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Guided walk to Swaddywell Pit on 17 July 2022

Three intrepid members braved the heat on the day before the hottest UK day ever recorded to visit the Langdyke Countryside Trust (LCT) flagship nature reserve, Swaddywell Pit. The walk was led by LCT founder member and HFFS treasurer, Stuart Irons.

In medieval times Swaddywell was a stone quarry would have provided stone for local churches and houses. More recently Swaddywell has had a chequered history – one of England’s very first nature reserves in the early 20th Century it then became in turn a quarry, bomb dump, landfill tip and racetrack.

Swaddywell was one of England’s earliest nature reserves, leased by the National Trust between 1915 and 1924. Charles Rothschild, a founder of the modern nature conservation movement, included Swaddywell on his 1912 list of the country’s most important nature conservation sites.

Swaddywell was sold in 1924 and quarrying resumed.  During the Second World War it was used as a bomb dump. After the war the original site was filled and returned to agriculture, while quarrying moved further east and north, creating the current pit. During the 1980’s the quarry was a rubbish tip.  More recently in 1997 it was used as a Volkswagen racetrack before being bought by LCT and once more restored as a nature reserve.

Unfortunately, due to the extremely dry and hot weather conditions this summer we were unable to see Swaddywell at its best. The quarry pond which is usually buzzing with dragonflies was dry and the cabin pond was reduced to a shadow of its usual self with about 6 inches of water in the bottom. The usually abundant butterflies were also short supply, preferring to rest in the shade rather than put on a show for HFFS members. Swaddywell is also the home for eight species of orchid, but the drought had curtailed the flowering season for most of these however Stuart was able to point out the dried seedheads for six species.

Despite the extreme weather conditions, we had a very pleasant walk with good company and it was enjoyed by all those who attended.

Swaddywell is an open access reserve for all people and dogs on leads and I would urge those who have not visited to do so. The best time to visit is late spring or early summer but there is always something interesting to see at any time of year.

Stuart Irons

Guided walk to Bainton Heath on 14 August 2022

Four members joined the leader Stuart Irons to visit another Langdyke Countryside Trust (LCT) nature reserve, Bainton Heath. Stuart has been the LCT volunteer warden for Bainton Heath for more than 10 years.

The LCT and National Grid are working together to manage the twenty-acre site owned by National Grid, to the west of, but not part of Bainton Fisheries, for the benefit of wildlife. Sadly, there is no public access to the site.

The site was a former tip for fly ash waste from power stations and steam trains in the north of England but has since been colonised by a fascinating variety of flowers, mosses, lichens, insects and birds. Because of the unique nature of the site, many species of moss and lichen are in fact not natural to Cambridgeshire at all – but are more northerly species!  A small wood and three ponds add to the diversity of habitat.

Again, the weather was very hot, but our intrepid group was rewarded with an interesting variety of wildflowers, demonstrating those which were able to find some water to enable them to flower. These included water mint, tansy, lady’s bedstraw, mullein, weld and wild mignonette. While the wildflowers were struggling with the lack of water in this nutrient poor free draining habitat the dragonflies and damselflies were enjoying the weather and we saw ruddy darters, brown hawkers, migrant hawkers and small red eyed damselflies.

Towards the end of the walk, we were treated to a spectacular ariel combat high above our heads between two birds of prey. After much deliberation and discussion, we all agreed the two birds involved were a red kite and an osprey. A truly spectacular end to a very enjoyable afternoon.

Overall, it was a fascinating and varied walk which rewarded the effort required to venture out in the hot weather. As there is restricted access to the reserve If any members would like to visit, please contact Stuart (details on HFFS website) and we can arrange a suitable time for another guided tour.

Stuart Irons