At first sight, the hard embankments of the Thames in central and east London may look inhospitable, but a closer look will show plants and insects finding a home in the cracks. At low tide, look down at the foreshore, and gulls can be seen feeding – more signs of life. Look up and you may be lucky enough to see a peregrine falcon that treats the high buildings as cliffs. The restoration of the docklands has given opportunities to re-create wildlife habitats: Bow creek, East India Dock, Greenwich Peninsular Ecology Park, Mudchute farm and Surrey Dock farm show how it has been done. Further down toward the M25 crossing at Dartford, marshland has been recovered and preserved to make exciting reserves like Rainham and Crossness.
- Bow Creek
- Crayford Marshes
- Creekside Centre, Deptford
- Crossness
- Greenwich Park
- Greenwich Peninsula
- Mudchute Park & Farm
- Rainham
- Surrey Dock Farm
- Thames Barrier Park