Trimley Marshes predator exclusion fence

Trimley Marshes nature reserve stretches over 208 acres on the Orwell estuary, and includes 156 acres of grazing marsh and 52 acres of saltings and intertidal mud. It is designated a SSSI and SPA for its wintering wildfowl and is within the Suffolk Coast & Heaths AONB.

Predation of chicks from their nests has reduced the breeding success of waders (lapwing, redshank, avocet) and wetland birds (common tern) to levels that are too low to maintain a stable population. Breeding lapwing and redshank numbers are in serious decline in Suffolk, and nationally.

The project will install a 2km permanent electric fence, enclosing the grazing marsh, to exclude foxes and badgers but not stoats, and install four floating tern rafts on the open water. Our goal is to increase the number of lapwing, redshank, avocet and tern chicks successfully fledged to a sustainable level. The success of the project will be monitored long term as part of the reserve management cycle, with chicks ringed by the volunteer ringers.