Bempton Cliffs

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title: "Bempton Cliffs" type: doc version: 1 created: 2026-02-28 author: "Wikipedia contributors" status: active scope: public tags: ["royal-society-for-the-protection-of-birds-reserves-in-england", "rspb-visitor-centres-in-england", "birdwatching-sites-in-england", "cliffs-of-england", "protected-areas-of-the-east-riding-of-yorkshire", "nature-reserves-in-the-east-riding-of-yorkshire", "yorkshire-coast"] description: "RSPB nature reserve in the East Riding of Yorkshire, England" topic_path: "geography/united-kingdom" source: "https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Bempton_Cliffs" license: "CC BY-SA 4.0" wikipedia_page_id: 0 wikipedia_revision_id: 0

::summary RSPB nature reserve in the East Riding of Yorkshire, England ::

::data[format=table title="Infobox landform"]

Field	Value
name	Bempton Cliffs
type	Cliff
photo	File:Bempton Cliffs Stack From New Roll Up Viewing Platform.jpg
photo_caption	Staple Newk stack at Bempton Cliffs, UK, viewed from the New Roll Up viewing platform.
map	United Kingdom East Riding of Yorkshire
label_position	left
location	East Riding of Yorkshire, England
grid_ref_UK	TA 201 738
coordinates
elevation_ft
surface_elevation_ft
area
geology
website
::

| water = | name = Bempton Cliffs | other_name = | type = Cliff | photo = File:Bempton Cliffs Stack From New Roll Up Viewing Platform.jpg | photo_width = | photo_alt = | photo_caption = Staple Newk stack at Bempton Cliffs, UK, viewed from the New Roll Up viewing platform. | map = United Kingdom East Riding of Yorkshire | map_width = | map_caption = | map_alt = | relief = | label = | label_position = left | mark = | marker_size = | location = East Riding of Yorkshire, England | grid_ref = | grid_ref_UK = TA 201 738 | grid_ref_Ireland = | coordinates = | coordinates_ref = | range = | part_of = | water_bodies = | elevation_ft = | elevation_ref = | surface_elevation_ft = | surface_elevation_ref = | highest_point = | highest_elevation = | highest_coords = | length = | width = | area = | depth = | drop = | formed_by = | geology = | age = | orogeny = | volcanic_arc/belt = | volcanic_arc = | volcanic_belt = | volcanic_field = | eruption = | last_eruption = | topo = | operator = | designation = | free_label_1 = | free_data_1 = | free_label_2 = | free_data_2 = | website = | embedded = 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.

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 10 km from Flamborough Head north towards Filey and are over 100 m 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 530 ft. The area administered by the RSPB also includes Buckton Cliffs.

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

Bird species

Gannets

Bempton Cliffs is home to the only mainland breeding colony of gannets in England. 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 kittiwakes (Rissa tridactyla) nest here.

Puffins

The Atlantic puffins (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. The puffins along the Yorkshire coast are now endangered.

The Bempton puffins mostly fly 40 km 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 degree rise in local sea temperatures.

Tree sparrows

The RSPB reports that tree sparrows are very common, nesting in boxes at the visitor centre.

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.

In fiction

The cliffs play an important role in Belinda Bauer's 2025 novel The Impossible Thing, which focuses on the search for a rare red guillemot egg robbed from the cliffs.

References

References

1. (2015). "Bempton Cliffs: revamped seabird centre opens". BBC News.
2. (12 July 2013). "Flamborough Head, East Yorkshire: towering cliffs, by foot or by boat". The Guardian.
3. "Find Walks Bridlington Area".
4. "RSPB Website". RSPB.
5. (29 October 2015). "Puffins 'gone from Yorkshire coast in 10 years'". Yorkshire Post.
6. Pocklington, E., "Bempton Cliffs" in ''[[Royal Society for the Protection of Birds#The RSPB Magazine. The RSPB Magazine]]'', Winter/Spring 2026, page 50
7. (31 March 2017). "Art on the cliff tops – Bempton Cliffs – Bempton Cliffs – The RSPB Community".
8. crimefictionlover. (2025-03-20). "The Impossible Thing by Belinda Bauer {{!}} Crime Fiction Lover".

::callout[type=info title="Wikipedia Source"] This article was imported from Wikipedia and is available under the Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 4.0 License. Content has been adapted to SurfDoc format. Original contributors can be found on the article history page. ::