Ghostly Visitation - A Pond Walks Again

AFTER: Just two years on and the pond is once again buzzing with life

Back in the dusty, dry summer we revisited an old 'ghost pond' we restored at Spain's Hall, Essex to discover that - just two years on - the pond is now flourishing once again.

A careful but simple restoration brought it (and seemingly all its original inhabitants!) back to life from where it had lain dead and buried beneath an arable field for the past 60 years.

BEFORE: What lies beneath? The arable field where the ghost pond lay buried.

Join us as we revisit the ghost pond in the following short video - and share in our delight to see more than ten species of aquatic plants reappear from the seedbank and dragon flies and swallows a-plenty enjoying its clean waters. The re-animated pond habitat was a sight to behold - hauntingly beautiful, especially in a drought summer - and a huge win for farm wildlife!

https://video.wixstatic.com/video/98b606_9d45e59b7c014b3994808b52a1b3502e/1080p/mp4/file.mp4

This pond - along with the 700 others FWAG East has been creating and restoring with the help of landowners over the past six years - will be a vital lifeline for numerous species. They represent clean water stepping-stones across our farms, bringing much-needed forage, shelter, respite and HOPE in a changing climate.

The approximate locations of the 700 ponds FWAG East has delivered through the DLL scheme since 2020.

The work was carried out using funding from Natural England's District Level Licencing (DLL) scheme for great crested newts. Visit our pond project page or get in touch with the team to find out more.