Where to See Wildlife in England

By Carol Leather


England has wildlife walks worth the boot leather well beyond the famous reserves. This page gathers the ones I've walked myself, county by county. It's a growing list: it starts in the eastern counties and along the Yorkshire coast, and I add new places as I get to explore them.

Many are open, easy-going places. Good for a first wildlife walk, and good for birds, butterflies and other wildlife as you go.

A few of them gave us firsts we still talk about. Cranes bugling over the flooded ground at Nene Washes. Swallowtails drifting across the Norfolk reeds, found at last after more than one hopeful trip. They are the kind of places that have you lacing your boots for a second visit.

New to this?You don't have to travel far, and you don't have to name everything you see. Start with whichever of these counties is easiest for you to reach, walk slowly, and let the place show you what's there.

Sunset over the washes at Nene Washes Cambridgeshire

Browse the counties and featured reserves below for where to go and what you might see.

Wildlife Walks in England, County by County

Cambridgeshire

Big skies, open fens, and wetlands that fill with wintering birds. Reserves like Nene Washes, Fowlmere and the Grafham Water reserve offer very different days out.

Norfolk

Wildlife-rich from the Broads to the coast, and the only place in the UK to find the native swallowtail butterfly. Strumpshaw Fen fills with them in summer.

Northamptonshire

Old Rockingham Forest country, with ancient woodland and wetland. Fermyn Woods is one of the few UK sites for the purple emperor; Pitsford Reservoir has eight bird hides.

Rutland

Home to Rutland Water Nature Reserve, an internationally important wetland. The reintroduced ospreys are the summer draw.

East Yorkshire

Towering chalk cliffs and shifting landforms like Spurn Point. One of the best places in the country for vast seabird colonies and autumn migration.

If you want a few standout days to start with, these four reward the trip.

Nene Washes, Cambridgeshire

A winter morning in the Fens: sunrise over the washes, whooper swans on the water, and short-eared owls hunting the flooded fields.

Strumpshaw Fen, Norfolk

A summer trip into the Broads for the UK's only native swallowtail, with dragonflies and reedbeds for company, and the reward of finding what you came for.

RSPB Bempton Cliffs, Yorkshire

A clifftop walk in seabird season: puffins, gannets, guillemots, and the noise and movement of one of the country's great seabird gatherings.

Spurn Point, Yorkshire

A walk along a narrow, ever-shifting spit of land, reading the birds and wildlife that pass through on autumn migration.

Whooper swan, Nene Washes
Swallowtail, Strumpshaw Fen
Puffin, Bempton Cliffs

Each one offers something different: wetland, woodland, butterflies, seabirds, wide open coast. I hope they send you somewhere new, and that one of them becomes a place you come back to.

portrait of the author Carol Leather

I've spent over 30 years walking and photographing UK wildlife, with work featured in Canon EOS Magazine and a Wildlife Trusts calendar. I still learn something new on most outings.

This site is my field notebook full of photo tips, help on identifying what you see, and how to decide where to walk.

Step Behind the Wild Lens

Seasonal field notes from my wildlife walks: recent encounters, the story behind favourite photos, and simple, practical tips you can use on your next outing.