Restoring Volunteer Marsh

RSPB Titchwell Marsh is under threat - help to safeguard our freshwater habitats.

Four birds stood in shallow water in a row, they have white bellies, black heads and bright orange beaks.

Protect this vital biodiversity hotspot

Since its creation in the 1970s, RSPB Titchwell Marsh has been protected by a series of sea walls. However, natural pressures slowly erode these protective barriers over time. 

To combat this, with your support, we launched the Coastal Change Project in 2011. This strengthened the existing defences and restored the intertidal saltmarsh, known as ‘Volunteer Marsh’. To do this, we created a channel through the sea wall to allow tidal waters into the Marsh to deposit sediment. 

However, rising sea levels, caused by climate change, have increased the amount of water rushing through the channel. Now, rather than depositing sediment, the water is eroding Volunteer Marsh and eating away at the sea defences. 

This ever-accelerating process puts all the reserve’s freshwater lagoons, and the wildlife that relies on them, at risk. To preserve these invaluable habitats, we need to act immediately, and your donation would help us to do so. 

We are acting now to preserve these invaluable habitats, and your donation will help.

The solution

We are introducing a Regulated Tidal Exchange and spillwayto reduce the impact of tidal erosion
Reduced tidal energy willallow sediment to accumulateand encourage saltmarsh plant growth
We will create new islands and lagoons toenhance feeding and breeding habitatsfor Avocets, Ringed Plovers and Common Terns

Take flight with Titchwell

Titchwell’s Parrinder Hide was built to provide guests with sensational views of its lagoons, saltmarsh and wildlife. However, the area has not developed in the way that we had hoped.

But the rejuvenation of Volunteer Marsh will encourage an explosion of bird activity for many years to come. This will help Parrinder Hide, and the reserve, to provide a much-improved visitor experience and become a thriving hub for nature lovers.  

Donate today to help restore Volunteer Marsh and support wildlife for decades to come. 

A habitat under threat

In the following video, Milo Sumner, East Coast Wetland Programme Manager for the RSPB, explains what coastal wetland is and why it is so important for our wildlife.