Lemsford Springs

{{Short description|Nature reserve in Hertfordshire, England}}

{{Use dmy dates|date=April 2022}}

{{Infobox protected area

| name = Lemsford Springs

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| photo = Lemsford Springs 10.JPG

| photo_caption = View over reserve

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| location = Hertfordshire, England

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| area_ref = 4 ha

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Lemsford Springs is a 4 hectare nature reserve in Lemsford, Hertfordshire, England. It is managed by the Herts and Middlesex Wildlife Trust,{{cite web|url=http://www.hertswildlifetrust.org.uk/reserves/lemsford-springs|title=Lemsford Springs|publisher=Herts and Middlesex Wildlife Trust|accessdate=4 October 2015|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20150406171440/http://www.hertswildlifetrust.org.uk/reserves/lemsford-springs|archive-date=6 April 2015|url-status=dead}} 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. The spring feeds the nearby River Lea.

Before becoming a nature reserve, the site was used as a watercress bed.{{Cite web |title=Lemsford Springs |url=http://www.lemsfordhistory.co.uk/Article_Lemsford_Springs.html |website=Local History Group}} Its lagoons are fed by springs, so they never freeze over and provide an important habitat for birds in cold winters. There are two bird hides, and birds which can be seen include water rails, snipe and green sandpipers.{{Cite web |title=Our Green Sandpipers on prime time TV as Countryfile comes from Lemsford Springs NR |url=https://www.hnhs.org/news/our-green-sandpipers-prime-time-tv-countryfile-comes-lemsford-springs-nr |website=Hertfordshire Natural History Society}} Green sandpipers are migratory; a colour ringing project has revealed information about the travels of the Lemsford population including their breeding sites in Scandinavia.Smith K W (2002) Green sandpiper in The Migration Atlas: movements of the birds of Britain and Ireland. Wernham C V, Toms M P, Marchant J H, Clark J A, Siriwardena G M & Baillie S R. (eds). T & A D Poyser, London.

There are also water shrews and around fifty species of water snails.{{Cite web |title=Lemsford Springs |url=https://www.hertswildlifetrust.org.uk/nature-reserves/lemsford-springs}}

The reserve is kept locked and access can be arranged with the Wildlife Trust warden.