Leigh Marshall

Head of Reserve Management

About me

I have enjoyed a fruitful 34-year career in conservation working on most habitats in the UK, from a variety of wetlands, heathlands, fens, Scottish mountains and bogs to the remote islands of Shetland and the Farne Islands and the delights of Gibraltar point near Skegness.

My passion has always been doing the best for conservation and its species. I am an all-round naturalist, but birds, moths and butterflies have always been at the top of my list. I have spent many holidays in remote parts of the world looking at wildlife and enjoying the culture and people.

I have been able to work with so many great people, and most likely annoyed most of them with my flamboyant, experimental, and winging it solution finding, and now here I am putting all my life’s work in to supporting WWT reserves in the UK in our ever-changing environment.

My claim to fame is, I ran 353 km round Norfolk on trails and beaches in 88 hours, with three hours of sleep then realising I had to work straight afterwards.

My role

In a nutshell, I am here to support WWT reserves and the teams around me in any way I can to improve habitats, to increase species diversity and to create more wetlands for nature and for people to enjoy them.

Experience and interests

• Working on species protection and monitoring for most taxa in the UK.
• Bringing people to experience wildlife in new innovative ways without compromising the site and species and seeing the results.
• Managed the Welney Wetland Centre for 18 years: this involved managing a site with a 1,300-acre internationally important wetland and a café and shop, setting up two Airbnb’s, and creating a 300-acre wetland with 0 cost to WWT. And during all of this, being proud of the teamwork taken to achieve this and to make a growing and sustainable business for nature conservation.
• Working with lots of different people and situations all over the world: I feel I have a natural way of surviving both challenging situations and getting results.
• I love wildlife experiences, from being lost in an Indian jungle for a day, but seeing amazing insects and birds, to opening a moth trap and being totally zoned in for three hours emptying a good haul of moths.