They've been dubbed the borough's hidden gem, and even the jewel in our crown. Thanks to a partnership between the council and Lancashire Wildlife Trust, Wigan Flashes are being transformed into one of the region's finest nature reserves, a haven for wildlife, rare plants and insects.
Volunteers, wildlife experts and council staff have been working hard to make the woods and wetlands more accessible for people to visit, and more attractive for wildlife to thrive.
The lakes known locally as flashes were formed as a result of mining subsidence towards the end of the 19th century. In more recent times, the giant cooling towers of Westwood Power Station cast a shadow over the landscape. There was even a landfill site active between Pearson's and Turner's Flash, on what is now a peaceful haven for wildlife and recreation.
The reserve is well known amongst wildlife enthusiasts as a place to see rare species such as the bittern and, more recently, the Cetti's warbler, that make the reserve reedbeds their home.
Since 1999 Lancashire Wildlife Trust has managed the reserve in partnership with Wigan Council, which owns the land. Now the Flashes are set to become part of Greenheart, an ambitious plan to unite country parks and open land from Pennington in Leigh to Haigh Hall.
Council Greenheart project manager, Jo Harrop, says: "With money from the European Regional Development Fund, we're improving the woodlands around the former Ince landfill site to help make the countryside more attractive for local people."
Regular visitors will have heard the sounds of tree felling coming from the woods. By removing carefully selected trees, those that remain have more room to spread their branches as they mature. In due course woodland flowers including wild garlic and bluebells will be planted to bring a riot of spring colour to the woodland floor.
The final part of the scheme involved planting native shrubs such as hazel, hawthorn and elder, with taller species such as bird cherry, rowan, and guelder rose to bring blossom and berries at the woodland edges. But the improvements haven't stopped there. More than 5km of new paths have been laid using recycled roadstone, along with a concrete 'promenade' from Moss Bridge to Cemetery Road.
And courtesy of local enthusiasts from Wigan Conservation and Community Group, more security barriers have been installed to keep out motorbikes, the perennial enemy of the reserve' peace and tranquillity.
Another scheme includes the building of an erosion control bank at Bryn Marsh to stop children skiing down the slopes into the water, which has been designed to provide nesting habitat for kingfishers and sand martins.
Flashes Officer Mark Champion says the European funding via the council has been invaluable. "It's allowed us to do lots of work to make the reserve's reedbeds better for wildlife. We now have a growing population of water voles, which are a rare and protected species, and we're improving access to visitors all the time."
Reserved for nature
Here are a few facts about the wildlife that makes Wigan Flashes a home:
- Over 200 species of bird, 15 species of dragonfly and 6 species of orchid have been recorded.
- The flashes are known for waterfowl such as Grey Heron, Tufted Duck, Coot, Pochard, Goldeneye, Gadwall and Great Crested Grebe. Breeding birds include Reed Bunting, Willow Tit, Reed Warbler, Sedge Warbler, Common Tern and Water Rail.
- The Flashes support large numbers of Noctule and Daubenton's Bat.
- The remaining colliery spoil and ash provide suitable conditions for wild flowers such as Common Spotted Orchid, Marsh Orchids, Evening Primrose, Pale Toadflas and Vipers Bugloss. Less common species include Round-leaved Wintergreen, Marsh Helleborine and Yellow Birds Nest.
