Welcome to the Great Gidding website Newt Trail pages.
We hope you find these pages interesting and informative, and that it encourages you to get out and experience the trail with your family.
We really want to hear about your discoveries, so please send us photo’s of anything interesting you see while out and about on the Gidding Newt Trail, and we will publish them on this site.
We are interested in everything from Red Kites, Deer, Newts, to flowers and even weeds! Just send your photo together with your name and your age (if you are under 16) together with some details of when and where etc, to paulhodson@thegiddings.org.uk
Contents
Why The Great Gidding Newt Trail?
Parish Council Ponds
The Diamond Jubilee Pond
Chapel End Horse pond
Townsend Horse Pond
The ‘mysterious’ fourth pond
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| Great Crested Newt | Red Kite |
Why The Great Gidding Newt Trail?
Did you know there are approximately 20 ponds in and around Great Gidding? What do they have in common? – Great Crested Newts. Which are endangered species, protected by law.
In 2010 the Parish Council successfully applied for Lottery funding to restore Townsend Pond, not only to enhance the appearance of the pond but also to improve the quality of the pond to encourage Great Crested Newts to breed.
As part of this work, a viewing platform has been installed for your enjoyment. Please take care when you are near water, children under 16 must be accompanied by an adult as all times.
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| Townsend Pond during restoration | Townsend Pond viewing platform |
Parish Council Ponds
The Parish Council now owns fours ponds, including the new pond, in the Jubilee Wood, which will be known as The Diamond Jubilee Pond, which was kindly funded by Messrs Trolove.
The Diamond Jubilee Pond
This pond will be left to develop naturally, to encourage a wide variety of wildlife, when full it could be up to 1.5 meters deep, and may well dry out in the summer months, only time will tell.
Chapel End Horse pond
In 2010 Chapel End Horse pond was restored with funding from Huntingdon District Council. This pond was totally overgrown with willow and dry for most of the year. Trees growing in the pond were removed, and those overhanging were cut back to allow light into the pond.
Silt was removed revealing the cobble stone base of the pond, in the winter the pond is about 1 meter deep.
The Parish Council intend to leave this pond to re-establish itself naturally and to become a breeding site for wildlife. Great Crested and Smooth Newts have already returned to the pond, as have a family of Moorhens.
Visitors are requested not to enter the pond area.
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| Chapel End Pond before | Chapel End Pond after |
Townsend Horse Pond
Work to restore Townsend Horse Pond, the installation of the viewing platform and this website, has been funded by a grant from the National Lottery.
Visitors are encouraged to use the viewing platform, a dipping net and tray have been provided, please return anything caught to the pond carefully. Children under 16 must be accompanied by an adult at all times.
This pond also has a cobbled base, and is on average about 1 meter deep.
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| Townsend Pond before | Townsend Pond after |
The ‘mysterious’ fourth pond
The fourth pond owned by the Parish, on the Winwick road, will be left undisturbed and overgrown, as this provides excellent cover for wildlife.
