Editing Redgrave and Lopham Fens (section)

==Management==
To maintain and improve the diversity of species and quality of habitat at the site continual management is required. Suffolk Wildlife Trust employs a Site Manager and Assistant Warden to run and monitor the site but also relies on volunteers to carry out management work. Such work includes rush mowing, sedge harvesting, scrub clearance, [[coppicing]] and fence construction.<ref name=SWT10>{{cite web|url=http://www.suffolkwildlife.co.uk/nr/rlf/volunteer.htm |title=Volunteering at Redgrave & Lopham Fen |publisher=[[Suffolk Wildlife Trust]] |access-date=6 January 2009 |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20090131215814/http://suffolkwildlife.co.uk/nr/rlf/volunteer.htm |archive-date=31 January 2009}}</ref> The site has also introduced a successful grazing regime to reduce the cost incurred from mowing such a large area of fen. It actively manages the fen raft spider population.<ref name=SWT3/>

===Grazing===
[[File:wild Konik ponies.jpg|thumb|250px|right|Koniks grazing wet grassland at the fen.]]

The site uses sheep, cattle and ponies as part of its management strategy. This has visibly benefited the fen structure and means only the larger saw sedge beds are now on a manual cutting rotation. The use of grazing has led to the emergence of a greater mosaic of vegetation and habitat types within the fen and has inhibited the expansion of scrub.
<ref name=SWT11>{{cite web|url=http://www.suffolkwildlife.co.uk/nr/rlf/fenmgt/grazing.htm |title=Grazing the fen |publisher=[[Suffolk Wildlife Trust]] |access-date=6 January 2009 |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20090131215713/http://suffolkwildlife.co.uk/nr/rlf/fenmgt/grazing.htm |archive-date=31 January 2009}}</ref>
[[Hebridean sheep]] owned by the trust and beef cattle from local farms graze on the dryer areas of scrub, heath and fen margins and help prevent the expansion of scrub. In 1995 the reserve introduced a herd of Polish [[Konik]] ponies to graze the wetter areas of the fen. They were chosen over native breeds for their hardiness and ability to graze in very wet conditions.<ref name=SWT12>{{cite web|url=http://www.suffolkwildlife.co.uk/nr/rlf/fenmgt/tarpan.htm |title=The wild ponies of Redgrave and Lopham Fen |publisher=[[Suffolk Wildlife Trust]] |access-date=6 January 2009 |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20080512200719/http://www.suffolkwildlife.co.uk/nr/rlf/fenmgt/tarpan.htm |archive-date=12 May 2008 }}</ref> The success of the Konik ponies has led to their use for grazing in other nature reserves in the UK and on [[the Broads]]. The cattle and Konik are usually kept on the fen between April and December which avoids the wettest and most barren months of the year.<ref name=SWT11/>

===Fen raft spider===
[[File:D.plantarius on water surface.jpg|left|thumb|250px|A female [[fen raft spider]] at Redgrave and Lopham Fens]]

Redgrave and Lopham Fens was the first site in the UK at which a population of the [[fen raft spider]] (''Dolomedes plantarius'') was recorded. Following their discovery in 1956 a number of new pools were dug to encourage population expansion. However, water extraction from the borehole and a series of droughts in the 1980s reduced the population to only two isolated areas on the reserve. Throughout this period irrigation of the pools inhabited by the spider enabled the continuation of the population.

The removal of the borehole in 1999 was expected to trigger an increase in population as water levels returned to normal. However, a study carried out in 2006 showed that no noticeable change had occurred. The population of the fen raft spider remains small and restricted in distribution. Recommendations for future management of the population include increasing the depths of turf pool, creating more pool habitats and greater, more focused use of water management in the reserve.<ref name=FRSRP1>
{{cite web|url=http://www.wavcott.org.uk/dolomedes/Downloads/Microsoft%20Word%20-%20Report2006_forpdf.pdf |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20111006035124/http://www.wavcott.org.uk/dolomedes/Downloads/Microsoft%20Word%20-%20Report2006_forpdf.pdf |archive-date=2011-10-06 |url-status=live|title= 2006 Summary Report for Redgrave and Lopham Fen|publisher=Fen Raft Spider Recovery Project|access-date=7 January 2009}}</ref>

[[Image:Visitor Centre at Redgrave Fen.jpg|thumb|250px|right|The visitor centre and picnic area at Redgrave and Lopham Fens]]