| Martin Mere | |
|---|---|
 Flamingos at Martin Mere Wetland Centre | |
  Martin Mere Location in West Lancashire Show map of the Borough of West Lancashire Martin Mere Location in Lancashire Show map of Lancashire | |
| Location | Lancashire |
| Coordinates | 53°37′21″N2°52′7″W / 53.62250°N 2.86861°W /53.62250; -2.86861 |
| Type | mere |
| Basin countries | United Kingdom |
| Official name | Martin Mere |
| Designated | 28 November 1985 |
| Reference no. | 324[1] |
Martin Mere is amere nearBurscough, inLancashire, England, on theWest Lancashire Coastal Plain. The mere is a vastmarsh, aroundgrid referenceSD 41 15 that was, until it was drained, the largest body of fresh water in England.[2]
Martin Mere was formed at the end of thelast ice age, when water filled a depression in theglacial drift. Since then its size has varied as water levels have risen and fallen. The original giant lake can be seen onChristopher Saxton's map from 1579 and stretched fromRufford in the east, toChurchtown (then known asNorth Meols) in the west. To the north of the lake were the villages ofMere Brow andHolmeswood, the site of Holmeswood Hall, built by the Heskeths as a hunting lodge. South of the lake was theScarisbrick Hall estate, Martin Hall and Tarlefarwood, now known asTarlscough.[3]
The mere originally drained out in two places; at the western end the arm of the mere known as the Wyke drained into the Pool (or Old Pool) at what is now Crowland Street,Blowick, while at its eastern end it flowed into the river Douglas atRufford. Active management of the mere began in 1692 whenThomas Fleetwood ofBank Hall cut a channel in an attempt to drain it.[4] Further attempts to drain it were made in the 1780s, but effective drainage was achieved only in the mid-19th century, with the introduction of steam pumping.
Farms and market gardens were established on the rich soils of the reclaimed land. Between 1974 and 1982 sand from the former lake bed was quarried for use in glass-making atMere Sands Wood which is now a nature reserve.
An ancientcanoe has been excavated from Martin Mere and is on display in theAtkinson Art Gallery and Library.[5]
The depression in the land which would later become Martin Mere was formed at the end of theDevensian glaciation in Britain, the last glaciation before the current interglacial period, theFlandrian. As glaciers retreated from northwest England, they left behind a vast expanse ofboulder clay, the product of glaciers grinding on the rock's surface.
As the glaciers retreated northwards during summer, the environment of northwest England became very wet. "The newly formed valleys of the Mersey, Ribble, Dee, and Lake District rivers likely created a large delta in the Irish Sea, around 50 miles (80km) west of the current coastline. Around12,000 years ago, sea levels were approximately 164 feet (50km) lower than today, and the entire Lancashire plain, along with the land to its west, was a freshwater landscape of rivers, streams and lakes".[6] These lakes formed in depressions within the boulder clay, and one of these, south of the Ribble, gradually developed into the early Martin Mere.
The environment at the time was dominated by glaciers to the north, and tundra-like environments with sparse vegetation and little megafauna, though fauna likePolar bears,Arctic foxes andReindeer will have been present. Flora would have includedSalix herbacea andBirch trees.
Local legend has it that the lake was home to the nymph Vivian, who stole the knightLancelot as a child, and brought him up in the depths of the lake's waters. He was also reputed to have been the ruler of Lancashire, the county being named after him.[7]
Part of the old mere is now the site ofMartin Mere Wetland Centre, a wetland nature reserve managed by theWildfowl and Wetlands Trust.
