Kingfishers Bridge Project

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  • Home
  • About us
    • History
    • Our Founder
    • Who's Who
    • Habitat creation >
      • Grazing
      • Predator Balance
    • Wildife >
      • Birds
      • Plants
      • Mammals
      • Invertebrates
  • Visiting
    • Walking
    • Wildlife Viewing
    • Car Parking
    • How to find us
    • Download a Map
  • Events and Activities
    • Family Open Weekend
    • Holiday Activities
    • Book a Guided Tour
  • Outdoor Learning
    • Schools
    • Home Education Groups
    • Youth Groups
  • Make a Gift
    • Donate
    • Leave a legacy
    • Become a Supporter
  • Find Out More
    • Warden's Blog
    • Volunteer
    • Wildlife Recording >
      • Bird census
      • Moth census
      • Bird and Wildlife Reports
      • Aerial Surveys
      • Kingfishers Bridge Publications
    • Projects >
      • Classroom Regeneration
      • New HIdes
      • Mound Observation Deck
  • Contact us
  • Shop
    • Branded Cloithing
    • Mugs and Coasters
    • Educational Packs and Equipment
    • Forget Me Not Apiary
    • Events Tickets
  • Staff Portal
    • Event Contact Details

Warden's blog

The new cut

30/5/2018

1 Comment

 
 The riverbank following alongside the old waterway to the SSSI North-Pit; a former Victorian limestone quarry, has now been fenced off the main river for two of our Water Buffalo; Donald and Dumbo, in an experiment to tackle the Floating Pennywort.

 Floating Penny-wort is an invasive weed from south America which was accidentally introduced to the UK as a plant in domestic ponds.  Over the last decade is has become a major problem along the river cam, particularly the upper river and its tributary's as well as spreading to close by water bodies. In high summer when the growth rate is highest it can form floating mats which completely block the navigation channel, costing the Environment Agency many thousands of pounds a year to remove mechanically.  However within the Main Project area of the Nature reserve it is unseen, we believe this is due to grazing by our breeding Water Buffalo herd. On the washes the Highland Cattle do graze it as far as  they can wade into the ditches but as the water buffalo will happily swim and eat we believe they have eradicated it within the Buffalo grazed parts of the reserve.

 Donald and Dumbo (our castrated, tame males) have already begin to graze the floating Penny-wort in this latest experiment at Kingfishers Bridge and we have high hopes that they will clear the ditch by the end of the summer.  The outcomes of this experiment may have valuable implications for managing the Penny-wort on the main river.
1 Comment

    James Moss

    Reserves Manager at the Kingfishers Bridge wetland creation project in Cambridgeshire.

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