Devon’s Living Waters: How Ponds, Streams and Wetlands Are Bringing Biodiversity Back
A Devon Morning Reawakened
Early light ripples across a new pond near Yelverton. Water mint releases its scent as dragonflies rise from the shallows; a frog plops from a fringe of sedge; and a small cloud of damselflies flashes electric blue above the surface. For many years, this field was hard-drained pasture. Now, under a pale Dartmoor sky, it hums with life again.
This scene captures a wider story. Across Devon, homeowners, farmers, estates, and community groups are rediscovering what happens when water is allowed to linger. Behind that gentle shimmer lies something powerful: the return of species that define the county’s wild identity.
Planning a funded pond or wetland project in Devon or Cornwall? We can support as your pond and wetland creation delivery partner.
Devon’s Deep Connection with Water
Devon’s character has always been shaped by water. The Dart, Exe, and Taw carve valleys through the uplands; tiny headwater springs feed wet meadows and farm ponds; reedbeds and estuaries filter the edge of the sea. Historically, these wetlands acted as natural sponges, storing water, supporting wildlife, and nourishing soil.
Over time, many were drained or straightened. Between 1900 and 2000, the county lost more than 70% of its traditional pond and wet meadow area. But that tide is turning. The Devon Biodiversity Records Centre (DBRC), working with the County Council and local ecologists, has identified more than 1,600 species of conservation concern — and nearly a quarter of them rely on freshwater or wetland habitats.
What the Data Reveals
The Devon Species of Conservation Concern Master List (August 2023) — paints a clear picture:
- 24% of priority species depend on wetlands, rivers, or standing water.
- The richest habitats for threatened wildlife are bogs, fens, ponds, and riparian corridors.
- Many of these species also feature on the UK Priority List or are protected under European or national law.
This means that when a landowner restores even a small pond or slows flow along a field drain, they are contributing directly to county-wide biodiversity recovery.
“Every pond is a seed of recovery.”
Meet Devon’s Water-Loving Species
Below are some of the most inspiring aquatic and wetland species from Devon’s priority list — the ones whose fortunes shift quickly when habitat returns.
Amphibians
Great Crested Newt (Triturus cristatus)
Status: European Protected Species; Devon Special Species
Habitat: Clean, fish-free ponds with grassy margins
The Great Crested Newt is Devon’s flagship amphibian — dark, warty, and crowned with a dragon-like crest. It spends most of the year hidden in rough grassland, emerging each spring to breed in clear, still water. Centuries of drainage and fish-stocking have robbed it of safe ponds, but where Sasaquatics designs clusters of fish-free pools with gentle shelves and open banks, these newts soon return. Egg-laying females curl individual leaves around each precious egg, a ritual that can only happen in healthy, unpolluted water.
Every clean, unstocked pond is a cradle for a protected species.
Smooth and Palmate Newts (Lissotriton vulgaris & Lissotriton helveticus)
Common but easily overlooked, these smaller cousins of the Great Crested Newt thrive in well-vegetated ponds and ditches. They feed on aquatic insects and use dense plants as shelter from predators. When ponds are desilted, re-profiled and planted with native species, populations can multiply within a season. Sasaquatics ensures shallow margins and clean water — conditions perfect for these quiet survivors.
Common Frog (Rana temporaria)
Few sights mark spring like a mass of frogspawn. Frogs rely on shallow, sun-warmed ponds for breeding, but the rest of the year they live in damp meadows and gardens. Every rewilding pond created by Sasaquatics includes micro-habitats — grassy banks, log piles, and shaded refuges — that connect water and land. Frogs keep insect numbers balanced and feed herons, snakes, and otters: a single species linking many others.
Common Toad (Bufo bufo)
Toads prefer deeper ponds and woodland pools. Unlike frogs, they migrate long distances to ancestral breeding sites, often crossing roads to get there. By restoring chains of ponds and safe ditches, Sasaquatics helps reconnect these ancient toad routes. Their return is always a quiet triumph — the evening croak echoing through a restored valley.
Fish
European Eel (Anguilla anguilla)
Status: Critically Endangered
Born in the Sargasso Sea, eels drift across the Atlantic as larvae before swimming up Devon’s estuaries and rivers. Barriers, pollution and silt have decimated their numbers, but reconnecting old channels and re-wetting floodplains gives them a lifeline. Sasaquatics designs eel-friendly inflows and backwaters where young elvers can grow safely. A single reconnected ditch can double their nursery habitat.
Brown Trout (Salmo trutta)
Native trout signal clean, cold water. In shaded headwaters and gravelly streams, they spawn where oxygen flows freely. When Sasaquatics stabilises banks, adds woody debris and reduces runoff from fields, the gravel beds clear and trout return. Their rise through restored riffles is a visible measure of recovery.
Three-spined Stickleback (Gasterosteus aculeatus)
These tiny fish thrive in ponds and ditches with submerged plants. They are among the first colonisers of new waterbodies. Watching them patrol a new Sasaquatics pond only months after excavation proves how quickly life responds when the conditions are right.
Invertebrates
Southern Damselfly (Coenagrion mercuriale)
Status: UK Priority Species; Devon Special Species
The Southern Damselfly’s electric blue body flickers above the trickle of a Dartmoor spring. It needs pure groundwater and open flushes — habitats that vanish when drainage grips too tightly. Sasaquatics restores seepage lines and controls grazing to keep vegetation short and sunny, giving this delicate insect the flow and warmth it needs.
Banded Demoiselle (Calopteryx splendens)
Few creatures rival the beauty of a male demoiselle dancing over a slow river. Its metallic wings signal good oxygen levels and gentle flow. When Sasaquatics restores sinuous channels and marginal reeds, these damselflies follow within weeks, adding shimmer to summer air.
Emperor Dragonfly (Anax imperator)
The largest of the dragonflies, the Emperor patrols open ponds like a hawk. It needs clear water and emergent plants for its larvae. By keeping nutrient levels low and promoting native planting, we ensure ponds stay suitable for these spectacular predators — the guardians of healthy waters.
Water Beetles and Caddisflies
Hundreds of species live hidden below the surface, breaking down plant matter and feeding fish and newts. Our work reintroducing submerged vegetation and natural substrates creates refuge for this overlooked biodiversity. A handful of pond mud can hold a greater variety of life than an entire field.
White-clawed Crayfish (Austropotamobius pallipes)
Devon’s native crayfish still cling to a few unpolluted tributaries. By reducing sediment runoff, shading streams, and installing woody debris for cover, strengthens these last refuges. Each surviving colony represents centuries of river heritage.
Aquatic and Wetland Plants
Pillwort (Pilularia globulifera)
A miniature fern that grows on seasonally flooded mud, Pillwort is globally near-threatened yet Devon remains a stronghold. It needs fluctuating water levels and light grazing. Our pond designs deliberately include shallow shelves that dry and re-wet through the year, recreating the pillwort zone around each new waterbody.
Floating Water-plantain (Luronium natans)
A European protected species, this elegant aquatic plant floats in calm, clean water. It vanishes when turbidity rises. Through natural filtration, phosphate control and careful planting, Sasaquatics restores the clear conditions it needs. Its white star flowers are a sign the ecosystem is working again.
Water-violet (Hottonia palustris)
A submerged beauty with pale lilac blooms that lift above the surface in May. Water-violet flourishes in still ponds rich in oxygen and low in nutrients — exactly what our natural filtration systems achieve. When it reappears, we know the pond’s microbial life has stabilised.
Marsh Pennywort (Hydrocotyle vulgaris)
Its round, coin-like leaves spread across damp margins, binding soil and providing shelter for froglets and insects. Marsh Pennywort thrives in the gently sloped edges we create — an essential “stitch” in the living fabric around every pond.
Bogbean (Menyanthes trifoliata)
Found in peat-rich fens and shallow pools, Bogbean’s fringed white flowers attract bees and hoverflies. In re-wetted corners of pasture, it’s often one of the first species to return. Its presence marks the point where restored hydrology and plant diversity meet.
Marsh Cinquefoil (Comarum palustre)
Deep crimson flowers, mirrored in still water. This plant thrives in boggy pond edges and wet meadows. Sasaquatics encourages it by creating gradual gradients and maintaining low nutrient levels — proof that beauty and ecology can coexist.
Wavy St John’s-wort (Hypericum undulatum)
A Devon Special Species that prefers shaded, stable streambanks. Our riparian planting and woodland stream projects maintain the dappled light and humidity it requires, safeguarding one of Devon’s rarest plants.
Interconnections
Each of these species depends on the others. Frogs feed dragonflies; beetles clean the water; plants oxygenate the mud where newts hide. A balanced pond is an entire community in miniature. When one element falters, the rest feel it.
Sasaquatics’ approach to restoration is built on this understanding. By combining ecological design, gentle earth-moving, native planting and natural water treatment, we recreate not just habitat but process — the self-sustaining rhythm of a living wetland.
Sasaquatics’ Role in Devon’s Rewilding Landscape
Across Devon’s farms, estates and villages, Sasaquatics helps landowners turn problem corners into vibrant blue spaces. Our work includes:
- Pond creation and restoration: from small wildlife pools to acre-sized lakes.
- Wetland scrapes and floodplain reconnection: slowing water and storing carbon.
- Aquatic planting and vegetation management: using native species to stabilise banks and filter nutrients.
- Ecological water treatments: safe, mineral-based solutions that support biological health.
Each project is tailored to the site — geology, hydrology and biodiversity potential. Together, these projects form a growing network of clean water habitats across the South West.
Why It Matters
Devon’s ponds and wetlands now host a quarter of the county’s species of conservation concern. Restoring them is not nostalgia; it’s resilience. Every pond built or revived reduces flooding downstream, improves water quality, locks carbon in soil and provides refuge for life.
In a changing climate, water is both the problem and the solution. By working with its natural flow, we rebuild landscapes that can adapt and thrive.
Lessons from the Landscape
Hydrology first
All these species rely on how water moves through soil. Blocking small drains, re-profiling ditches, or sculpting shallow basins instantly creates microhabitats that hold water longer.
Variety is everything
A cluster of ponds beats one big pond. Different depths, exposures, and vegetation stages provide continuity for wildlife throughout the year.
Nutrients matter
Most of Devon’s rare aquatic plants vanish when nutrient levels climb. Simple buffer strips and silt traps keep water clear enough for pillwort, shoreweed, and water-violet to thrive.
Partnership pays
Nearly half of Devon’s remaining wetland species occur on private land. By aligning projects with ELMS and Local Nature Recovery targets, landowners can protect wildlife while drawing down payments that reward good stewardship.
“When water lingers, life follows.”
How Sasaquatics Helps the Recovery
At Sasaquatics, our mission is simple: reconnect people, water, and wildlife. We combine ecological design with hands-on delivery — turning old drains and fields into vibrant ecosystems that work for both biodiversity and land management.
Our Devon-based team:
- Designs natural swimming ponds, wildlife ponds, and wetland scrapes tailored to each site’s soils and hydrology.
- Restores degraded ponds and ditches by removing silt, reshaping margins, and re-establishing native aquatic plants.
- Installs eco-friendly water circulation systems that maintain oxygen levels without chemicals.
- Works with landowners and councils to integrate projects into Local Nature Recovery Strategies.
- Uses the latest ecological mapping tools (including DEFRA’s MAGIC and DBRC datasets) to target maximum habitat gain.
Every Sasaquatics project is part of a bigger pattern — a network of waterbodies that together make Devon’s landscape more resilient.
How Landowners Can Help
Create new ponds in clusters. Three to five within a few hundred metres lets species move safely.
Re-wet forgotten corners. Shallow scrapes in field margins quickly become dragonfly nurseries.
Let plants lead. Allow rushes, sedges, and emergent vegetation to colonise; mow or cut on rotation.
Record and share. Submit sightings to DBRC or local groups to strengthen Devon’s data.
Plan for the long term. Ponds mature; schedule light maintenance every 5–10 years, not annually.
Even small patches of wetland create stepping stones linking Dartmoor to the sea — a living network of clean water and thriving species.
A County of Hope
What’s unfolding in Devon is bigger than conservation. It’s a cultural reconnection with the living water that built this county. Each pond dug, each drain slowed, each reedbed allowed to breathe again adds up to a landscape more resilient to flood and drought — and richer for every creature, from dragonfly to otter.
Rewilding is no longer just for reserves. It’s for gardens, farms, estates, and villages — and it starts wherever someone decides to let water be wild again.
Get Involved
Sasaquatics works across Devon and the South West designing, building, and managing ponds and wetlands for biodiversity, beauty, and resilience.
If you’d like to explore what’s possible on your land:
Visit: www.sasaquatics.com/contact
Email: info@sasaquatics.com
Phone: 08000371125
