Bottomless Pit is situated along a hedgerow and dry ditch with a woodland a few hundred metres away from it. It is an open-canopy pond and is less than 25% shaded and therefore it was surprising how much organic matter was accumulated in the pond basin.
Although dry at present, when the pond fills the ditch acts as an outflow to the pond. There is no inflow to the pond.
Due to the open nature of Bottomless Pit, it was no surprise to find that an ecological survey undertaken during summer 2019, found Broad-leaved Pondweed and Duckweed in the pond and Tussock Sedge at the edge of the basin. By the time the restoration was undertaken, the plants lay in an inch of muddy water but the mud went much, much deeper.
The restoration focused on the removal of willow scrub that shaded the southern edge, plus a couple of individuals that were situated within the pond basin. This provided access to the digger to remove large amounts of organic matter from the pond. A tyre that had been historically dumped in the pond could not be removed and was left.
Restoring, resurrecting and conserving Norfolk's ponds. 