Doxey Marshes

Doxey Marshes is a 150-hectare nature reserve two miles from Stafford town centre, managed by Staffordshire Wildlife Trust. It sits in the floodplain of the River Sow, where water regularly spreads across the grassland. The reserve is a Site of Special Scientific Interest for its wet grassland habitat and breeding wading birds. It supports important populations of snipe, lapwing and little ringed plover. Otters and water shrews also live here, making it one of the most threatened wildlife sites in the country. The marshes attract rare birds during migration in spring and autumn. Recent years have seen sightings of river warbler, marsh warbler, purple heron and cattle egret. Eurasian spoonbills and European bee-eaters have also been recorded. The shallow pools and muddy edges left by flooding provide feeding grounds for wading birds. Traditional grazing keeps the grass short for ground-nesting species to spot predators. Staffordshire Wildlife Trust manages the reserve with careful grazing and hand-cutting of rushes. Willow trees are pollarded to extend their lives and protect nesting birds from predators. Musk beetles live in the rotting wood of pollarded willows, while noctule bats roost in the trunks. Otters sometimes hide in the thick pollarded willow bushes during the day. The reserve offers quiet paths through wet grassland and open water, ideal for watching wildlife.