Cardiff Bay Wetlands Reserve

The area had previously been salt marsh, but the Barrage created 200 hectares of freshwater lake, and from this the reserve was developed.

[1] Edmund Nuttall Ltd. won the GB£120,000 contract to build the Reserve, and work was completed by the end of November 2003.

We didn't know the extent to which the water level in the bay might fluctuate and therefore affect the new communities of species we are trying to attract.

The Cardiff Bay Wetlands Reserve can be found near St David's Hotel close to Mermaid Quay.

Prior to the construction of the Cardiff Bay Barrage, this area was made up of mudflats and salt marsh.

The reedbed, a UK Biodiversity Action Plan habitat, along with other aquatic plants, are very productive vegetation.

A number of coarse fish species benefit from the warm water and abundance of submerged aquatic vegetation which exists almost exclusively in this part of the Bay.

Although public access is not permitted onto the main body of the reserve, this is to allow excellent breeding and feeding conditions to develop for the species present.