The Ponds
There are nine meres (lakes) on the Commons:The Rushmere
Situated close to Wimbledon Village in the centre of Rushmere Green, this is by far the most ancient pond on the Commons, with its origin probably Medieval.
Known as Rushmore in Tudor times, this pond, which even in severe drought conditions does not dry up, was a convenient and valuable source of rushes for thatching and a place where villagers could keep their domestic ducks. It was a popular amenity pond in the Victorian and Edwardian times, and remains popular today with local residents and visitors alike.
Because of the numerous activities that take place around the pond, plus its acidity, wildlife is fairly limited. Surprisingly however, Rushmere has for several years supported a shoal of Japanese Koi carp, which had been released into the water by a member of the public. The rushes around the pond have been reduced to a few clumps but fortunately, in recent years growth has increased.
A lot of summer visiting birds, such as house-martins and swifts enjoy skimming low over the water snapping up insects and taking full advantage of the wide open spaces surrounding the Rushmere to indulge in their aerial.
Bluegate Gravel Pit
Situated along Wimbledon Parkside on the eastern edge of the Commons, Bluegates is an old gravel pit which is divided into two by a narrow channel.
Being so shallow, the lake tends to dry up in hot summers, so fish don't generally populate the pond as they cannot survive in the long term. Around the marshy and muddy margins grow a profusion of Marsh Pennywort, soft rush, willow, silver birch and oak. The water is acidic and although a few frogs spawn from time to time, very few tadpoles hatch. Dragonflies, however, thrive in the conditions here, the main species present include the Common, Ruddy and Black Darters. It is only at Bluegates that migrant species from the Continent, namely the Yellow-winged and Red-veined Darter, have been recorded in later Summer.
Hookhamslade Pond
Perhaps the least known of all the ponds, it is nevertheless quite unique because of an extraordinary even that took place here in 1911. In May of that year, a trench was dug and the pond temporarily drained in order to obtain a clear area of heathland on which to lay a great bonfire to celebrate the coronation of King George V.
Nestling in a birch spinney, Hookhamslade lies on the eastern side of the Common, a little way in from Parkside. It lies partly hidden from view behind a screen of trees closely skirting its perimeter. Although it tends to dry up in hot summers, Hookhamslade still hosts a reasonable range of wildlife. It is the regular haunt of the largest dragonfly, the Emperor. The Black Darter and Migrant Hawker dragonflies and Emerald damselfly can all be found here too. Fish life is absent, but frogs and newts do breed there occasionally.
During summer months, Hookhamslade is often found to be covered in Parrot's Feather, a pond growing weed which we do endeavour to keep under control.
7 Post Pond
Lying further along Parkside towards Tibbett's Corner, 7 Post Pond was created in the 19th century by gravel extraction and was later used for a time as a "water splash" by waggoners needing to expand the wooden wheels of their carts, which would contract during the summer months, and so enabling the wheels to fit the iron rims properly. It is thought that its name comes from the seven posts that were placed through the pond, showing waggoners the best route through.
Although one of the smaller ponds on the Common, 7 Posts is home to an incredible array of wildlife. This is even more surprising given that one boundary of the pond is the concrete wall that supports Wimbledon Parkside and considerable pollution is caused by the run off from the road and vehicle emissions.
Water level in the pond fluctuates with the general level of the water table. It is rare for the pond to dry out completely, but conditions of biotic stress are likely to develop at times of drought. Despite this, there is a rich and diverse aquatic flora and fauna. During the early summer months, there are stands of bur weed, yellow flag iris and white water lily. Other plants are the common spike rush - a form of sedge, and small sweet grass, spreads over much of the pond in the summer months. What was thought to be Hampshire purslane (Ludwigia palustris) was recorded here in 1955. This caused considerable interest as the plant is an extremely rare native species, thought to be restricted to south Hampshire, and its presence was regarded with some suspicion. However, it continued to flourish. In 1997, it was further examined by an eminent botanist and was re-identified as Ludwigia mullertii. So although not the native species, growing in a natural habitat is new to Britain so deserves some acclaim.
Other plants to be found are Canadian pondweed, water mint, gipsywort, water forget-me-not, greater spearwort, trifid bur-marigold and a number of rush species.
Ravine Pond
In 1998 the Conservators decided to celebrate the coming millennium by constructing a new pond. This seemed a particularly good idea given the severely drought-ridden years of the early to mid 1990s had adversely affected the wildlife of several ponds. It was decided that the pond should be situated in an already marshy area in the valley now known as the Ravine. The stream forming this valley rises from a spring close to the junction of Gravelly Ride and Windmill Road and flows northwards towards the Queensmere.
This pond, like all others on the Common, has been seriously affected by the recent dry summers and drought conditions. Apart from necessary maintenance the pond has been left to develop naturally and this will take some time, possibly up to 10 years.