Mere Sands Wood
| Mere Sands Wood | |
|---|---|
|
The main lake | |
| Coordinates | 53°38′08″N 2°50′14″W / 53.635491°N 2.83709°WCoordinates: 53°38′08″N 2°50′14″W / 53.635491°N 2.83709°W |
| Created | 1982 |
| Operated by | Wildlife Trust for Lancashire, Manchester and North Merseyside |
| Status | SSSI |
| Website | Official site |
Mere Sands Wood is a 42 hectares (100 acres) nature reserve between the villages of Holmeswood and Rufford in west Lancashire, England, managed by The Wildlife Trust for Lancashire, Manchester & North Merseyside. It lies about five miles from Ormskirk.[1] The name derives from when the area was on the shore of Martin Mere.[1]
The reserve comprises lakes, mature broadleaved and conifer woodland, sandy, wet meadows and heaths,[1] standing on layers of sand and peat, deposited over boulder clay during the last Ice Age.[1] Between 1974 and 1982 the sand was quarried for use in glass-making.[1] Under a planning agreement, the site was landscaped into a nature reserve once the extraction was completed.[1] The Trust acquired the site in 1982[1] and the reserves was designated a Site of Special Scientific Interest (SSSI) for its geological interest in 1985.[1]