4 Sq Miles
SEA, SALT AND WAR
Nowhere in Great Britain does such a natural diversity occur within such a small area. Nested on England’s panoramic east coast, Donna Nook proffers an outstanding natural ecology. With a huge Salt Marsh, one of the most effective habitats for carbon capture and is stated to be more effective than tropical rainforests.
The salt marsh, sand dunes, wetland habitats and the ebbing tides provide perfect feeding grounds for many wading birds, wildfowl and songbirds. In springtime, the sand dunes and meadows are alive with the song of the skylark and the echo of Cuckoo. Curlews, Dunlin, Knot, Oystercatchers, Redshanks, Brent geese, Shovelers and other species feed on the ebbing tide. On inland marshes, Egrets and Avocets, Herons and Lapwings can be seen flitting away when a Peregrine falcon or Hobby darts close or a Hen Harrier, Buzzard and Red Kite glides nearby.
Thousands of Grey seals bask in the low sun un-nerved as fast jets practice live-fire exercises. One of the rarest Grey seal colonies in Great Britain is resident on the sandbank. They migrate to the shore and have pups every November to January. In 2020, over 2000 seal pups were born.
The Royal Air Force and the United States Air Force use the beaches as an air weapons range where billion-dollar jets and helicopter gunships flown by top-gun pilots practice live firing. Other than Donna Nook being an active air weapons range, there is a unique world war two history. Including the remains of a hospital for injured Lancaster bomber crews returning from missions over enemy territories and a prisoner of war camp, where drawings can be seen by some very artistic prisoners.
Shared within this landscape are rich, sustainable acreages of agricultural farmland producing crops of barley, wheat, maize, rape and vegetables with wildflower, lapwing meadows for grazing beef herds.
