Maiden Erlegh Lakes is a Local Nature Reserve

Earley Earley is a town and civil parish in the Borough of Wokingham, Berkshire, England. Along with the neighbouring town of Woodley, the Office for National Statistics places Earley within the Reading/Wokingham Urban Area; for the purposes of local ...

, a suburb of

Reading Reading is the process of taking in the sense or meaning of Letter (alphabet), letters, symbols, etc., especially by Visual perception, sight or Somatosensory system, touch. For educators and researchers, reading is a multifaceted process invo ...

Berkshire Berkshire ( ; in the 17th century sometimes spelt phonetically as Barkeshire; abbreviated Berks.) is a historic county in South East England. One of the home counties, Berkshire was recognised by Queen Elizabeth II as the Royal County of Berk ...

. It is owned and managed by Earley Town Council.

Geography and site

The nature reserve consists of areas of ancient and secondary woodland, grassland, a large lake, a brook, an old woodland pond and surrounding wetland habitat. The reserve supports a large amount of wildlife including over a 100 species of butterflies and moths, more than 50 species of birds, 50 species of fungi and over 20 species of trees. The site features a lake which is 2.4 hectares in area and up to 2 meters deep. The lake features two islands, which birds use as nesting places. The reserve features woodlands that contain a small pond which is the last remaining remnant of a second lake that used to occupy much of this copse area. On the south side of the lake is more woodland, plus a wildflower meadow and butterfly garden.

Features

On the island within the lake known as Swan Island a statue made out of a tree that had fallen in 2007 was revealed to the public in 2009.

History

The area of the reserve called Oak Wood dates from at least the 16th century and contains some 18

indicator species A bioindicator is any species (an indicator species) or group of species whose function, population, or status can reveal the qualitative status of the environment. The most common indicator species are animals. For example, copepods and other sma ...

associated with old woodlands. The lake area which was once a wet woodland is believed to have been created, by damming the area, sometime between the Middle Ages to the 18th century to create fishponds, provide ice and create a landscape feature. In the late 18th century, Maiden Erlegh was owned by slaveholder and MP William Mathew Burt, who recruited

Capability Brown Lancelot Brown (born c. 1715–16, baptised 30 August 1716 – 6 February 1783), more commonly known as Capability Brown, was an English gardener and landscape architect, who remains the most famous figure in the history of the English la ...

to assist with landscape planning. The 1820 maps of

enclosure Enclosure or Inclosure is a term, used in English landownership, that refers to the appropriation of "waste" or " common land" enclosing it and by doing so depriving commoners of their rights of access and privilege. Agreements to enclose land ...

s and the

tithe map The term tithe map is usually applied to a map of an English or Welsh parish or township, prepared following the Tithe Commutation Act 1836. This act allowed tithes to be paid in cash rather than goods. The map and its accompanying schedule gave the ...

of 1844 both show the woodlands and lake, within Maiden Erlegh Park, as being almost the same size and shape as today. The lake and surrounding site was purchased by

Solomon Joel Solomon Barnato "Solly" Joel (23 May 1865 – 22 May 1931), born in London, England, moved to South Africa in the 1880s where he made his fortune in connection with diamonds, later becoming a financier with interests in mining, brewing and railw ...

in 1903, where it is believed he had the larger of the two islands in the lake created. In response to the demands of local residents Coopers Estates agreed to sell Maiden Erlegh Lake and the surrounding woodland to Earley Parish Council in return for being allowed to build on another greenfield site in 1965 for a sum of £8,500. The land sold in 1965 consisted of the lake itself, plus Oakwood, Old Pond Copse and a small part of Moor Copse. In 1991 Old Lane Wood was acquired from

Wokingham Borough Council Wokingham Borough Council is the local authority of the Borough of Wokingham in Berkshire, England. It is a unitary authority A unitary authority is a local authority responsible for all local government functions within its area or perform ...

for £1. In 1996 the area was then declared a local nature reserve by Earley Town Council.

Fauna

The site has the following fauna:

Reptiles and amphibians

Invertebrates

Birds

Mammals

Fish

Flora

The site has the following flora:

Trees

Plants

References

{{Local Nature Reserves in Berkshire Parks and open spaces in Berkshire Nature reserves in Berkshire Local Nature Reserves in Berkshire