RSPB Freiston Shore
RSPB Freiston Shore is a nature reserve in Lincolnshire, on the shore of the Wash. It covers a stretch of saltmarsh, natural and manmade, by the hamlet of Freiston Shore to the east of Boston.
The RSPB created the reserve recognising the Wash as the United Kingdom's most important estuary for wildlife, and at Freiston Shore large groups of waders gather on the saltwater lagoon at high tide. Tree sparrows, yellowhammers and skylarks are common around the reserve throughout the year, with hares in spring, ringed plovers in summer and brent geese and hunting harriers in winter.
Over many generations land has been reclaimed from the Wash by Freiston, but in 2000 the process was reversed when part of the sea bank was deliberately breached, and the land behind opened to the tides as part of a policy of 'managed realignment'. This took the pressure off the remaining sea defences with the aim of prolonging their life, while 163 acres of tidal salt marsh was re-established to help soak up wave energy, this acting as a further sea defence.
Nature conservation
This new marsh was designed to be managed as a brackish marsh with lagoons, and here the RSPB reserve has been established. It is home to pied avocets, common redshanks, ringed plovers, northern wheatears and marsh harriers in spring and summer. In the autumn and winter migrating waders such as common redshanks, ruddy turnstones, dunlins, and waterfowl such as dark-bellied brent goose and Eurasian wigeon, can be seen.
Location
- Location map: 52°57’27"N, -0°5’38"E
Outside links
 |
("Wikimedia Commons" has material about Freiston Shore) |
- Freiston Shore – Royal Society for the Protection of Birds