Conigre Mead Nature Reserve Melksham

How it started.

The reserve in 1989 was just a field of Cocksfoot grass, occasionally grazed by cattle. There was just one Willow tree in the centre, which marks the original course of the River Avon. It was decide to try to create a Nature Reserve here on the banks of the river for all to enjoy and to be a resource for local schools.

Money was raised from various local organisations, councils and individuals. The reserve was then taken over by the Wiltshire Wildlife Trust, who with a team of volunteers manage it.Over the course of 20 years, ponds have been dug, trees and shrubs planted.

Local Primary school children planted wildflowers.

20April

Spring at Conigre Mead

Spring has slowed down after the lovely weather in March, but flowers are springing up and trees and shrubs are blossoming.

wild cherry 9999

Celandine has been flowering for 2 or 3 weeks and the primroses make a good display on the bank of the pond. Some of the paths are lined with the white dead-nettle, with sprigs of purple ground ivy peeping through.

The shrubs are starting to flower particularly the white blossom of the Blackthorn - very profuse this year - no doubt that accounts for the legendary 'Blackthorn Winter' chill we now have.

In February we planted some new trees on the western boundary near the river and they are coming on nicely. Now, at last, the pollarded Willows, down by the river, are showing signs of new growth - they will soon be growing up well and recovering their branches.

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20April

Update on Lottery-Funded Works

The contractors will be starting on the new paths and gates towards the end of April, and the work will take about 2 weeks.

The bridge repairs are now complete and a non-skid surface has been installed.

The designers are working on the new interpretation boards which will be different for each of the 3 gates.

We hope that we will have some money to spare and plan to dig a new pond which will be at the southern side and will not be flooded by the river.

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05February

Art Activity

Lottery-funded project

We hope to involve some young people in an art activity for the Lottery project, based on environmental issues in the Reserve. Several artists have sent in proposals and we will meet with the young people at the Canberra shortly to make a decision.

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16January

Lottery-Funded Work to Begin

Appeal for Volunteers

Several bids have been received for the installation of new weather-proof paths and we have appointed a contractor for this. Work will start on this when the weather is likely to be dry - probably in April.

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13December

Arrival of Peter's Shed and Opening Ceremony

on 9th December

The storage container was delivered last Friday. Two members of the volunteer group helped the lorry driver reverse into the reserve and unload the container onto the sleepers.

container 4

container 1

An opening ceremony for the shed was held on a chilly Saturday in December by the Conigre Mead Volunteers, with mince pies and mulled wine.

opening of the shed 8350

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28November

November 18th

The Volunteers' Activities

Today we had two tasks to get on with. The Wiltshire Wildlife Trust have got us some railway sleepers to make a base for our new shed which we hope will be delivered soon. Our volunteers, with the aid of some strops, carefully carried the sleepers to the site at the south-western end of the reserve where we plan to put a half container. This will be a small storage shed and will save carting our conservation tools from their present storage some distance away. The site had already been leveled by the Payback Team pretty well and there was very little adjustment needed.

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28November

Willow Trees Along The River

Some background on the recent tree-cutting exercise

The trees along the river and around the pond have recently been coppiced and pollarded, but not cut down, as a management plan for several reasons: They are ‘crack’ willow and frequently break off their branches when they get large and heavy. This of course could be dangerous to passers-by; This will let more light into the river so allowing water plants to grow which are good for breeding dragonflies and other water creatures; They have grown very tall and have become difficult to manage by our volunteers. Willows grow quickly and will soon regrow their branches.

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09November

Lottery Award

The Volunteer Group who help to maintain Conigre Mead Nature Reserve in Melksham, which is owned by the Wiltshire wildlife Trust, Have been awarded a BIg Lottery Grant of £47710 for works to improve the reserve.

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20April

Upcoming Activities

Put the Party date in your diary: 24th June from 12 noon till 4 pm- All welcome!

There will be fun & games for all the family: a story teller, stalls from interested organisations, help from the Wiltshire Wildlife Trust, pond dipping, light refreshments and drinks.

Also, an artist has been appointed to work with the young people a the Canberra youth centre. They are going to make an exciting ceramic display of dragonflies, which will be installed in time for the party.

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05February

Latest news from the Reserve

by Gill Cardy

A brand new Leaflet for Conigre Mead has been designed by the Wiltshire Wildlife Trust, sponsored by Sainsbury’s as part of a fee for housing the translocated reptiles prior to beginning work on their flood relief area.

It will shortly be available in the Tourist Information Office in Church Street.

Sadly our new shed was vandalised shortly after it arrived as someone smashed one of the padlocks. Fortunately we have other security measures in place and they were unable to get in. There are only a few working tools in there anyway.

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21January

Volunteers Start Lottery-Funded Work

January Working Party

The physical work on the Lottery Project started in earnest today.

Some new volunteers were very welcome and made a good work force of 11people, together with some very young volunteers who did a good job of litter-picking.

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15January

Latest wildlife sightings on the reserve

by Gill Cardy

The berries in the reserve are providing food for the birds throughout December.

We recently had a lot of flood water over much of the reserve and this has left a lot of mud by the river seat. The payback team cleared a lot of it today but when we have our new hard surfaced paths, it will be easier to sweep away.

Walking through in the sunshine today the Hazel catkins are abundant - a sign of spring perhaps. I was very surprised to see some Hawthorn just in flower, and new green leaves appearing while the berries were still there. What a strange and warm winter we have had, though the last few days' frosts were a nasty shock.

I found a plant which is new to the reserve, near the cemetery hedge. It is a fern - Heart's tongue fern, Phyllitis scolopendrium, also known as Mother-in-law's tongue.

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04December

October 31st - An Afternoon in the Reserve

by Gill Cardy

A happy afternoon was spent in the reserve today looking for dragonflies. It was a sunny and quite warm day and the common darters and one or two Migrant Hawker dragonflies were busy making the most of the weather before winter is upon us.

We have recorded an amazing 15 different species this year - 6 Damselflies and 9 Dragonflies. Pictured below is an Azure Damselfly.

azure damselfly

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28November

News from Conigre Mead

'Peter's Shed'

We have now laid some railway sleepers in the reserve as a base for our new shed. The shed is partly financed by a donation from Jo Mowday in memory of her late husband Peter Mowday and his friend and mentor Helen Brotherton, who were both passionate about wildlife conservation and Natural History education. Peter Mowday was well known in Melksham as a former head teacher of the Aloeric School. He was an imaginative teacher and used to take his pupils to the Nature Reserve for all kinds of lessons. He taught Maths there, using the Reserve as a resource and a tool, as well as looking at and recording the wildlife that he and the children found.

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22November