Wildlife

Seal Trips

With some of the largest colonies of common and grey seals in the UK, the Norfolk coast is an ideal place to set off for a spot of seal watching. Blakeney Point is home to England’s most successful breeding colony, with over 2,500 pups born annually.

Boats run by a few local companies, all with decades of experience of these waters, set off from Morston and Blakeney Harbour to the Point. Best information is here.

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Wildlife reserves

There are 2 RSPB reserves at  Snettisham RSPB offering views across the saline lagoons, salt marshes and mud flats of The Wash and Titchwell Marsh with diverse habitats of salt marsh, reed-beds and fresh water lagoons.

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It’s at Snettisham too that the Snettisham Spectulars take place. At certain high tides, thousands of wading birds are pushed off the mudflats, en masse, by a fast incoming tide swirling into the air together in the most amazing display. Check out the dates, many requiring an early morning alarm, but well worth it!

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Holme Dunes is a NWT reserve holding a variety of important habitats which support numerous other wildlife species including natterjack toads, butterflies and dragonflies, as well as a large number of interesting plants. It is an important breeding site for many wetland birds, a wintering site for many thousands of wildfowl, and a seasonal migration stopover point for many other birds – sometimes in huge numbers.

Sea Life, Hunstanton a state-of-the-art marine aquarium taking visitors on a memorable undersea odyssey filled with amazing close encounters with sea creatures.

Wild Ken Hill Less than 5 minutes drive from Britannia Cottage is the Wild Ken Hill reserve featured regularly in the BBC’s Spring and Winterwatch series and habitat of 2 pairs of beavers which were re-introduced to the reserve in 2020. Check out their website for Guided Tours
 

Watatunga Wildlife Reserve is located just 30 minutes drive away to the south of King’s Lynn. Awarded the “Best New EcoTourism Destination 2022” award their focus is on conserving and preserving endangered species. Covering over 170 acres of woodland, grassland, wetland and lakes, this diverse habitat makes it an ideal environment for all their animals to thrive, which includes over twenty types of ungulate (modern hoofed animals ie. deer) and rare bird species.