Dingle Marshes | |
---|---|
Type | Nature reserve |
Location | Dunwich, Suffolk |
OS grid | TM479708 |
Area | 93 hectares (230 acres) |
Managed by | Suffolk Wildlife Trust |
Dingle Marshes is a 93-hectare (230-acre) 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.[1][2] They are owned jointly by the RSPB and Suffolk Wildlife Trust and are managed by these two organisations and Natural England.[2][3] The site is in the Dunwich Heaths and Marshes Nature Conservation Review site, Grade I,[4] the Minsmere-Walberswick Ramsar internationally important wetland site,[5] the Minsmere to Walberswick Heaths and Marshes Special Area of Conservation,[6][7] and the Minsmere-Walberswick Special Protection Area under the European Union Directive on the Conservation of Wild Birds.[8][9]
It is also within the Minsmere-Walberswick Heaths and Marshes Site of Special Scientific Interest and is a Natura 2000 site.[3] It is an internationally important site for the starlet sea anemone as well as a key site for bitterns and marsh harriers within the UK.[1] It was purchased in 1999 at a cost of £1 million, aided by a grant from the Heritage Lottery Fund of £559,000.[10]
The marshes form part of the open coastal fen landscape type within Suffolk which is predominantly open with few trees.[11] They were drained for use as cattle grazing at some point before 1587 but have reverted to fen land after mid-20th century reflooding.[11]
The marshes include a mixture of coastal and freshwater wetland habitats, including brackish pools.[12] These provide breeding habitats for birds such as bitterns, marsh harriers and bearded tits as well as mammals such as European otters and water vole and over-wintering locations for species such as pied avocets, white-fronted geese, northern lapwings and redshanks.[1][3][12] The site is an internationally important habitat of the starlet sea anemone, the rarest sea anemone in Britain.[1][3] The reserve is bordered by heathland and forest on the landward side and includes a vegetated shingle bank on the seaward side. Little terns often nest along the bank.[12]
Coastal flooding has affected the marshes in recent years, including in 2003, 2006 and 2007.[13][14] The shingle bank was breached in 2006 and 2007 leading to concerns that vulnerable freshwater habitats could be lost, including the breeding grounds of species such as bitterns.[13][14][15] Emergency flood defence works were carried out by the Environment Agency following the 2006 breach,[15] and these were extended in 2012 to provide additional flood defences for the reserve.[16]
The reserve is accessed from the south at Dunwich beach where a car park and other facilities are maintained by East Suffolk council. A circular walk is waymarked around the marshes. The RSPB maintains a hide overlooking the marsh.[12]