Groundbreaking Ice Age pond restoration project brings rare species back from the past - Norfolk Wildlife Trust
Rare freshwater wildlife is making a remarkable comeback in the Brecks, thanks to an innovative collaboration between us and partners to rediscover and restore ancient Ice Age ponds.
Most ponds are man-made features, but in the Brecks there are some truly ancient ponds and depressions, often known collectively as ‘pingos’, which originated through natural glacial processes at the end of the last Ice Age, over 10,000 years ago. ‘Ghost’ pingos are pingos that have been filled in by humans, normally to facilitate larger scale agricultural production.
University College London (UCL), Norfolk Geodiversity Partnership and the Norfolk Ponds Project have been working with us to locate and re-excavate buried pingo ponds hidden beneath farmland. The project was part of the Brecks Fen Edge and Rivers Landscape Partnership scheme, funded by the National Lottery Heritage Fund.
The restoration work has sparked an astonishing revival of wetland biodiversity. Dormant seeds preserved in sediment layers have germinated, bringing back a variety of aquatic plants. In just two years, over 90 wetland plant species have emerged, including the rare and internationally significant fen pondweed, various-leaved pondweed, and lesser bearded stonewort. Remarkably, nine of the excavated ghost pingos now qualify for Priority Habitat Status due to their exceptional ecological value.
The ponds have also become havens for wildlife, hosting 50 species of water beetles—15 of conservation concern—as well as common frogs, toads, great crested newts and grass snakes.
Posted On: 14/02/2025
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