Plym Estuary is located in the east of Plymouth with the A374 Embankment Road running along its western side. The site covers 114.9 hectares and consists of Saltram Saltmarsh, Crabtree Reclaim and the Plym Estuary area above the Laira Bridge.
Saltram saltmarsh is owned and managed by the National Trust and is accessible to the public. A variety of habitats are present including saltmarsh, grassland and woodland.
The site is designated as a County Wildlife Site because several Devon notable plant species have been found at the site.
Species include:
- Brookweed
- Glasswort
- Sea aster
- Wild celery
- Lesser sea-spurrey
The site is also designated because of the wintering bird interest.
0.5 per cent of the British wintering population of:
- Mandarin
- Little egret
- Greenshank
- Common sandpiper
- Mediterranean gull
- Herring gull
- Glaucous gull
- Iceland gull
0.1 per cent of the British wintering population of:
- Avocet
- Red-breasted merganser
- Dunlin
- Curlew
- Redshank
- Green sandpiper