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Thriving nature reserve all began with a lake

Katy Prickett
BBC News, Cambridgeshire
Kingfishers Bridge A small herd of konik ponies at Kingfishers Bridge nature reserve. They are sandy brown with dark manes, tails and legs. There are four adult ponies and two foals, one hidden behind an adult. They are standing beside a pond and one of the foals is drinking. Behind them is foliage and sky.Kingfishers Bridge
Large mammals including two herds of konik ponies have helped transform the landscape

A farmer and conservationist who transformed 300 acres into a thriving wildlife reserve 30 years ago said it all began when he dug out a lake.

Andrew Green created Kingfishers Bridge wetland habitat out of an intensively farmed sugar beet and potato farm between Wicken and Stretham, Cambridgeshire.

The lake resulted in animals and birds using it every day, he said, so he founded the reserve which is marking its 30th anniversary on Saturday and Sunday.

"Now we have more than 420 plant species, 215 different birds, 740 different moths and many more [species]," he said.

Kingfishers Bridge A head-and-shoulders shot of Andrew Green, standing outside. He is wearing a cream baseball cap with a grey brim and is cleanshaven with short grey hair. He is wearing a blue gilet over a checked shirt. He is smiling. Behind him are two other men and beyond them is shrubbery.Kingfishers Bridge
Kingfishers Bridge nature reserve was conceived by farmer and conservationist Andrew Green

Kingfishers Bridge was "almost exclusively a birder reserve" until the Covid-19 pandemic, with visitor numbers rising from about 2,000 in 2019 to 21,000 in 2023.

It now has a car park, a cafe, a visitor centre and a shop, as well as offering regular visitor tours of its rare habitats.

Mr Green said: "About 50 years ago, I realised that [to make] a wetland conservancy, it had to be with plenty of water to make it work, and so I made a lake – this followed with animals and birds using it every day."

He praised manager James Moss for expanding and developing the habitats after the farm officially became a nature reserve.

"[He] gradually found the right places on land and water, leading to a wonderful nature reserve for which he had an extraordinary ability for managing," Mr Green said.

Kingfishers Bridge Water buffalo at Kingfishers Bridge nature reserve. The black animals, all with curved horns, are up to their necks and backs in water. Behind them is the edge of the pond or wallow. Above that is vegetation and sky.Kingfishers Bridge
The transformation has helped the reserve become home to 500 species of plants and invertebrates

There has been an increase in its breeding population of lapwings, a farmland wading bird which is on a list of endangered species.

It has also seen a vast increase in the vulnerable water germander, from 12 plants in 1996 to seven million today, and it was the first place in Cambridgeshire to successfully breed bitterns since the 1930s.

Kingfishers Bridge Two lapwing chicks at Kingfishers Bridge nature reserve, one in the foreground and another in the background. Their fluffy feathers are speckled in shades of brown, cream and white. The one in front is sideways on with a black beak and eye.Kingfishers Bridge
The latest surveys have revealed a thriving population of endangered lapwings

The data comes from RSPB, BTO & Environment Agency surveys, said Mr Moss.

Kingfishers Bridge also has herds of water buffalo and konik ponies, which help manage the habitat.

It has organised an open weekend of events to mark its 30-year milestone, including guided tours, talks, performances by local musicians and food from local vendors.

Kingfishers Bridge An aerial view of Kingfishers Bridge nature reserve in the summer. There is a patchwork of fields and large and small ponds, plus a meandering stream. Beyond it are fields and above it is a hazy blue sky.Kingfishers Bridge
Until 1995, it was an arable farm growing potatoes and sugar beet

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