Buckenham Marshes RSPB reserve

Buckenham Marshes is a nature reserve beside the River Yare in Norfolk, managed by the Royal Society for the Protection of Birds. It lies eight miles south-east of Norwich near the village of Buckenham, within the Broads. The land holds reedbeds, grazing marsh and wet woodlands of alder and willow, with patches of open water. A large rookery sits at the edge of the site, where up to 80,000 rooks gather each evening. The reserve is the only regular winter home in England for bean geese, which arrive each year to feed on the marshes. Lapwing and wigeon are also common throughout the site, feeding and nesting among the varied habitats. The reserve shares its boundary with the RSPB’s Strumpshaw Fen reserve to the west, and together they form part of the Mid-Yare National Nature Reserve. The Yare Broads and Marshes are designated a Site of Special Scientific Interest. Visitors walk along paths that cross the grazing marsh and skirt the reedbeds, where birds feed and roost. The railway line runs along the northern edge, and Buckenham station sits just beside the reserve. Views stretch across wide water meadows and stands of willow, with the rookery visible at dusk when flocks return to roost.