As part of this restoration, thousands of tiny eels have been moved from the River Severn and released into the pools at Hen Reedbeds. Eel populations have crashed across the UK and become endangered in East Anglia, this plan attempts to restock not just the reedbeds, but the hope is that they will travel further upstream to populate the River Wang. Meanwhile, the eels living in the reedbeds provide a favoured food source for bitterns which in turn have begun to recover from the verge of local extinction.
The common reed or phragmites also provide a haven for insects, a recent aquatic invertebrate survey has shown the reserve to be of high conservation value and potentially of national significance with rare species of national importance. As well as the rare water scavenging beetle, other unusual insects such as four-spotted chaser, norfolk-hawker and hairy dragonflies can be seen around the water, as well as various damselflies and butterflies.