Barry Emmerson and Sally Oldfield of Islington’s Parks department at the New River Walk, by Canonbury Road, where wildlife is now expected to return

A NESTING moorhen delayed the regeneration of the New River Walk for months, said the key players in the nearly £500,000 project.

Barry Emmerson and Sally Oldfield, of Isling­ton’s Parks department, joked that at one point someone was put on “moorhen watch” to identify when works to the 17th-century riverway – which is actually more like a long pond – could continue.

“It took a little bit longer than we hoped,” admitted Mr Emmerson, head of parks.

“We found there was a bit more silt than we expected or calculated and we also had some issues at one point with a nesting bird through there and we couldn’t move!”

Someone was coming to check on the status of the nesting bird, who did not “move off” until June, he added.

The project, which launched in January, created banks of silt to support the wildlife in the man-made river, as well as replaced the old pumps used to aerate what are otherwise stagnant waters.

As the watercourse became choked with duckweed, the wildlife previously died off due to a lack of oxygen in the water. Ms Oldfield expects frogs, toads and newts to return to the historic waters, while dragonflies and damson flies are also likely to return.

Built in the early 17th century by famous engineer Sir Hugh Myddelton to bring clean drinking water into London from Hertfordshire, the New River has been a home to wildlife and a popular walking spot for more than 400 years. Since its renewal was completed last month, the parks department has been organising volunteer sessions for people to come and help get the area back into prime condition, from weeding and pruning to litter picking.

The next volunteer session occurs today (Friday) from 11am to 1pm by the pump house close to 1-27 Isay Walk.

The following session, meeting at the same location and time, will be on December 1.