Purwell Ninesprings is a 6.4-hectare (16-acre) nature reserve managed by the Herts and Middlesex Wildlife Trust on the edge of Hitchin, Hertfordshire, England.
The reserve is in the flood-plain of the River Purwell. It has open water with water voles and birds such as moorhens, mallards and teals. Other birds include snipe and siskins. The wet ground has plants such as tussock sedge, yellow iris and water forget-me-nots. [1]
There is access from Gypsy Lane, a track which runs from the junction of Purwell Lane and Kingswood Avenue through to Hitchin Road. This route is promoted as part of the Hitchin Outer Orbital Path. [2]
Herts and Middlesex Wildlife Trust manages over 40 nature reserves covering nearly 810 hectares north of London, in Hertfordshire and the historic county of Middlesex, part of which is divided between the London boroughs of Barnet, Enfield, Harrow and Hillingdon. It has over 21,000 members, and is one of 46 Wildlife Trusts across the UK. It is a Registered Charity, with its Registered Office in St Albans, and had an income in the year to 31 March 2014 of over £1.5 million.
Stocker's Lake is an old flooded gravel pit of approx 90 acres (37.5ha) at Rickmansworth, Hertfordshire, England, within the Colne Valley Regional Park which is designated as a Local Nature Reserve.
Balls Wood is a 58.5-hectare (145-acre) nature reserve managed by the Herts and Middlesex Wildlife Trust in Hertford Heath in East Hertfordshire. The wood was purchased by the Trust from the Forestry Commission.
Hertford Heath nature reserve is a 28 hectare biological Site of Special Scientific Interest in Hertford Heath in Hertfordshire. It is managed by the Herts and Middlesex Wildlife Trust and the local planning authority is East Hertfordshire District Council.
Stanborough Reedmarsh is a 3.3 hectare Local Nature Reserve in Welwyn Garden City in Hertfordshire. It is owned by Welwyn Hatfield Borough Council and managed by the Herts and Middlesex Wildlife Trust.
Purwell Meadows is an 8.6-hectare (21-acre) nature reserve in Hitchin, Hertfordshire, England. It was declared a Local Nature Reserve in 1994. It is owned and managed by North Hertfordshire District Council.
Thorley Wash or Thorley Flood Pound is a 17.3-hectare biological Site of Special Scientific Interest in Thorley, south of Bishop's Stortford in Hertfordshire. It was formerly a flood pound for the Stort Navigation, which was decommissioned in 2004 and converted to a more natural state. It was purchased by the Herts and Middlesex Wildlife Trust from the Environment Agency in 2011.
Broad Colney Lakes is an 11 hectare nature reserve previously managed by Herts and Middlesex Wildlife Trust in London Colney in Hertfordshire. It has recently been sold to an anonymous buyer but reports in The Herts Advertiser says "the selected buyer has stated that the site will continue to be used for fishing, with the woodland managed for the benefit of wildlife.” It has three lakes, created as a result of gravel extraction in the 1920s. Otters travel through Long Lake on their journeys along the River Colne, which flows through the lake, and great crested grebes nest at the edge. Small Lake is marshy and a breeding area for fish, while North Lake has tufted ducks, coots and mallards.
Stocking Springs Wood is a 1.1-hectare (2.7-acre) nature reserve between Ayot St Lawrence and Ayot St Peter in Welwyn Hatfield district in Hertfordshire. It is managed by the Herts and Middlesex Wildlife Trust.
Hilfield Park Reservoir is a 76.3 ha construction built in 1953 between Bushey and Elstree in Hertfordshire, and owned by Affinity Water. Declared a Local Nature Reserve (LNR) in 1969, it is managed by the Herts and Middlesex Wildlife Trust (HMWT). It is the oldest LNR in Hertfordshire.
The River Oughton is a two mile long tributary of the River Hiz in Hitchin, Hertfordshire. It rises at Oughtonhead and flows north-east between Oughtonhead Common and Oughtonhead Nature Reserve. It forms the boundary of Hitchin parish.
Oughton Nature Reserve in Hitchin in Hertfordshire is managed by the Herts and Middlesex Wildlife Trust. The 6.2-hectare site on the north bank of the River Oughton is not publicly accessible, but it can be viewed across the river from Oughtonhead Common.
King's Meads is a nature reserve between the towns of Hertford and Ware in Hertfordshire. It is managed by the Herts and Middlesex Wildlife Trust, and with an area of 96 hectares it is the largest of the Trust's reserves. The site has been registered by the Trust as Common land, but the registration for some areas was disallowed due to objections.
Long Deans is a 15 hectare nature reserve managed by the Herts and Middlesex Wildlife Trust in Nash Mills, between Kings Langley and Hemel Hempstead in Hertfordshire. It is neutral and chalk grassland and woodland with beech, ash, oak and wild cherry. Birds include common linnet, common bullfinch and song thrush, and the site is home to bats.
Fir and Pond Woods is a 29 hectare nature reserve in Potters Bar in Hertfordshire. It is managed by the Herts and Middlesex Wildlife Trust. It is two separate woods, with Fir Wood connected by a short footpath to the large Pond Wood to the south.
Willowmead is a 1.5-hectare (3.7-acre) nature reserve in north Hertford. It is managed by the Herts and Middlesex Wildlife Trust.
Tewin Orchard and Hopkyns Wood is a 4.3-hectare (11-acre) nature reserve in Tewin in Hertfordshire. It is managed by the Herts and Middlesex Wildlife Trust.
Lemsford Springs is a 4 hectare nature reserve in Lemsford, Hertfordshire, England. It is managed by the Herts and Middlesex Wildlife Trust, which purchased the site in 1970. Notable for its lagoons, the site is in the Lea valley and its other habitats are meadow, hedgerows, marsh and willow woodland.
Longspring Wood is a 1.2-hectare (3.0-acre) nature reserve managed by the Herts and Middlesex Wildlife Trust in Kings Langley in Hertfordshire.
The River Purwell is a chalk stream in Hertfordshire, England. The entire course of the stream is near Hitchin.