Threatened wildlife that our conservation work is helping to protect includes the beautiful Barn Owl, the Water Vole – ‘Ratty’ from The Wind in the Willows – the rare Heath Fritillary butterfly, orchids, bats, and those icons of the Essex estuaries, Brent Geese. 

Habitats we manage and maintain include ancient woodland, wildflower meadow, rivers, saltmarsh, farmland and grassland. Among our reserves are famous sites, such as Fingringhoe Wick, home to thousands of wildfowl and waders and the best place in the country to see and hear Nightingales in spring, Abberton Reservoir and Thurrock Thameside Nature Park, a ground-breaking project on a former landfill site, opened by Sir David Attenborough, in 2013. 

The landscape conservation team at Essex Wildlife Trust is implementing the Trust's visions for the future, Living Landscapes, where large areas of land are reconnected for wildlife and people, and Living Seas, where are marine life is protected and connected, in healthy waters.

Your donations help us to fund this vital work.