麻豆社

This is not the easiest nature reserve to find, being hidden some way down a rough-surfaced lane.听 Neither is it well sign-posted. However, it is definitely worth the effort.听 From the A507, take Maulden Road, turn left at Folly Farm and follow the lane to the reserve car park.

Dennis Furnell

An ancient site that has formed where the greensand ridge lies close under the clay and chalk, allowing water in the underlying aquifer to come to the surface in a series of mineral-rich chalybeate springs.听 Deep deposits of peat built up here during thousands of years of growth of reeds and sedges, which died and fell into the relatively oxygen poor mud and water where they did not fully decay.听听 The outcome was a series of 鈥渕ires鈥� along the river Flit.听 Flitwick Moor, the largest valley mire in Bedfordshire, is the sole survivor of these and compliments the surrounding drier meadows and oak and birch woodland.

Peat extraction took place here for hundreds of years and continued into the 1960鈥檚 when the peat was used for gas purification and agricultural top dressing鈥μ� And in the early years of the 20th century the iron-rich water was bottled by a mineral water company; this water, which stains the streamside rust red, will remove the oxide deposits from copper coinage鈥�

Recently under threat from development, it seems, for the moment, that this ancient and ecologically significant wetland has won a reprieve听

Moorhen

The reserve is at its best in spring and early summer when is at its greenest.听听 Spring time butterflies, including orange tip and green-veined white abound; as do common species of damselflies, no less beautiful for being common.听 Small blue damselflies throng the water鈥檚 surface for much of the late spring and summer and perch like tiny blue jewels on the reed stems and perform their fluttery mating dances mirrored in the water.

The areas of open water are edged with reeds and sedges, whilst willow carr, a type of wet woodland, shelters water birds such as moorhen and also the secretive water rail.听 Mosses, fungi and invertebrates 鈥� all are found here 鈥� and locally rare plant species such as opposite-leaved golden saxifrage and marsh pennywort survive in the damper areas; while common knapweed and meadow saxifrage grow in the grassland..

The presence of large numbers of frogs and toads in the wet meadowland at the far end of the footpaths indicate the value of this reserve for breeding amphibians, which is one reason why there are always a few grey heron in the trees surrounding the wet meadows听

Dragonfly and Blue Damsel Fly

In early autumn there are the native breeding species of dragonflies and damselflies to see. Southern hawkers and wide-bodied chasers hunt small flying insects and the larger, beautiful fast-flying imperial dragonfly that comes to us from the near continent, having migrated across the channel.

The pathways are not particularly good for wheelchair users.听 Naturally variable in width and uneven because of tree roots, in wet conditions the underlying peat can make the paths muddy and slippery.听 In the meadows, the natural style of management with low intensity grazing means the grass is long and stout walking shoes or boots are advisable.听 Don鈥檛 forget to take camera and binoculars.听听听