“Stand still, close your eyes and listen to the whispering of the fen... ”

These small valley fens have survived the threat of nearby dredging of the Little Ouse River and are havens for water-loving plants. Both Old Fen and Middle Fen are dominated by a mix of saw sedge and black bog rush, with shows of grass-of-Parnassus in the calcium-rich spring flushes. Marsh lousewort grows here along with stonewort an interesting algae whose skeleton can be seen in pools amongst the sedge.

Old Fen is now mainly alder carr and has dried out to some extent, but the mixed sedge fen in the middle is bursting with wild flowers. Breeding birds include snipe, with its drumming mating display, and grasshopper warbler, identified by its reeling song.

Grass-of-Parnassus

Open fen areas are cared for by mowing and scrub removal. Thelnetham Fen is cared for by Suffolk Wildlife Trust on behalf of Thelnetham Foeffe.

Other Trust reserves nearby: Hopton Fen, Market Weston Fen, Redgrave & Lopham Fen

Grasshopper warbler have a high pitched reeling song

STAR SPECIES
Grass-of-Parnassus
Stonewort
Black bog rush