Editing Bempton Cliffs

{{Short description|RSPB nature reserve in the East Riding of Yorkshire, England}}
{{Use British English|date=April 2017}}
{{Use dmy dates|date=April 2017}}
{{Infobox landform
| water             = 
| name              = Bempton Cliffs
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| type              = [[Cliff]]
| photo             = File:Bempton Cliffs Stack From New Roll Up Viewing Platform.jpg
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| photo_caption     = Staple Newk stack at Bempton Cliffs, UK, viewed from the New Roll Up viewing platform.
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| location          = [[East Riding of Yorkshire]], [[England]]
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| grid_ref_UK       = TA 201 738
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'''Bempton Cliffs''' is a section of precipitous coast at [[Bempton]] in the [[East Riding of Yorkshire]], [[England]]. It is run by the [[RSPB]] as a [[nature reserve]] and is known for its breeding seabirds, including [[northern gannet]], [[Atlantic puffin]], [[razorbill]], [[common guillemot]], [[black-legged kittiwake]] and [[fulmar]]. There is a visitor centre.<ref name="BBC">{{cite news |url=https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/uk-england-humber-32173894 |title=Bempton Cliffs: revamped seabird centre opens |date=2015|accessdate=18 August 2018|work=BBC News}}</ref>

==Location==
The hard [[chalk]] cliffs at [[Bempton]] rise are relatively resistant to [[erosion]] and offer many sheltered headlands and crevices for nesting birds. The cliffs run about {{convert|10|km|mi|0|order=flip}} from [[Flamborough Head]] north towards [[Filey]] and are over {{convert|100|m|ft|order=flip}} high at points.

The cliffs at Bempton are some of the highest chalk cliffs in England, Beachy Head in East Sussex being the highest at {{convert|530|ft}}.<ref>{{cite news|last1=Rushby|first1=Kevin|title=Flamborough Head, East Yorkshire: towering cliffs, by foot or by boat|url=https://www.theguardian.com/travel/2013/jul/12/flamborough-head-yorkshire-walking|accessdate=6 April 2017|work=The Guardian|date=12 July 2013}}</ref> The area administered by the RSPB also includes [[Buckton, East Riding of Yorkshire|Buckton]] Cliffs.<ref>{{cite web |title=Find Walks Bridlington Area |url=http://walkingtheriding.eastriding.gov.uk/find-walks/bridlington-area/?entryid30=36462 |website=Walking the Riding |accessdate=3 December 2019}}</ref>

There are good walkways along the top of the cliffs and several well fenced and protected observation points.

==Gannets==
Bempton Cliffs is home to the only mainland breeding colony of [[northern gannet|gannets]] in England.<ref>{{cite web |url=http://www.rspb.org.uk/wildlife/birdguide/name/g/gannet/index.aspx |title= RSPB Website |publisher=RSPB |accessdate=4 April 2010 | archiveurl= https://web.archive.org/web/20100406054550/http://www.rspb.org.uk/wildlife/birdguide/name/g/gannet/index.aspx| archivedate= 6 April 2010 | url-status= live}}</ref> The birds arrive at the colony from January and leave in August and September.

==Kittiwakes==
Numerically the most common bird, around 10% of the [[United Kingdom]] population of [[black-legged kittiwake|kittiwakes]] (''Rissa tridactyla'') nest here.

==Puffins==
The [[Atlantic puffin]]s (''Fratercula arctica'') at Bempton Cliffs tend to nest in rock crevices, whereas burrows are used at most UK sites. Although there are estimated to be around 958 birds (450 breeding pairs), it is relatively difficult to get a close view of them.<ref name=":YP:">{{cite news|title=Puffins 'gone from Yorkshire coast in 10 years'|url=http://www.yorkshirepost.co.uk/news/puffins-gone-from-yorkshire-coast-in-10-years-1-7542521|accessdate=6 April 2017|work=Yorkshire Post|date=29 October 2015|language=en}}</ref> The puffins along the Yorkshire coast are now endangered.

The Bempton puffins mostly fly {{convert|40|km|mi|order=flip}} east to the [[Dogger Bank]] to feed. Their numbers may however be adversely affected by a reduction in local [[sand eel]] numbers caused by [[global warming]], in turn caused by [[plankton]] being driven north by the 2&nbsp;degree rise in local sea temperatures.<ref name=":YP:" />

==Artwork==
A series of 22 panels of phonetic birdsong by artist [[Adrian Riley]] were commissioned by the RSPB in 2017 and are installed across the site near habitats appropriate to the birdsong in each panel.<ref>{{cite web|url=https://community.rspb.org.uk/placestovisit/bemptoncliffs/b/bemptoncliffs-blog/posts/art-on-the-cliff-tops|title=Art on the cliff tops – Bempton Cliffs – Bempton Cliffs – The RSPB Community|website=community.rspb.org.uk|date=31 March 2017 |accessdate=13 February 2024}}</ref>

==In fiction==
The cliffs play an important role in [[Belinda Bauer (author)|Belinda Bauer]]'s 2025 novel ''The Impossible Thing'', which focuses on the search for a rare red guillemot egg robbed from the cliffs.<ref>{{Cite web |last=crimefictionlover |date=2025-03-20 |title=The Impossible Thing by Belinda Bauer {{!}} Crime Fiction Lover |url=https://crimefictionlover.com/2025/03/the-impossible-thing-by-belinda-bauer/ |access-date=2025-04-21 |website=crimefictionlover.com |language=en-US}}</ref>

==References==
{{Reflist}}

== External links ==
{{Commons category|Bempton Cliffs}}
* [https://www.rspb.org.uk/days-out/reserves/bempton-cliffs RSPB Bempton Cliffs]
* [http://www.information-britain.co.uk/showPlace.cfm?Place_ID=4675 Information Britain entry]
* [http://www.yorkshire-guide.co.uk/flamborough.aspx Walks around Bempton Cliffs]
* [https://web.archive.org/web/20070421181849/http://www.travelpublishing.co.uk/HiddenPlacesYorkshire/EastYorkshire/YORRSPBBemptonCliffsNatureReserve.htm Travel Publishing information]
* [http://www.yorkshirecoastnature.co.uk/blog/227/bempton-cliffs-seabird-city Yorkshire Coast Nature]

{{Authority control}}

{{DEFAULTSORT:Bempton Cliffs}}
[[Category:Royal Society for the Protection of Birds reserves in England]]
[[Category:RSPB visitor centres in England]]
[[Category:Birdwatching sites in England]]
[[Category:Cliffs of England]]
[[Category:Protected areas of the East Riding of Yorkshire]]
[[Category:Nature reserves in the East Riding of Yorkshire]]
[[Category:Yorkshire coast]]