An ’urgent appeal’ has been launched by Cornwall Wildlife Trust to raise £18,000 to carry out vital work to protect the county’s wetland ecosystems that support many of the county’s plant and animal species.

Wetlands include rivers, streams, lakes, ponds, bogs, peatlands, swamps, marshes, floodplain meadows and woodland. They provide homes for a wealth of animals, including otters, common frogs, stunning butterflies and dragonflies.  

Mark Nicholson, chairman of trustees at Cornwall Wildlife Trust, said: ’Wetlands are hugely beneficial to our lives, helping to reduce water pollution and support some of our most precious wildlife.’

Cornwall Wildlife Trust manages more than 5,500 acres of nature reserves, all of them home to plant and animal species that depend on fragile wetland ecosystems, but urgent work is needed at a number of them.

Through Fox Club, the junior section of the Trust, children learn the importance of the wetlands and their conservation. Funds are needed to continue events such as pond dipping, and for the creation of a special edition of the Pawprint magazine.