Nine Wells is a 1.2 hectare Local Nature Reserve east of

Trumpington Trumpington is a village and parish to the south of Cambridge, England. The village is an electoral ward of the City of Cambridge and a ward of South Cambridgeshire District Council. The 2011 Census recorded the ward's population as 8,034. T ...

, on the southern outskirts of

Cambridge Cambridge ( ) is a university city and the county town in Cambridgeshire, England. It is located on the River Cam approximately north of London. As of the 2021 United Kingdom census, the population of Cambridge was 145,700. Cambridge bec ...

. It is owned and managed by

Cambridge City Council Cambridge City Council is a district council in the county of Cambridgeshire, which governs the City of Cambridge. History Cambridge was granted a Royal Charter by King John in 1207, which permitted the appointment of a mayor. The first recorde ...

. The site is a small area of woodland surrounded by agricultural land. Multiple springs issue from the base of a chalk hill, and feed

Hobson's Conduit Hobson's Conduit, also called Hobson's Brook, is a watercourse that was built from 1610 to 1614 by Thomas Hobson and others to bring fresh water into the city of Cambridge, England from springs at Nine Wells, a Local Nature Reserve (), near the ...

, the watercourse that was built between 1610 and 1614 by

Thomas Hobson Thomas Hobson may refer to * Thomas Hobson (postal carrier) (c. 1544–1631), English postal carrier * Thomas Hobson (actor) (born 1982), American actor * Thomas Hobson (cricketer) (born 1994), South African cricketer {{hndis, name=Hobson, ...

and other benefactors to bring fresh water into the city of

. There are four main springheads linked by stream channels, as well as innumerable minor fissures, that issue water at a constant 10.2 °C.Nine Wells Local Nature Reserve
/ref>

History

In 1265 a defensive channel known as 'the king's ditch' was excavated around the city of Cambridge. By the early 17th century this ditch had become an open sewer. In 1574 Andrew Perne DD, Master of Peterhouse, thought of constructing a channel to bring water to the ditch.

, constructed from 1610, used the natural springs at Nine Wells to create a flow of water to the city and flush the kings ditch. This was not only successful in sanitising the city but it became the principal water supply for Cambridge for over 250 years. Water continues to flow into the city and waters the lake in the

Botanic Garden A botanical garden or botanic gardenThe terms ''botanic'' and ''botanical'' and ''garden'' or ''gardens'' are used more-or-less interchangeably, although the word ''botanic'' is generally reserved for the earlier, more traditional gardens, an ...

Plant species

The dominant trees here are beech which were originally planted for firewood but have a detrimental effect on the watercourses: an acidic leaf fall in autumn is causing heavy silting and a change in oxygen levels. The hedgerow that encloses the reserve was planted following the Enclosures Act of 1834 and comprises native species like

hawthorn Hawthorn or Hawthorns may refer to: Plants * '' Crataegus'' (hawthorn), a large genus of shrubs and trees in the family Rosaceae * ''Rhaphiolepis'' (hawthorn), a genus of about 15 species of evergreen shrubs and small trees in the family Rosace ...

spindle Spindle may refer to: Textiles and manufacturing * Spindle (textiles), a straight spike to spin fibers into yarn * Spindle (tool), a rotating axis of a machine tool Biology * Common spindle and other species of shrubs and trees in genus ''Euony ...

and field maple. A survey determined that 108

plant species Flora is all the plant life present in a particular region or time, generally the naturally occurring (indigenous) native plants. Sometimes bacteria and fungi are also referred to as flora, as in the terms ''gut flora'' or ''skin flora''. Ety ...

grow here and the area contains numerous mature ash trees as well as

blackthorn ''Prunus spinosa'', called blackthorn or sloe, is a species of flowering plant in the rose family Rosaceae. The species is native to Europe, western Asia, and regionally in northwest Africa. It is locally naturalized in New Zealand, Tasmania, ...

. Scented sweet violets ''(Viola odorata)'' and bluebells bloom there early in the year, and later there are cowslips and deadly nightshade.

Aquatic wildlife

It was created a biological Site of Special Scientific Interest because a range of relic aquatic invertebrates bred here. The flatworms ''Planaria cornuta'' and ''P. alpina'' were found here and had survived from the last glacial period. Another relic species was a trichopteran (caddisfly), ''Agapetus fuscipes''. However the drought of 1976 together with increased water abstraction caused some extinctions and Nine Wells lost its SSSI status. Efforts are being made to recreate conditions favourable to re-establishing a richer invertebrate fauna again, however there is a great deal of new building going on in the area so this special little habitat patch is potentially under threat. According to the information boards within the reserve, active management is needed to keep the streams suitable for bullhead fish to thrive and this is important as they provide food for kingfishers. Falling beech leaves need to be cleared from the streams to stop the water from becoming too acidic.

Terrestrial species

These woods are home to species including

chaffinch The common chaffinch or simply the chaffinch (''Fringilla coelebs'') is a common and widespread small passerine bird in the finch family. The male is brightly coloured with a blue-grey cap and rust-red underparts. The female is more subdued in ...

, robin,

yellowhammer The yellowhammer (''Emberiza citrinella'') is a passerine bird in the bunting family that is native to Eurasia and has been introduced to New Zealand and Australia. Most European birds remain in the breeding range year-round, but the eastern ...

greenfinch The greenfinches are small passerine birds in the genus ''Chloris'' in the subfamily Carduelinae within the Fringillidae. The species have a Eurasian distribution except for the European greenfinch, which also occurs in North Africa. These fi ...

, blackbird and, during the summer, chiffchaff. The site is an important refuge for birds, with

sparrowhawk Sparrowhawk (sometimes sparrow hawk) may refer to several species of small hawk in the genus ''Accipiter''. "Sparrow-hawk" or sparhawk originally referred to ''Accipiter nisus'', now called "Eurasian" or "northern" sparrowhawk to distinguish it f ...

''(Accipitier nisus)'',

green woodpecker There are four species of bird named green woodpecker: * European green woodpecker, ''Picus viridis'' * Iberian green woodpecker The Iberian green woodpecker (''Picus sharpei'') is a medium-sized woodpecker endemic to the Iberian peninsula. It wa ...

''(Picus viridis)'',

long-tailed tit The long-tailed tit (''Aegithalos caudatus''), also named long-tailed bushtit, is a common bird found throughout Europe and the Palearctic. The genus name ''Aegithalos'' was a term used by Aristotle for some European tits, including the long-tail ...

''(Aegithalos caudatus)'', bullfinch ''(Pyrrhula pyrrhula)'' and

redwing The redwing (''Turdus iliacus'') is a bird in the thrush family, Turdidae, native to Europe and the Palearctic, slightly smaller than the related song thrush. Taxonomy and systematics This species was first described by Carl Linnaeus in h ...

''(Turdus iliacus)'' recorded as well as a good variety of small species. This is also a good site for butterflies including

peacocks Peafowl is a common name for three bird species in the genera '' Pavo'' and ''Afropavo'' within the tribe Pavonini of the family Phasianidae, the pheasants and their allies. Male peafowl are referred to as peacocks, and female peafowl are ref ...

and brimstones ''(

Gonepteryx ''Gonepteryx'' is a genus of butterflies in the family Pieridae, which contains about 1,100 species. They live in Europe, Asia, and Northern Africa. They are commonly known as brimstones for the bright yellow colour of the wings of most species. ...

)".

Monument

Within the Reserve there is a monument to Hobson's Conduit which was erected in 1861 by public subscription and records the benefactors to the water course and conduit as: * Thomas Chaplin, Lord of the Manor of Trumpington Delapole, 1610 * Stephen Perse, fellow of Gonville and Caius, 1615 *

, carrier, 1630 * Edward Potto, alderman of Cambridge, 1632, and * Joseph Merrill, alderman of Cambridge, 1806 The obelix is a Grade II listed building.

Location

It is south of

Addenbrooke's Hospital Addenbrooke's Hospital is an internationally renowned large teaching hospital and research centre in Cambridge, England, with strong affiliations to the University of Cambridge. Addenbrooke's Hospital is based on the Cambridge Biomedical Camp ...

and east of the railway line and the genome cycle track (), near the village of

Great Shelford Great Shelford is a village located approximately to the south of Cambridge, in the county of Cambridgeshire, in eastern England. In 1850 Great Shelford parish contained bisected by the river Cam. The population in 1841 was 803 people. By 2001 ...

Gallery

File:Hobson's Conduit monument at Nine Wells.jpg, Monument to Hobson's Conduit at Nine Wells File:Spring at Nine Wells.jpg, Spring at Nine Wells that feeds Hobson's Conduit File:One of four springs at Nine Wells.jpg, One of four springs at Nine Wells, April 2016 File:NineWells.jpg, Nine Wells woods at their narrowest, looking from the north-east File:The Stripes and the Double Helix - geograph.org.uk - 751734.jpg, Double helix sculpture where National Cycle Route 11 meets track along Hobson's Brook to Nine Wells

References

External links

Interactive Cambridge University Map
showing access routes—by

cycleway Cycling infrastructure is all infrastructure cyclists are allowed to use. Bikeways include bike paths, bike lanes, cycle tracks, rail trails and, where permitted, sidewalks. Roads used by motorists are also cycling infrastructure, except wher ...

and permissive paths—to Nine Wells between

Addenbrookes Hospital Addenbrooke's Hospital is an internationally renowned large teaching hospital and research centre in Cambridge, England, with strong affiliations to the University of Cambridge. Addenbrooke's Hospital is based on the Cambridge Biomedical Campu ...

and

. {{Authority control Local Nature Reserves in Cambridgeshire History of Cambridge Water supply and sanitation in England