Friends in partnership with the Borough who own the land. It is in Shepperton, either side of the M3 as Splash Meadow in the south-east and Nutty Wood to the north-west. The Reserve is linked by a large footbridge and has a variety of wildlife, mixed woodland, wildflower glades, ponds and the river. Conservation over the years has helped to increase the biodiversity of the area and as well as monitoring and recording the wealth of species; the volunteers continue to enhance the site for the benefit of the wildlife and enjoyment of the public. In 2017 the Ash Link Local Nature Reserve was awarded a Gold Medal in the 'South and South East in Bloom' competition run by the Royal Horticultural Society; the next year the Friends received the 'Queen's Award for Voluntary Services.' On the edge of Shepperton Studios (the Littleton "new" manor house estate), Studios Walk is a strip of Ash-side habitat. A surfaced path runs from west to east ends offering easy access and viewpoints over the river, unsurfaced paths also exist. The woodland onsite is ecologically important thanks to numerous veteran oaks of type quercus robur which promote a vast array of invertebrates. An oak tree can support 100 times the invertebrate abundance of acer pseudoplatanus sycamores. which, in turn, sustain bats, mice and squirrels. The rough bark and natural crevices that appear over time make ideal roosting. The natural progression of woodland into dead wood make the site an ideal habitat for stag beetles lucanidae, iconic insects requiring large sections of dead wood to feed and for the development of larvae. Kingfishers of type alcedo atthis often are seen at these zones using the river as a foraging corridor. The marginal and in-channel habitat along with the sections of still water also offers ideal refuge for amphibians. In 2016 a project was undertaken alongside the Environment Agency which formed part of the ColnCAN's "Weir today: gone tomorrow" programme. The works were the notching of a weir, installation of a new control structure and restoring a relic channel to serve as a by-pass channel to the main weir. The principal aim being to improve fish passage. About 600 metres was restored to provide favourable flow variations and enhanced aquatic and terrestrial habitat for a broad range of species. See also List of rivers in England Tributaries of the River Thames River morphology Notes and references