The River Lea
What's in a name?
The correct spelling of the river has long been contested. Is it Lea or Lee?
Official documents and Acts of Parliament use the spelling "Lee", whilst on
old maps the river was referred to as the "Lea". Either spelling can be used
and most maps now display both. The spelling Lee is generally used downstream
of Hertford where the river is navigable and the spelling Lea for the upper
river such as at Stanborough.
The
Path of the River Lea
The River Lea rises at Leagrave Marsh in Luton, Bedfordshire. It is here that
the river starts its 83 kilometre journey to the Thames, through the counties
of Bedfordshire, Hertfordshire, Essex and Greater London. The River Lea flows
past Harpenden and through Wheathampstead before reaching Stanborough Park approximately
28 kilometres from the source. It then weaves it's way between the lakes, through
the Park and away under the railway line at the southern end.
After Stanborough Park the river flows on under the water wheel at Mill
Green Museum at Mill Green, through the grounds of Hatfield
House then progresses east towards Hertford. From Hertford the river turns
south on to Waltham Abbey and the Lee Valley Park before flowing through North
London then into the Thames in the East End. Look closely next time you tune
in to "Eastenders" as the Lea can be seen flowing into the Thames from the north
of the map in the opening credits.
The
River at Stanborough
The River Lea runs for about 1.6 kilometres through Stanborough Park at a fast
to medium flow of 1.2 cumecs (cubic metres of water per second). The river enters
the Park at the northern end and flows down the eastern side of the boating
lake. It then passes underneath the A6129 Stanborough road and flows along the
western edge of the sailing lake before meandering at a slower pace through
the nature reserve and out of the site under the railway bridge. The nature
reserve is managed by Herts and Middlesex Wildlife Trust and includes the third
largest reed bed in Hertfordshire. The River Lea is bursting with life.
Plant
Life
The River Lea at Stanborough flows through areas of woodland, grassland, willow
car and reed marsh. A variety of plant life can be seen when walking by the
river. In the northern stretch of the River Lea at Stanborough, after it emerges
from under the A1 (M) Motorway Bridge, there are large amounts of stream water
crowfoot Ranunculus penicillatus growing in the water; it might surprise you
that this river plant is a type of buttercup. The banks contain species such
as great willow herb Epilobium hirsutum and reed sweet grass Glyceria maxima
as well as nettles and brambles. If there are a wide variety of plants then
there will be a greater diversity of other wildlife.
As the river winds alongside the Sailing Lake then the vegetation becomes richer
and more varied, many species of sedges and rushes appear as well as the common
reed. This is due to a lower level of disturbance in the southern part of the
river at Stanborough; fishing is the main activity here. As the river flows
past the nature reserve, the common reed Phragmites australis becomes the dominant
plant on the far bank.
More information on the plants growing
in and around the Lea at Stanborough
Follow this link for a list of plants
at Stanborough Park
Animal Life
Many
animals use the river both as a source of food and as their home. The River
Lea flows through many habitats such as woodland, grassland, willow carr and
reed marsh. The river Lea acts as an important wildlife corridor connecting
Lemsford Springs nature reserve, one kilometre upstream, with the Nature Reserve
at Stanborough Park and the wetland areas further south in Hatfield Park. Mammals
such as Moles, Water Voles, and Brown Rats inhabit the banks whilst three species
of bat visit the river for food. Mallard Ducks, Coots and the shy Moorhens feed
for aquatic plants and insects in the river. There are as many as 16 different
species of fish in the river Lea. One you can often see at Stanborough Park
is Chub, a brown fish about 20cm long. Herons can be seen stalking the fish
in the river especially by the sailing lake and if you are really lucky you
might catch a glimpse of electric blue and orange as a kingfisher whizzes past.
Tiny invertebrates make up an important part of the river ecosystem; dragonflies
and damselflies can be seen around the river in the summer months. Nymphs of
mayflies and caddis flies will all be present in the river as well as abundant
fresh water shrimps and snails. The presence of an abundance of these small
animals shows that the river Lea at Stanborough has good water quality.
More details of the animals living
in and around the River Lea
Water Quality
The water quality of the Lea at Stanborough has improved over the last ten
years and it can now be described as a good quality coarse fishing river.
It is important to note that the water that flows through a living river is
not tap water and naturally it will have many different chemicals and organisms
within it. The presence of rats at the site introduces a small risk of contracting
Weil’s disease, a rare bacterial infection, and paddlers to the river are advised
to cover cuts and grazes with waterproof plasters and wash their hands after
paddling and before eating.
The Environment Agency monitors rivers to see changes over time and to compare
different stretches of the same river using the General Quality Assessment scheme
(GQA). The chemistry, biology, nutrients and appearance (aesthetics) of the
stretches are monitored. This includes monitoring the levels of chemicals such
as Nitrates, Phosphates and Ammonia, dissolved oxygen in the water, the biological
oxygen demand of the water, and biological monitoring looking at the type and
abundance of invertebrates within the river water.
Two monitored stretches that include Stanborough are Wheathampstead to Stanborough
and Stanborough to Holwell Bridge.
More detailed information on the water
quality of the Lea at Stanborough
More information about the river Lea and water quality, monitoring and conservation
can be found on the Environment
Agency website.
