Ponds and Water Life

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Cambridgeshire Ponds and Water Life
Hilton

Hilton is a village of ponds: there are no fewer than five ponds, plus two small streams, one with a ford. Most of the ponds are interconnected by the two streams.

Ponds 1 and 2

these are on the south side of Graveley way, a long pond (289 666), populated by ducks, so not a lot else, near the crossroads where Graveley way crosses the Potton Road and becomes High Street. The stream feeding this pond flows from a smaller one to the west which has a much greater variety of vegetation.

The duck pond has yellow irises and a nice patch of butterburr on the bank. The smaller pond has a good growth of watercress.

Pond 3

From the east end of the duckpond, the stream (which supports Starwort, Curled Pondweed, watercress) flows beneath the B1040 Potton road into a third, nearly circular, pond which at the present time sports a fine variety of plants, both in and around the pond and is of interest to freshwater biologists.

Species

On 1st June 2003 I found (in and around the third pond):

Brooklime Veronica Beccabunga
Watercress Nasturtium officinale
Curled pondweed Potamogeton crispus
Starwort Calitriche sp.
Small pond weed Potamogeton berchtoldii
Greater Spearwort Ranunculus lingua
An uncommon plant, here there is a good population.
Great Reedmace Typha Major
Yellow Iris Iris pseudacorus
Butterbur Petasites vulgaris
Water figwort or Water bettony Scophularia aquatica

Three spined sticklebacks Gasterosteus aculeatus
Carp Cyprinus Carpio
Eel Anguilla vulgaris
Blue Damselfly Coenagrion puella

The three photos show a view of this pond from the B1040 looking east, a view of the water showing the luxuriant growth of curled pondweed (potamogeton crispus) and a view from the south east corner, looking north west.

22nd April 2006

The pond is now looking quite polluted. Reed Mace abounds. There is no sign of the giant spearwort - which should be very noticable at this time of year. No noticable submerged water plants, and disturbing the bottom it has that black look as of brown-water pollution.

Pond 4

This is along the High Street, to the east of the crossroads (293 665) and supports not a lot of plant life.

Pond 5

To the South of the church is the second stream with the ford (fords are not common in Cambridgeshire - so this is a rarity) near the church and a small pond (which is part of this stream) is just to the east of the ford. Very little plant life here, but I have caught sticklebacks and small eels.

Pond 6

A sixth pond is present just to the north of pond 5. This pond is situated just behind the village hall and is overgrown and badly in need of clearance. In summer it's little more than a patch of reedmace!

Hilton is a well-kept village, so the ponds get cleared out regularly and their natural history waxes and wanes with the clearance.

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Document URI: www.torrens.org.uk /NatHist/PAWL/Cambs/Hilton.html
Last modified: Sun, 02 Dec 2007 10:17:32 GMT
Page first published 8th June 2003.
Page written and © by Richard Torrens