As in a lot of farmland ponds, an inflow leads into Grasshopper pond via a long pipe from a country lane. If possible, it is best to avoid ponds with inflows as it may mean that the water less clear and possibly less clean. However, it will be exciting to see how Grasshopper pond, the first of the UCL / NT Riverlands pond week does based on this.
Prior to restoration the pond was completely dry although boggy, and between 75% and 100% shaded by surrounding trees. A small partch of Mentha aquatica was present. It was also doubled basined and absolutely huge! A great pond to start the week with.
During the restoration, sadly no cultural objects were found in the pond, however a number of Red Admiral butterflies and a grasshopper was spotted by the volunteers.
As soon as water was exposed in the pond basin, the volunteers were delighted to watch damselflies ovipositing in the midday sun. As you can see from the pictures below, willow scrub was removed from the pond but mature trees were left for habitat.
| Date of restoration | 7 and 8th Sept 2019 |
| Days taken to complete | 2 |
| Number of volunteers | 13 |
| Aquatic plants present | 1 |
Summer 2020
Slightly zoomed in, but returning in July 2020, we managed to capture the pond basin from the same angle as the before photos! We were so pleased to see Grasshopper Pond in its all its beauty on a lovely summer’s day in Norfolk. Across the basin, stoneworts spread, delighted with the new firm substrate for their simple roots to bed into and clean water in which to access the sunlight. Three different species of Chara (a large type of algae that likes to live in alkaline pools) were found in Grasshopper Pond.
Restoring, resurrecting and conserving Norfolk's ponds. 