Lower Common Wildlife Pond – Progress Update

Our Lower Common Wildlife Pond is receiving some much-needed attention this week, with the first of our volunteer sessions taking place today.
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As many of you will have noticed, the pond has become increasingly overgrown and choked with debris. Recent summer heatwaves have seen it struggle to hold water for any length of time. To give our local wildlife a fighting chance, we have started digging it out. The aim is to clear a section carefully and restore its depth and width, whilst leaving plenty of cover untouched to cause as little disruption as possible to resident creatures.

During today's session, volunteers cleared a substantial amount of litter and choking vegetation before digging down to the natural clay layer beneath the pond bed. We hope this natural seal will help retain water through the drier months, mirroring the success of the recently restored Quab pond.
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The work did not go unnoticed by the locals either. Mid-dig, we uncovered a tiny froglet, which was gently moved to safe cover while spades were flying. We like to think it will approve of the renovations once the water settles.

Rather than clearing the entire area at once, we are taking a staged approach. We are focusing solely on one half this year, ensuring wildlife still has undisturbed habitat to shelter in over the coming seasons. The remaining section will be tackled next year. In the meantime, we plan to dig a small channel to help direct incoming water across into the newly excavated side.
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A huge thank you to everyone who pulled on their wellies and got stuck in on Monday. Practical conservation requires plenty of hands, and our volunteer team makes a genuine difference to what we can achieve across the Common. We will be back on site tomorrow to keep up the momentum.