Ponds and Water Life
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Ponds and Water Life |
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The Swamp (now officially called Pauline's Swamp) was given to the parish of Burwell by the previous owner in 2007. It consists of two fields and a wooded area centred at at map reference 585 657. The two fields are separated by the small wooded area alongside which flows a small stream. The stream is fed by springs beneath the old, disused Cambridge to Mildenhall railway line (which was axed by Dr. Beeching). Adjacent to the spring is a pond which is clearly artificial as it is nearly square.
In the pond I saw (April 2008)
The stream area is a swamp which gives rise to the area's name. Growing here I noticed (April 2008)
South of the railway line is a wooded area - part of the grounds of the old Tillotson's / David Smith cardboard box factory (which moved to a green field site at Fordham). There is still a factory building here in the part which has not been redeveloped.
The western field has a number of daffodils planted (mostly at the north end, near the entrance) and I could see a significant number of cowslips coming into flower (both visible in gallery photo 7). There are also wild arum growing and a few cuckoo flowers are very noticable for their lilac flowers.
The woods are full of snowdrops and daffodils which present quite a spectacle early in the year.
| # | Acer campestre | Field Maple |
| # | Ajuga reptans | Bugle |
| * | Alisma plantago-aquatica | Water plantain |
| * | Allium ursinum | Ramsons |
| In 2008 I seeded some ramsons on the edge of the wood. 2009 they sprouted. 2010 they were just sprouting when sheep were introduced. I suspect ramsons are no more. Watch this space! | ||
| # * | Apium nodiflorum | Fool's water-cress |
| # | Arrhenatherum elatius | False Oat-grass |
| # * | Caltha palustris | Marsh marigold |
| * | Arum maculatum | Arum |
| # * | Cardamine pratensis | Cuckoo flower |
| # | Carex acutiformis | Lesser Pond Sedge |
| # | Carex hirta | Hairy Sedge |
| # | Carex nigra | Black Sedge |
| # | Centaurea nigra | Black Knapweed |
| # | Cerastium fontanum | Common Mouse-ear |
| * | Chenopodium album | Fat hen |
| # | Cirsium palustre | Marsh Thistle |
| # | Cirsium vulgare | Spear Thistle |
| * | Convolvulus arvensis | Field bindweed |
| # * | Corylus avellana | Hazel |
| # * | Crataegus monogyna | Hawthorn |
| # | Dactylis glomerata | Cocksfoot |
| * | Endymion hispanicus | Spanish bluebell |
| These bluebells are not flourishing: it's too dry for them and the sheep trample and graze the small patch, so positive identification is not easy | ||
| # * | Epilobium hirsutum | Hairy Willowherb |
| * | Epilobium parviflorum | Small-flowered willowherb |
| # | Festuca rubra | Red Fescue |
| # * | Filipendula ulmaria | Meadowsweet |
| * | Fragaria vesca | Wild strawberry |
| Not noticed these until Sptember 2011 when I noticed some fruits. But rather tasteless | ||
| # * | Fraxinus excelsior | Ash |
| * | Galanthus nivalis | Snowdrop |
| # * | Galium aparine | Cleavers |
| # * | Galium uliginosum | Fen Bedstraw |
| # | Galium verum | Lady‘s Bedstraw |
| * | Glechoma hederacea | Ground-ivy |
| * | Hedera helix | Ivy |
| * | Hypericum tetrapterum | Square-stemmed St John's Wort |
| # | Holcus lanatus | Yorkshire Fog |
| * | Humulus lupulus | Hop |
| * | Hydrocharis morsus-ranae | Frog-bit |
| # * | Iris pseudacorus | Yellow Flag Iris |
| # * | Juncus inflexus | Hard Rush |
| # | Juncus subnodulosus | Blunt-flowered Rush |
| # | Lathyrus pratensis | Meadow Vetchling |
| # * | Mentha aquatica | Water mint |
| # * | Myosotis scorpiodes | Water forget-me-not |
| * | Narcissus pseudonarcissus | Daffodil |
| * | Persicaria maculosa | Redshank |
| * | Plantago lanceolata | Ribwort plantain |
| * | Plantago major | Greater plantain |
| * | Potentilla anserina | Silverweeed |
| * | Potentilla reptans | Creeping cinquefoil |
| # * | Primula veris | Cowslip |
| Evidently these have been planted, but now many sheep are grazing (up to 50 at times) they eat almost anything. In 2011 there were few signs of any cowslips | ||
| # * | Prunella vulgaris | Self Heal |
| # * | Ranunculus acris | Meadow Buttercup |
| * | Ranunculus ficaria | Lesser Celandine |
| * | Ranunculus lingua | Greater spearwort |
| # * | Rorippa nasturtium-aquaticum | Water cress |
| # * | Rubus fruticosus | Bramble |
| # | Rumex acetosa | Sorrel |
| # * | Salix caprea | Goat Willow |
| # * | Sambucus nigra | Elder |
| # * | Scrophularia auriculata | Water Figwort |
| # | Solanum dulcamara | Bittersweet |
| * | Typha latifolia | Great reedmace |
| * | Tussilago farfara | Colt's foot |
| The above is new, April 2011. | ||
| * | Urtica dioica | Nettle |
| * | Veronica anagallis-aquatica | Blue water speedwell |
| First noticed this 2010, but the sheep like it. By summer 2011 there were no traces! | ||
| # | Vicia cracca | Tufted Vetch |
| * | ||
The swamp is approached by a small lane (locally known as Lover's Lane) beside the Reach Road Industrial Estate. This lane has additional flora: I have noticed:
| * | Aegopodium podagraria | Ground elder |
| * | Alliaria petiolata | Garlic mustard |
| * | Atriplex prostata | Spear-leaved orache |
| * | Dipsacus fullonum | Teasel |
| * | Galium mollugo | Hedge Bedstraw |
| * | Geranium robertianum | Herb Robert |
| * | Geum urbanum | Wood Avens |
| * | Lactuca virosa | Great lettuce |
| * | Lapsana communis | Nipplewort |
| * | Lamium album | White deadnettle |
| * | Leucanthemum vulgare | Oxeye daisy |
| * | Malva sylvestris | Common Mallow |
| * | Mercurialis annua | Annual mercury |
| * | Picris echioides | Bristly Oxtongue |
| * | Plantago lanceolata | Ribwort plantain |
| * | Polygonum rurivagum | Cornfield knotgrass |
| * | Silene latifolia | White camp[ion |
| * | Sisymbrium officinale | Hedge musard |
| * | Solanum dulcamara | Bittersweet |
| * | Tragopogon pratensis | Goat's beard |
| * | ||
19th March 2009
So the swamp was bequeathed to the parish council. Work has been done on it over winter. Now if you were going to manage a place called Pauline's Swamp what is the first thing you would do? Improve the drainage? Yet that is exactly what has been done! management by ignorance, I think. The lower pond has been (re)connected to the drainage ditch, such that it is (even now, in early spring) almost unable to hold any water.The top pond has had an overflow added, so you cannot walk around it! An overflow here is particularly pointless as the pond is ground-water fed and I can see no circumstances under which the water level can ever get high enough to overflow the old ground level. Anyway - it's a swamp!
The field has been mowed, and the area at the back cleared of undergrowth to form a proper path.
Last autumn I broadcast some Ramsons seeds in the wooded area. There are now baby ramsons seedlings appearing, if you look hard enough.
Sunday the 15th of August, 2010 During spring and summer sheep were allowed into the site, to graze. The site has ben grazed by ponies and geese, never before by sheep. In early July, 2010 the site contained some 200 sheep (or more - try counting sheep!). 200 sheep in a 1.5 hectare area, for 3 weeks... The swamp vegetation was razed to the ground. Even the nettles and thistles were devastated. I have some photos taken just after the sheep were removed which show the devastation.
The main pond is very low and as a result is very smelly (hydrogen sulphide is noticable when it is stirred up). This probably accounts for the poor growth of frogh-bit I had introduced earlier. The second pond is now totally dry.
Thursday the 8th of September, 2011. Sheep are back in: around 50 at this time. East Cambridgeshire District County Wildlife Sites Register 2005 said the site was grazed by geese and donkeys which were kept ther permanently. Sheep have very different grazing pattens and occasional grazing by a too-large flock of sheep will change the flora very significantly.
There is a gallery of photos of Pauline's Swamp.
East Cambridgeshire District County Wildlife Sites Register 2005 has a PDF file listing various sites and giving a brief overview of each, including in the Burwell heading:
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Last modified: Wed, 14 Sep 2011 08:41:43 BST
Page first published 17th April 2008.
Page written and © 2008 by Richard Torrens