Benfleet and Southend Marshes

Benfleet and Southend Marshes
Site of Special Scientific Interest

Area of Search	Essex
Grid reference	TQ854847
Interest	Biological
Area	2099.7 hectares
Notification	1987
Location map	Magic Map

Benfleet and Southend Marshes are a 2077.7 hectare biological Site of Special Scientific Interest (SSSI) on Southend-on-Sea foreshore in Essex.^[1]^[2] A slightly larger area of 2284 hectares is the Benfleet and Southend Marshes Ramsar site^[3] and Special Protection Area.^[4] An area of 257.5 hectares in the western part of the SSSI is the Leigh National Nature Reserve (NNR),^[5]^[4] and this was listed in A Nature Conservation Review as a site of national importance.^[1] The SSSI and NNR include the eastern half of Two Tree Island, which is managed by the Essex Wildlife Trust.^[5]^[6] A large part of the site, 1083.9 hectares, is the Southend on Sea Foreshore Local Nature Reserve.^[7]^[8]

The site has salt marshes, mudflats, scrub and grassland. The marshes and mudflats have internationally important numbers of wildfowl and waders, including the dark-bellied brent goose, grey plover, redshank and knot. Some areas are very important for scarce invertebrates, such as white-letter hairstreak and marbled white butterflies.^[1]

References

1 2 3 "Benfleet and Southend Marshes citation" (PDF). Sites of Special Scientific Interest. Natural England. Retrieved 19 November 2015.
↑ "Map of Benfleet and Southend Marshes". Sites of Special Scientific Interest. Natural England. Retrieved 19 November 2015.
↑ "Benfleet and Southend Marshes" (PDF). Joint Nature Conservation Committee. Retrieved 19 November 2015.
1 2 "Magic map". Natural England. Retrieved 19 November 2015.
1 2 "Essex's National Nature Reserves". Natural England.
↑ "Two Tree Island". Essex Wildlife Trust. Retrieved 19 November 2015.
↑ "Southend on Sea Foreshore". Local Nature Reserves. Natural England. 27 February 2013. Retrieved 19 November 2015.
↑ "Map of Southend on Sea Foreshore". Local Nature Reserves. Natural England. Retrieved 19 November 2015.

Sites of Special Scientific Interest in Essex

Biological	Abberton Reservoir Ashdon Meadows Basildon Meadows Belcher's and Broadfield Woods Benfleet and Southend Marshes Blackwater Estuary Blake's Wood & Lingwood Common Bovingdon Hall Woods Bullock Wood Canvey Wick Cattawade Marshes Chalkney Wood Colne Estuary Cornmill Stream and Old River Lea Crouch and Roach estuaries Curtismill Green Danbury Common Debden Water Dengie Elsenham Woods Epping Forest Foulness Garnetts Wood and Barnston Lays Garrold's Meadow Glemsford Pits Grays Thurrock Chalk Pit Great Wood and Dodd's Grove Hainault Forest Hales and Shadwell Woods Hamford Water Hangman's Wood and Deneholes Hanningfield Reservoir Harlow Woods Hatfield Forest High Wood, Dunmow Hockley Woods Holehaven Creek Holland Haven Marshes Hunsdon Mead Inner Thames Marshes Little Hallingbury Marsh Mill Meadows Mucking Flats and Marshes Norsey Wood Nunn Wood Pitsea Marsh Purfleet Road, Aveley Quendon Wood Riddles Wood Roding Valley Meadows Roman River Sandbeach Meadows Stour and Copperas Woods, Ramsey Stour Estuary The Coppice, Kelvedon Hatch Thorndon Park Thrift Wood, Woodham Ferrers Thundersley Great Common Tiptree Heath Turnford and Cheshunt Pits Upper Colne Marshes Vange and Fobbing Marshes Waltham Abbey Weeleyhall Wood West Thurrock Lagoon and Marshes West Wood, Little Sampford Woodham Walter Common

Geological	Ardleigh Gravel Pit Clacton Cliffs and Foreshore Colne Estuary Dengie Globe Pit Goldsands Road Pit Hall's Quarry Harwich Foreshore Holland-on-Sea Cliff Lion Pit Little Oakley Channel Deposit Lofts Farm Pit Maldon Cutting Marks Tey Brickpit Newney Green Pit Purfleet Chalk Pits River Ter St Osyth Pit Stour Estuary The Cliff, Burnham-on-Crouch The Naze Wivenhoe Gravel Pit

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