Throughout the year a range of works are undertaken to manage the great diverse and important habitats within the park. Discover the type of works that will be done this spring.
Habitat management works being done
As we come out of the cold winter months there’s a raft of work that our Ranger and Biodiversity teams look to undertake – this is on top of their day-to-day management of the wonderful park. Some projects over the coming months are:
Animals grazing our environmentally sensitive sites – we use these natural lawnmowers to great effect in many areas of the park. The cattle, which are from the park’s own farm, can be seen at Walthamstow Marshes, WaterWorks Centre nature reserve, Cornmill Meadows, Glen Faba as well as at Ryegate Farm. Old English Goats are used on Cheshunt Marsh as they’re great managers of the harsher scrubland habitats. Read more about Old English Goats >
Common Tern rafts can be seen on Seventy Acres in River Lee Country Park at Fishers Green. Common Tern return to the valley from west Africa each summer to breed. Larger numbers are found nesting on shingle along the coast however they have also moved to inland waters such as the Lee Valley and nest on artificial rafts designed to mimic the coastal habitats. In spring we’ll prepare the rafts for their arrival
Wildlife monitoring – surveys
Throughout the year a team of people, from our Ranger and Biodiversity teams, volunteer and partner organizations undertake a programme of surveys which allows us to monitor what’s going on in the park. The following survey will be happening over the coming months:
Owl box checks – we have installed a number of owls boxes around the park. In spring we’ll check them all in readiness for the breeding season. The checks are carried out under a special licence to ensure that disturbance is minimised
Orchid surveys take place in late spring on Bowyers Water and Rammey Marsh to monitor their numbers, there are six species recorded at Bowyers orchid area, including the Early Marsh Orchid which is one of the Lee Valley Biodiversity Action Plan Priority Species
Each year we take part in the national Heronries census organised by the British Trust for Ornithology (BTO). Volunteers visit sites up to three times a year – in March, April and May – to look for and to count Heron nests. They also note if Little Egrets or Cormorants are nesting. This data is fed back to the BTO, in 2024 there are over 9500 Grey Heron nests recorded in the UK. Where possible the chicks are ringed by a licensed bird ringer. This involves putting a numbered ring around their leg so they can be easily identified in the future – this helps the ongoing monitoring
Water Vole surveys are undertaken in key locations along the rivers, ditches and lake edges within the park, we look for signs of Water Vole including their feeding remains, burrows and even their poo! As a species under serious threat from predators such as American Mink as well as habitat loss, the Water Vole is one of our Biodiversity Action Plan priority species
Wading birds such as Lapwing, Redshank, Little Ringed Plover and Oystercatcher often attempt to breed in the park on wetland sites such as Amwell Nature Reserve, Cornmill Meadows and Ponders End Lake (Located on Lee Valley Golf Course). You may see them probing the muddy margins of wetland scrapes to look for invertebrates. Our Rangers and volunteers monitor key sites to see if breeding attempts are made and if any chicks manage to successfully fledge
There are nine species of bat recorded in the Lee Valley and regular Bat surveys help us monitor how they're using our sites. All bats are protected by law and are highlighted as a priority in Biodiversity Action Plan
Dragonfly surveys are undertaken by our volunteers in areas such as Cornmill Meadows Dragonfly Sanctuary (a Site of Special Scientific Interest) where many of the UK native species of dragonfly have been recorded
Upcoming planned events
Throughout the year the park runs special wildlife themed events. Up coming events include
Water Vole guided walk – April
Bioblitz – summer
Bee focused event – summer
London Rivers Week – October
Love the Lea - October
Bittern Roost Watch – January 2026
The park will also be at the Global Bird Fair (11 – 13 July) held in Rutland.
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