Guards Club Island, also known as Bucks Ait, is an island

Island

An island or isle is any piece of sub-continental land that is surrounded by water. Very small islands such as emergent land features on atolls can be called islets, cays or keys. An island in a river or lake may be called an eyot , or holm...

 in the River Thames

River Thames

The River Thames flows through southern England. It is the longest river entirely in England and the second longest in the United Kingdom. While it is best known because its lower reaches flow through central London, the river flows alongside several other towns and cities, including Oxford,...

 at Maidenhead Railway Bridge

Maidenhead Railway Bridge

Maidenhead Railway Bridge is a railway bridge carrying the main line of the Great Western Railway over the River Thames between Maidenhead, Berkshire and Taplow, Buckinghamshire, England...

, Berkshire

Berkshire

Berkshire is a historic county in the South of England. It is also often referred to as the Royal County of Berkshire because of the presence of the royal residence of Windsor Castle in the county; this usage, which dates to the 19th century at least, was recognised by the Queen in 1957, and...

. The island is connected to Guards Club Park by a low cast-iron and wood footbridge

Footbridge

A footbridge or pedestrian bridge is a bridge designed for pedestrians and in some cases cyclists, animal traffic and horse riders, rather than vehicular traffic. Footbridges complement the landscape and can be used decoratively to visually link two distinct areas or to signal a transaction...

 which blocks the channel from navigation. The island gets its alternative name from the eel buck

Eel buck

Eel bucks are a type of fish trap that was prevalent in the River Thames in England up to the 20th century. It was used particularly to catch eels which were a staple part of the London diet....

s from which the footbridge was adapted in 1865 to allow access to the Guards Club Boathouse (since demolished) on the island.

The island is part of Guards Club Park, which is a public open space

Public open space

Public Open Space is often referred to by urban planners and landscape architects by the acronym 'POS'. It has a meaning similar to public park, but varied interpretations of the term are possible.'Public' can mean:...

 and conservation area

Conservation area

A conservation areas is a tract of land that has been awarded protected status in order to ensure that natural features, cultural heritage or biota are safeguarded...

; however, access to the island is restricted between December and June as it is a nest

Nest

A nest is a place of refuge to hold an animal's eggs or provide a place to live or raise offspring. They are usually made of some organic material such as twigs, grass, and leaves; or may simply be a depression in the ground, or a hole in a tree, rock or building...

ing site for water fowl

Anatidae

Anatidae is the biological family of birds that includes ducks, geese and swans. The family has a cosmopolitan distribution, occurring on all the world's continents except Antarctica and on most of the world's islands and island groups...

.

External links

• Royal Borough of Windsor and Maidenhead parks information

See also

• Islands in the River Thames
  Islands in the River Thames
  This article lists the islands in the River Thames, in England. It excludes many of the smaller lock islands that were created when weirs and locks were built, and also some very small islands that immediately adjoin the larger ones. The Isle of Dogs and Isle of Grain are no longer islands although...
  
  
• Ait
  Ait
  An ait is a small island. It is especially used to refer to islands found on the River Thames and its tributaries in England....