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Isle of Man nature reserve extended by trust

David Bellamy Lough Cranstal Nature ReserveDavid Bellamy
The area provides a habitat for many species of fauna and flora

An Isle of Man nature reserve has been extended after the Manx Wildlife Trust (MWT) secured an agreement to buy 70 acres (28 hectares) of land.

It will be added to the Lough Cranstal Nature Reserve, a boggy area of marsh and curragh in the north of the island.

The site is home to several species of plants including marsh-marigold, ragged-robin and yellow iris.

A spokesman for the MWT said the area had "outstanding ecological importance for its wetland habitats".

The original nature reserve was established after the land was bequeathed to the trust in 1989.

DAVID BELLAMY Lough Cranstal Nature ReserveDAVID BELLAMY
A further 70 acres have now been added to the reserve

The designation of the new piece of land as a nature reserve meant it had become "protected in perpetuity as one of the most biologically diverse parcels of land and one of the island's most important sites for nature", the MWT spokesman said.

It was hoped the purchase would help progress plans to have the whole of Lough Cranstal designated an Area of Special Scientific Interest (ASSI), he added.

MWT chief executive Leigh Morris said: "This new piece of land we have acquired at Lough Cranstal is of such high ecological value that we believed we needed to purchase it to secure it long-term for Manx nature."

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