Pensthorpe Nature Reserve
Encyclopedia
The Pensthorpe Nature Reserve is located at Pensthorpe
, Norfolk
, England
about one mile from Fakenham
and close to the A1067 road
. The reserve covers 600 acres (242.8 ha), with the River Wensum
running through the site, is a designated Special Area of Conservation
(SAC). The reserve was the location of the BBC
programme Springwatch from May 2008 to 2010.
.
During excavations to create the lakes and wader scrapes, one million tons of aggregates were dug up. The work uncovered finds including a hand axe
believed to date from 8000 BC. Tusks and the tooth from a woolly mammoth
were also found.
Kettlestone
Kettlestone is a village and civil parish in the English county of Norfolk.It covers an area of and had a population of 177 in 85 households as of the 2001 census.For the purposes of local government, it falls within the district of North Norfolk....
, Norfolk
Norfolk
Norfolk is a low-lying county in the East of England. It has borders with Lincolnshire to the west, Cambridgeshire to the west and southwest and Suffolk to the south. Its northern and eastern boundaries are the North Sea coast and to the north-west the county is bordered by The Wash. The county...
, England
England
England is a country that is part of the United Kingdom. It shares land borders with Scotland to the north and Wales to the west; the Irish Sea is to the north west, the Celtic Sea to the south west, with the North Sea to the east and the English Channel to the south separating it from continental...
about one mile from Fakenham
Fakenham
Fakenham is a town and civil parish in Norfolk, England. It is situated on the River Wensum, some north east of King's Lynn, south west of Cromer, and north west of Norwich....
and close to the A1067 road
A1067 road
The A1067 is an English A road entirely in the county of Norfolk. It runs from Fakenham Northern By-Pass to Norwich inner ring road .-A47 to A1067 Link Road:...
. The reserve covers 600 acres (242.8 ha), with the River Wensum
River Wensum
The River Wensum is a chalk fed river in Norfolk, England and a tributary of the River Yare despite being the larger of the two rivers. The complete river is a designated Site of Special Scientific Interest and Special Area of Conservation ....
running through the site, is a designated Special Area of Conservation
Special Area of Conservation
A Special Area of Conservation is defined in the European Union's Habitats Directive , also known as the Directive on the Conservation of Natural Habitats and of Wild Fauna and Flora...
(SAC). The reserve was the location of the BBC
BBC
The British Broadcasting Corporation is a British public service broadcaster. Its headquarters is at Broadcasting House in the City of Westminster, London. It is the largest broadcaster in the world, with about 23,000 staff...
programme Springwatch from May 2008 to 2010.
History
The site was created as a nature reserve by Bill Makins in the 1980s, before being bought by Bill and Deb Jordan in 2003, of Jordans cerealsJordans (company)
Jordans is a company that makes brands of crunchy oat and nut cereal based in Biggleswade in Bedfordshire.-History:Holme Mills on Langford Road in Biggleswade, situated next to the River Ivel, was bought by William Herbert Jordan in 1855. It burnt down in 1899. It produced flour until 1972, when...
.
During excavations to create the lakes and wader scrapes, one million tons of aggregates were dug up. The work uncovered finds including a hand axe
Hand axe
A hand axe is a bifacial Stone tool typical of the lower and middle Palaeolithic , and is the longest-used tool of human history.-Distribution:...
believed to date from 8000 BC. Tusks and the tooth from a woolly mammoth
Woolly mammoth
The woolly mammoth , also called the tundra mammoth, is a species of mammoth. This animal is known from bones and frozen carcasses from northern North America and northern Eurasia with the best preserved carcasses in Siberia...
were also found.