Chigborough Lakes Nature Reserve

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About

This diverse site of 46 acres is managed by Essex Wildlife Trust. It consists of a series of flooded gravel pits giving a wide range of different habitats including open water, small ponds, marshy areas, grazed grassland and Blackthorn/Hawthorn scrub.
Strolling through the reserve, there are a number of interesting flowers to look out for, including Common Spotted and Bee Orchids, Heath Speedwell, Common Storks Bill and Wild Strawberry. The reserve has eleven varieties of willow, including Almond and Purple Willow and several recently pollarded Cricket Bat Willows.

Over 120 species of bird have been recorded, and more than 40 of these have bred at some time, including great crested and little grebes, kingfisher and water rail. Ruddy duck can be numerous when the water level is high. Sedge and reed warblers can be seen or heard in spring and summer, together with common whitethroat, reed bunting and willow warbler.

Recently signs of Otters have been found on the reserve and it is also home to a number of Grass Snakes.

Map & Directions

Chigborough Lakes Nature Reserve

Type:Nature Reserve

Chigborough Road, Heybridge, Essex, CM9 4RE

Tel: 01621 862960

Opening Times

* Accessible at all times.

What's Nearby

  1. An area of worked-out flooded gravel pits to the north of the River Blackwater. It has a…

    0 miles away
  2. A large sports ground with associated sports pavilion and changing rooms. It is the home…

    0.82 miles away
  3. Lying alongside the sea wall and to the north of the Heybridge Basin's built-up area is…

    0.86 miles away
  1. The little church building behind the bus shelter in Heybridge Basin began life during…

    0.92 miles away
  2. Now moored permanently in Heybridge Basin, Maldon, Essex, the Sir William Arnold lifeboat…

    1.12 miles away
  3. Heybridge Basin's famous sea lock links the Chelmer & Blackwater Navigation to the…

    1.14 miles away
  4. This waterway runs through a largely unspoilt part of rural Essex and connects the county…

    1.16 miles away
  5. This waterway runs through a largely unspoilt part of rural Essex and connects the county…

    1.16 miles away
  6. This charming Grade I Listed church has a 12th century nave and 14th century chancel.…

    1.16 miles away
  7. Located near to the centre of Heybridge, this site has good access from the surrounding…

    1.2 miles away
  8. Heybridge War Memorial is a Grade II Listed memorial made from creamy Portland limestone…

    1.23 miles away
  9. Northey is an island in the Blackwater Estuary in Essex, connected to the mainland by a…

    1.43 miles away
  10. Surrounded by mature trees, this attractive site has access to the adjacent sea wall…

    1.5 miles away
  11. A Grade I Listed building, this 12th century church was restored during the 15th century…

    1.51 miles away
  12. One of the highlights of a walk around Promenade Park is to walk along the extension,…

    1.54 miles away
  13. Heybridge Creek is a channel that forms part of the flood relief scheme for the Heybridge…

    1.55 miles away
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