Insh Marshes are an area of

floodplain A floodplain or flood plain or bottomlands is an area of land adjacent to a river. Floodplains stretch from the banks of a river channel to the base of the enclosing valley, and experience flooding during periods of high Discharge (hydrolog ...

of the

River Spey The River Spey () is a river in the northeast of Scotland. At it is the ninth longest river in the United Kingdom and the third longest and fastest-flowing river in Scotland. It is an important location for the traditions of salmon fishing an ...

between

Kingussie Kingussie ( ; ) is a small town in the Badenoch and Strathspey ward of the Highland council area of Scotland. Counties of Scotland, Historically in Inverness-shire, it lies beside the A9 road (Great Britain), A9 road, although the old route of ...

and Kincraig in

Badenoch and Strathspey Badenoch and Strathspey was a Districts of Scotland, local government district, created in 1975 as one of eight districts within the Highland (region), Highland region in Scotland. The district was abolished in 1996 when Highland was made a s ...

Highland Highlands or uplands are areas of high elevation such as a mountainous region, elevated mountainous plateau or high hills. Generally, ''upland'' refers to a range of hills, typically from up to , while ''highland'' is usually reserved for range ...

Scotland Scotland is a Countries of the United Kingdom, country that is part of the United Kingdom. It contains nearly one-third of the United Kingdom's land area, consisting of the northern part of the island of Great Britain and more than 790 adjac ...

. The marshes are said to be one of the most important

wetland A wetland is a distinct semi-aquatic ecosystem whose groundcovers are flooded or saturated in water, either permanently, for years or decades, or only seasonally. Flooding results in oxygen-poor ( anoxic) processes taking place, especially ...

s in Europe. They lie at an altitude of approximately above sea level, and form one of the largest areas of floodplain mire and fen vegetation in Scotland. The marshes cover around , and hold a number of conservation designations. of the area is owned and managed by the

Royal Society for the Protection of Birds The Royal Society for the Protection of Birds (RSPB) is a Charitable_organization#United_Kingdom, charitable organisation registered in Charity Commission for England and Wales, England and Wales and in Office of the Scottish Charity Regulator, ...

(RSPB), and forms a national nature reserve. The RSPB have laid out several waymarked trails, and provided two bird hides to allow visitors to appreciate the area and its birdlife.

Flora and fauna

The marshes are dominated by sedge plants, with the boreal species string sedge and water sedge being present. The site is one of only two in Britain for string sedge (the other being Loch Naver at Altnaharra). It also supports many other flowering plants including least water-lily, awlwort, cowbane and shady horsetail.River Spey - Insh Marshes SSSI Citation. p. 1.River Spey - Insh Marshes SSSI Citation. p. 2. Many rare wetland invertebrates can be found at Insh Marshes, including various species of flies, beetles and moths. It is the only site in Britain at which the spider '' Wabasso replicatus'' has been identified. Other notable invertebrate species present include the aquatic beetle '' Donacia aquatica'', the fly '' Tipula marginella'', the horse-fly '' Hybomitra lurida'' and the snipe-fly '' Thereva inornata''. The birch woodlands above the marshes are home to several moth species, including Rannoch sprawler and cousin german. In October 2014, a

species A species () is often defined as the largest group of organisms in which any two individuals of the appropriate sexes or mating types can produce fertile offspring, typically by sexual reproduction. It is the basic unit of Taxonomy (biology), ...

insect Insects (from Latin ') are Hexapoda, hexapod invertebrates of the class (biology), class Insecta. They are the largest group within the arthropod phylum. Insects have a chitinous exoskeleton, a three-part body (Insect morphology#Head, head, ...

called ''Molanna angustata'', a type of

caddisfly The caddisflies (order Trichoptera) are a group of insects with aquatic larvae and terrestrial adults. There are approximately 14,500 described species, most of which can be divided into the suborders Integripalpia and Annulipalpia on the basis ...

that inhabits

Wales Wales ( ) is a Countries of the United Kingdom, country that is part of the United Kingdom. It is bordered by the Irish Sea to the north and west, England to the England–Wales border, east, the Bristol Channel to the south, and the Celtic ...

and

England England is a Countries of the United Kingdom, country that is part of the United Kingdom. It is located on the island of Great Britain, of which it covers about 62%, and List of islands of England, more than 100 smaller adjacent islands. It ...

up to the

Lake District The Lake District, also known as ''the Lakes'' or ''Lakeland'', is a mountainous region and National parks of the United Kingdom, national park in Cumbria, North West England. It is famous for its landscape, including its lakes, coast, and mou ...

and

Yorkshire Yorkshire ( ) is an area of Northern England which was History of Yorkshire, historically a county. Despite no longer being used for administration, Yorkshire retains a strong regional identity. The county was named after its county town, the ...

was identified here. Genevieve Dalley, a

RSPB The Royal Society for the Protection of Birds (RSPB) is a Charitable_organization#United_Kingdom, charitable organisation registered in Charity Commission for England and Wales, England and Wales and in Office of the Scottish Charity Regulator, ...

trainee ecologist discovered and identified two males caught in a

moth trap Moth traps are devices used for capturing moths for scientific research or domestic pest control. Entomologists use moth traps to study moth populations, behavior, distribution, and role in ecosystems, contributing to biodiversity conservation ...

at the marshes near

: the species had not previously been recorded in Scotland.

Arctic charr The Arctic char or Arctic charr (''Salvelinus alpinus'') is a cold-water fish in the family Salmonidae, native to alpine lakes, as well as Arctic and subarctic coastal waters in the Holarctic. Distribution and habitat It spawns in freshwater ...

spawn along the River Spey and its side-streams, and the area provides an ideal habitat for

otter Otters are carnivorous mammals in the subfamily Lutrinae. The 13 extant otter species are all semiaquatic, aquatic, or marine. Lutrinae is a branch of the Mustelidae family, which includes weasels, badgers, mink, and wolverines, among ...

. The Insh Marshes are most noted for the many species of birds that breed here each summer. Breeding species include

osprey The osprey (; ''Pandion haliaetus''), historically known as sea hawk, river hawk, and fish hawk, is a diurnal, fish-eating bird of prey with a cosmopolitan range. It is a large raptor, reaching more than in length and a wingspan of . It ...

, ducks such as

Eurasian wigeon The Eurasian wigeon or European wigeon (''Mareca penelope''), also known as the widgeon or the wigeon, is one of three species of wigeon in the dabbling duck genus ''Mareca''. It is common and widespread within its Palearctic range. Taxonomy T ...

, shoveler and

goldeneye ''GoldenEye'' is a 1995 spy film, the seventeenth in the List of James Bond films, ''James Bond'' series produced by Eon Productions, and the first to star Pierce Brosnan as the fictional Secret Intelligence Service, MI6 agent James Bond (lit ...

, and waders including redshank,

snipe A snipe is any of about 26 wading bird species in three genera in the family Scolopacidae. They are characterized by a very long, slender bill, eyes placed high on the head, and cryptic/ camouflaging plumage. ''Gallinago'' snipe have a nearly ...

curlew The curlews () are a group of nine species of birds in the genus ''Numenius'', characterised by their long, slender, downcurved bills and mottled brown plumage. The English name is imitative of the Eurasian curlew's call, but may have been infl ...

and

lapwing Lapwings (subfamily Vanellinae) are any of various ground-nesting birds (Family (biology), family Charadriidae) akin to plovers and dotterels. They range from in length, and are noted for their slow, irregular wingbeats in flight and a shrill, ...

. The marshes also receive winter visitors including greylag geese from Iceland and up 200

whooper swan The whooper swan ( /ˈhuːpə(ɹ) swɒn/ "hooper swan"; ''Cygnus cygnus''), also known as the common swan, is a large northern hemisphere swan. It is the Eurasian counterpart of the North American trumpeter swan, and the type species for the genu ...

Conservation designations

In addition to being a national nature reserve (NNR), the marshes hold several other conservation designations. The marshes, together with a stretch of the River Spey, form a designated

Site of Special Scientific Interest A Site of Special Scientific Interest (SSSI) in Great Britain, or an Area of Special Scientific Interest (ASSI) in the Isle of Man and Northern Ireland, is a conservation designation denoting a protected area in the United Kingdom and Isle ...

(SSSI) entitled "River Spey - Insh Marshes", that covers just under . The area of the SSSI is also designated as both a

Special Protection Area A special protection area (SPA) is a designation under the European Union Directive on the Conservation of Wild Birds. Under the Directive, Member States of the European Union (EU) have a duty to safeguard the habitats of migratory birds and cer ...

(SPA) and a

Special Area of Conservation A special area of conservation (SAC) is defined in the European Union's Habitats Directive (92/43/EEC), also known as the ''Directive on the Conservation of Natural Habitats and of Wild Fauna and Flora''. They are to protect the 220 habitats and ap ...

under the

Natura 2000 Natura 2000 is a network of nature protection areas in the territory of the European Union. It is made up of Special Areas of Conservation and Special Protection Areas designated under the Habitats Directive and the Birds Directive, respectiv ...

programme, as well as being a listed site under the

Ramsar Convention The Ramsar Convention on Wetlands of International Importance Especially as Waterfowl Habitat is an international treaty for the conservation and sustainable use of Ramsar site, Ramsar sites (wetlands). It is also known as the Convention on We ...

. The Insh Marshes national nature reserve is classified as a Category IV

protected area Protected areas or conservation areas are locations which receive protection because of their recognized natural or cultural values. Protected areas are those areas in which human presence or the exploitation of natural resources (e.g. firewood ...

by the

International Union for Conservation of Nature The International Union for Conservation of Nature (IUCN) is an international organization working in the field of nature conservation and sustainable use of natural resources. Founded in 1948, IUCN has become the global authority on the stat ...

References

Citations

Bibliography

External links

Scotland's National Nature Reserves
*
Special Protection Area designation
* - case study at Caledonia Centre for Social Development website {{RSPB sites in Scotland Royal Society for the Protection of Birds reserves in Scotland Special Protection Areas in Scotland Badenoch and Strathspey Ramsar sites in Scotland Sites of Special Scientific Interest in Badenoch and Strathspey Special Areas of Conservation in Scotland Protected areas of Highland (council area) Floodplains of Europe Marshes of the United Kingdom National nature reserves in Scotland