Fife Living Waters worked across two sites, Cowdenbeath Wetland and Swans Pond. We carried out habitat works to improve these sites for amphibians, reptiles and other wildlife. In total we created 118 new ponds, restored 11 existing ponds, and created a variety of new terrestrial habitats such basking banks, hibernacula, and wildflower patches.
Cowdenbeath Wetland
Due to late succession, Cowdenbeath Wetland was no longer functioning as a wetland at the start of this project. The freshwater bodies were heavily vegetated and lacking open water which amphibians need to breed successfully. We therefore created 82 new ponds at this site, creating a large wetland network to provide important breeding habitat for frogs, toads and newts. We also restored 11 existing ponds at the site, removing excess vegetation and silt to create areas of open water.
Swans Pond
Swans Pond, also known as Lumphinnans Pond, is a large, open body of water which is lacking in biodiversity and predominantly used by waterfowl which can reduce the quality of the water. Any reduction in water quality can be a big problem for amphibians as they have very delicate and sensitive skin. Therefore, at Swans Pond we created 36 new ponds, providing an alternative and more suitable option for amphibian populations to use for breeding. These ponds will also provide more habitat variety for other wildlife such as aquatic invertebrates.