Visit a quiet corner of the Cambridgeshire country where a rare fragment of ancient fenland offers a home for orchids, damselflies and cuckoos.

By James Gilbert

Published: Monday, 06 February 2023 at 12:00 am

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A remarkable remnant of 19th-century fenland, this watery place is brimful of wildlife. The special blend of plants and animals belonging at Woodwalton Fen will excite and delight the senses.

Discover more stunning fenlands, including Strumpshaw Fen, Wicken Fen and Fen Drayton.

Britain’s best nature reserves for walks and wildlife

Explore meadows, wetlands, ancient woodlands, moorland, heathlands, coast and mountains at Britain’s nature reserves. Here is our guide to the UK’s best nature reserves, and the best wildlife to spot.

• Find a nature reserve near you

 

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About Woodwalton Fen

One of only four surviving fragments of east-English fenland that once extended over 850,000 acres, Woodwalton Fen has been a wildlife refuge since its purchase in 1910 by banker-cum-entomologist Charles Rothschild.

The reserve is one of the UK’s oldest (est. 1919) and statutory protection was afforded in 1954. The site is home to more than 5000 species, some of which are endangered, and many are rare or scarce.

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Woodwalton Fen sightings

Spring-season highlights – to name just a few – include violets (both fen and water), early marsh orchid, damselflies, cuckoo and assorted warblers. Soft step along the ditch margins and ‘ratty’ may be spotted, or at least heard – listen out for the ‘plop’ of a water vole, dropping down into the water.

Moving forward to summer, and spectacular things on the wing include the scarce chaser, purple emperor and hobby. The endangered tansy beetle lives here; perhaps most likely seen in June, feeding on the tops of bankside tansy plants.

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