| Site of Special Scientific Interest | |
 East Marsh Pool with Willow Island in the foreground, July 2009 | |
| Location | Warwickshire |
|---|---|
| Grid reference | SP386762 |
| Interest | Biological |
| Area | 92 hectares |
| Notification | 1973 |
Brandon Marsh is a Site of Special Scientific Interest (SSSI) and nature reserve in Warwickshire, England. It is situated adjacent to the River Avon, near the village of Brandon, a few miles east of Coventry.
The reserve is also the headquarters of the Warwickshire Wildlife Trust.[1] Formerly used for sand and gravel quarrying, the 92 hectares (230 acres) site is owned by French industrial company LaFarge Industries and is leased to the Trust.[2][3]
Today, Brandon Marsh is a mixture of flooded gravel pits, fen, scrubland, reedbeds and woodland, much of which is uncommon habitat for the local area.[4] The site is particularly important for birdlife, with a wide range of breeding and wintering birds—237 different species had been recorded up to the end of 2018.[5] The reserve also supports a variety of mammals and insects, over 500 species of plant, and more than 570 species of fungi.[6] The nature reserve and Visitor Centre are open to the public seven days a week.
- ^ "Warwickshire's beauty could be wiped out". Coventry Evening Telegraph. 31 July 2002. Retrieved 7 June 2008.
- ^ "Brandon Marsh SSSI". Warwickshire Wildlife Trust. Retrieved 7 November 2016.
- ^ "Hydrological & Hydrogeological Assessment" (PDF). Warwickshire County Council. 4 February 2008. Archived from the original (PDF) on 8 June 2008. Retrieved 7 June 2008.
- ^ "Brandon Marsh SSSI Notification" (PDF). English Nature. Retrieved 21 July 2009.[permanent dead link]
- ^ Brandon Marsh Nature Reserve Report, 2018. Brandon Marsh Voluntary Conservation Team. May 2019.
- ^ Rushforth; Wincott; Yates (May 2014). Brandon Marsh Nature Reserve Report, 2013. Brandon Marsh Voluntary Conservation Team.