Shapwick Heath National Nature Reserve

Shapwick Heath NNR is a major wetland reserve forming a large part of the Avalon Marshes.

It boasts a wide variety of habitats, including traditionally managed herb-rich grassland, ferny wet woodland, fen, scrub, and ditches rich in aquatic plants and invertebrates.

To download a leaflet describing this NNR, click here .

The NNR comprises former peat harvesting areas that were given to English Nature by Levington Horticulture. By raising and controlling water levels these areas have been transformed into a watery wilderness of open water, reed swamp and reedbed.

Otters, as well as many insects, plants and birds, populate the whole area. Small pockets of sphagnum moss, which once covered the whole valley floor, can also be found.

The best time to visit the reserve for the local flora is in the spring; for birds the site can be visited all year round.

Shapwick Heath is also the location of the Neolithic Sweet Path, the oldest man-made routeway in Britain.