Maer Lake

Last updated

Maer Lake
Cornwall UK location map.svg
Red pog.svg
Location in Cornwall
Locationnear Bude
grid reference SS 208 075
Coordinates 50°50′21″N4°32′47″W / 50.83917°N 4.54639°W / 50.83917; -4.54639
Area8.9 hectares (22 acres)
Operated by Cornwall Wildlife Trust and Cornwall Birdwatching and Preservation Society
Website www.cornwallwildlifetrust.org.uk/nature-reserves/maer-lake

Maer Lake is a nature reserve adjacent to Bude, in Cornwall, England. It is a wetland meadow with open water, and is an important site for over-wintering birds.

Description

The earliest mention of the lake is in 1284, as "La Mare", and in the post-medieval period it was an area of wet grazing shared by local farmers. In 1993 the site was jointly purchased by the Cornwall Wildlife Trust and the Cornwall Birdwatching and Preservation Society, and it is managed by the two organisations. [1] [2]

The area of the site is 8.9 hectares (22 acres). It is a freshwater wetland, and a wetland meadow for grazing animals; it is an important as a passage site and as an over-wintering site for waders and wildfowl. A sluice was constructed so that there would be permanent shallow flooding of the site; 1 to 6 hectares (2.5 to 14.8 acres) may lie under water. The permanent shallow water has created a thick silt which is beneficial for waders. [1] [2] [3] [4]

Species seen on the site include golden plover, wigeon, jack snipe, lapwing, dunlin, redwing, water rail, marsh harrier and black-tailed godwit. About 1 hectare (2.5 acres) is covered with yellow flag iris and marsh marigold; there is also bog bean and pink water-speedwell. [2]

Access is restricted, to give security to resident and visiting birds: viewing is permitted only from the lane above the reserve. [2] [4]

Related Research Articles

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Berney Marshes & Breydon Water RSPB reserve</span>

Berney Marshes and Breydon Water RSPB reserve is a nature reserve managed by the Royal Society for the Protection of Birds (RSPB). Berney Marshes is situated south of the River Bure while Breydon water is the combined estuary of the River Waveney and the River Yare inland from Great Yarmouth in Norfolk, England.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">WWT Slimbridge</span> Wetland nature reserve in Gloucestershire

WWT Slimbridge is a wetland wildlife reserve near Slimbridge in Gloucestershire, England. It is midway between Bristol and Gloucester on the eastern side of the estuary of the River Severn. The reserve, set up by the artist and naturalist Sir Peter Scott, opened in November 1946. Scott subsequently founded the Wildfowl & Wetlands Trust, which has since opened nine other reserves around the country. Slimbridge comprises some 800 hectares of pasture, reed bed, lagoon and salt marsh. Many water birds live there all year round, and others are migrants on their ways to and from their summer breeding grounds. Other birds overwinter, including large numbers of white-fronted geese and increasing numbers of Bewick's swans.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Ouse Washes</span> Nature reserve in the United Kingdom

Ouse Washes is a linear 2,513.6-hectare (6,211-acre) biological Site of Special Scientific Interest stretching from near St Ives in Cambridgeshire to Downham Market in Norfolk. It is also a Ramsar internationally important wetland site, a Special Protection Area for birds, a Special Area of Conservation and a Nature Conservation Review site, Grade I. An area of 186 hectares between March and Ely is managed by the Wildlife Trust for Bedfordshire, Cambridgeshire and Northamptonshire and another area near Chatteris is managed by the Royal Society for the Protection of Birds. The Wildfowl & Wetlands Trust manages another area near Welney.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Rutland Water</span> Reservoir in Rutland, England

Rutland Water is a reservoir in Rutland, England, east of Rutland's county town, Oakham. It is filled by pumping from the River Nene and River Welland, and provides water to the East Midlands. By surface area it is the largest reservoir in England, but its capacity is exceeded by that of Kielder Water in Northumberland. Its maximum depth is 33m.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Cotswold Water Park</span> Lake system and park in England

The Cotswold Water Park is the United Kingdom's largest marl lake system, straddling the Wiltshire–Gloucestershire border, north-west of Cricklade and south of Cirencester. There are 180 lakes, spread over 42 square miles (110 km2).

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Coombe Hill Canal</span> Canal in the United Kingdom

Coombe Hill Canal lies in the Vale of Gloucester, south west England, north of Leigh and runs west 2.75 miles (4.43 km) from Coombe Hill Basin to the River Severn near Wainlode Hill. It opened in 1796 and closed 80 years later in 1876, after the only lock was damaged by flooding. The Gloucestershire Wildlife Trust purchased the Coombe Hill Canal nature reserve in 1985 and the area is managed by the trust. Adjacent to the Coombe Hill Canal is a large area of wet meadowland situated midway between Gloucester and Tewkesbury to the west of the A38, which was purchased by the trust in 1999. There is a north and a south meadow. This land and the Canal itself often flood in winter, which attracts hundreds of wildfowl.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Spittal Pond Nature Reserve</span> Wildlife sanctuary in Bermuda

Spittal Pond Nature Reserve is the largest wildlife sanctuary in Bermuda, located close to the Atlantic coast of Smith's Parish. Surrounding the third largest pond in Bermuda, Spittal Pond, it covers an area of 60 acres (24 ha). It is one of 13 parks or reserves managed by the Bermuda Department of Conservation Services which protects and conserves environmentally critical areas and habitats. The pond reserve, a wetland site, is one of the seven Ramsar Sites in Bermuda, which was approved on 10 May 1999 for the criteria of its unique characteristics such as its lagoon which is permanently brackish, ecology featuring wet grassland and mangrove forests, seasonal shorebirds, other ver run waterbirds and European eels. It is also home to many types of species mostly including birds.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Oare Marshes</span> Local Nature Reserve in Kent, England

Oare Marshes is a 71.4-hectare (176-acre) Local Nature Reserve north of Faversham in Kent. It is owned and managed by Kent Wildlife Trust. It is part of The Swale Nature Conservation Review site, Grade I, National Nature Reserve, Ramsar internationally important wetland site, Special Protection Area under the European Union Directive on the Conservation of Wild Birds, and Site of Special Scientific Interest.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Ashleworth Ham</span> Biological Site of Special Scientific Interest in Gloucestershire, England

Ashleworth Ham is a 104.73-hectare (258.8-acre) biological Site of Special Scientific Interest. It is a large area of grassland on the Severn floodplain, north of Ashleworth in Gloucestershire, England. It is registered as a Site of Special Scientific Interest and was notified in 1974 and renotified in 1985. Ashleworth Ham received this designation because it is one of three sites in the Severn Vale where migratory waterfowl winter.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Rye Meads</span>

Rye Meads is a 58.5-hectare (145-acre) biological Site of Special Scientific Interest (SSSI) in Rye House, Hoddesdon, Hertfordshire. It is one of series of wetlands and reservoirs situated along the River Lea, to the north-east of London. It is part of the Lea Valley Ramsar site and a Special Protection Area.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Birds of Cornwall</span>

The birds of Cornwall are in general a selection of those found in the whole of the British Isles, though Cornwall's position at the extreme south-west of Great Britain results in many occasional migrants. The nightingale is one English bird which is virtually absent from Cornwall.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Malltraeth Marsh</span> Marshland in Anglesey, Wales

Malltraeth Marsh is a large marsh area in Anglesey, North Wales, north-east of Malltraeth village, along the flatlands of Trefdraeth, Bodorgan, Llangristiolus and south of Cefn Cwmwd, Rhostrehwfa. It was reclaimed from estuarine marshes after the construction of the Malltraeth Cob (dyke), a 1 mile (1.6 km) long embankment, and the subsequent canalisation in 1824 of the Afon Cefni.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Tamar–Tavy Estuary</span>

The Tamar–Tavy Estuary is a Site of Special Scientific Interest (SSSI) covering the tidal estuaries of the River Tamar and the River Tavy on the border between Cornwall and Devon in England, UK. Part of the Tamar estuary also forms the Tamar Estuary Nature Reserve, owned by the Cornwall Wildlife Trust. The site was designated in 1991 for its biodiversity and varying habitats that support many wader and wildfowl species, as well as the special interest of its marine biology.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Barnby Broad and Marshes</span>

Barnby Broad and Marshes is a Site of Special Scientific Interest (SSSI) in the Waveney district of the English county of Suffolk. The site is 189.6 hectares in size. It is in the parishes of North Cove and Barnby, located between Beccles and Lowestoft in the north of the county. The site is bordered on its southern edge by the East Suffolk railway line and to the north by the River Waveney. It is a Special Area of Conservation, a Special Protection Area under the EC Birds Directive, and a Ramsar internationally important wetland site. There are two Suffolk Wildlife Trust nature reserves in the site, Castle Marshes and North Cove.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Salmonsbury Meadows SSSI</span> English Site of Special Scientific Interest

Salmonsbury Meadows is an 18-hectare (44-acre) biological and geological Site of Special Scientific Interest in Gloucestershire, notified in 1985. The site is listed in the 'Cotswold District' Local Plan 2001-2011 as a Key Wildlife Site (KWS).

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Irthlingborough Lakes and Meadows</span>

Irthlingborough Lakes and Meadows is a 117-hectare (290-acre) nature reserve in Northamptonshire, owned and managed by the Wildlife Trust for Bedfordshire, Cambridgeshire and Northamptonshire. The character of the reserve is defined by flooded gravel pits and wet grassland, providing an excellent habitat for large variety of wetland flora and fauna.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Norsminde Fjord</span> Inlet on eastern Jutland, Denmark

Norsminde Fjord is an inlet on the east coast of peninsular Denmark at the village of Norsminde, some 20 km south of Aarhus. The inlet is about 3 km (1.9 mi) long and 700 m (2,300 ft) at the widest point and is shared between Aarhus and Odder Municipality.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Haidenweiher</span> Lake in Germany

The Haidenweiher is a large pond about 1.3 kilometres (0.81 mi) southwest of the village of Dreifelden in the county of Westerwaldkreis in Germany. It has a surface area of c. 30 hectares and is the second largest of the Westerwald Lakes. It is linked to the Dreifelder Weiher by a drainage ditch and is used today for breeding fish. The pond was designated as a nature reserve in 1979 and is surrounded by dense woods. Rare bird species nest along its shores, especially waders.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Cornwall Birdwatching and Preservation Society</span> Conservation body in Cornwall, England

The Cornwall BirdWatching and Preservation Society is a conservation body dedicated to the preservation and enjoyment of birds in the county of Cornwall, England, UK. The society is involved in the management of six reserves, and provides news of bird sightings in Cornwall through its website.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Christopher Cadbury Wetland Reserve</span> Nature reserve in Worcestershire, UK

The Christopher Cadbury Wetland Reserve is a nature reserve of the Worcestershire Wildlife Trust. It is situated near Upton Warren, between Bromsgrove and Droitwich Spa in Worcestershire, England. The reserve is designated a Site of Special Scientific Interest.

References

  1. 1 2 "Maer Lake" Cornwall Bird Watching and Preservstion Society. Retrieved 29 January 2021.
  2. 1 2 3 4 "Maer Lake" Cornwall Birds. Cornwall Bird Watching and Preservation Society. Retrieved 30 January 2021.
  3. "Maer Lake" Cornwall Wildlife Trust. Retrieved 29 January 2021.
  4. 1 2 "Birdwatching – Maer Lake" Cornwall Guide. Retrieved 30 January 2021.