Glasgow
Grampian
Highlands
Isle of Islay
Isle of Mull
Isle of Skye
Lanarkshire
Perthshire
Stirlingshire
Western Isles
Wales:
Anglesey
Mid Wales
North Wales
South Wales
West Wales
Ireland
Northern Ireland:
Belfast
County Antrim
County Armagh
County Down
County Fermanagh
County Londonderry
County Tyrone
Offshore:
Guernsey
Jersey
Isle of Man
Isle of Wight
Isles of Scilly
Orkneys
Shetland Isles