Thames Estuary and Marshes (2615)
United Kingdom, Europe
Site overview
KBA status: confirmed
Year of last assessment: 2007
National site name: Thames Estuary and Marshes
Central coordinates: Latitude: 51.4667, Longitude: 0.5333
System: marine, terrestrial
Elevation (m): 0 to 15
Area of KBA (km2): 93.89914
Protected area coverage (%): 72.12
KBA classification: Regional
Legacy site: Yes
Site details
Site description: These marshes extend for about 15 km along the coast on the south side of the Thames, and include areas of the inner Thames up to the Thames barrier. Habitat-types include extensive grazing-marshes, saltmarshes, mudflats and pits. Reed Phragmites and duckweed Lemna dominate the freshwater dykes, with Ceratophyllum in the more brackish dykes. Waders and wildfowl breed on the grazing-marshes, which also attract wintering raptors. The IBA attracts a wide range of wintering and passage estuarine and wetland birds.
Rationale for qualifying as KBA: This site qualifies as a Key Biodiversity Area of international significance that was identified using previously established criteria and thresholds for the identification of Important Bird and Biodiversity Areas (IBAs) and for which available data indicate that it does not meet global KBA criteria and thresholds set out in the Global Standard.
Delineation rationale: First identified in 1989 as South Thames Marshes; extended and renamed in 1992; further extended upstream in 2000; Holehaven Creek added in 2007. 2000 area of 12030ha was overestimate. SPA boundary used from JNCC; digitised at 1:10,000 scale. Additional area added on 1:50,000 maps.
Habitats
Land use: agriculture | nature conservation and research | urban/industrial/transport
| IUCN Habitat | Coverage % | Habitat detail |
|---|---|---|
| Marine Intertidal | 25 | |
| Grassland | 25 | |
| Forest | 5 | |
| Shrubland | 5 | |
| Artificial - Terrestrial | 5 | |
| Wetlands(Inland) | 5 | |
| Marine Coastal/Supratidal | 5 | |
| Marine Neritic | 25 |
Threats
| Threat level 1 | Threat level 2 | Threat level 3 | Timing |
|---|---|---|---|
| Natural system modifications | Dams & water management/use | Small dams | Only in the future |
| Energy production & mining | Renewable energy | Only in the future | |
| Pollution | Garbage & solid waste | Only in the future | |
| Transportation & service corridors | Shipping lanes | Only in the future | |
| Transportation & service corridors | Roads & railroads | Only in the future | |
| Residential & commercial development | Commercial & industrial areas | Only in the future | |
| Natural system modifications | Other ecosystem modifications | Ongoing | |
| Climate change & severe weather | Habitat shifting & alteration | Ongoing |