Pond Life comes to Campus

Posted on: 14 November 2022

If you’re walking onto campus from Nassau Street, you can get a glimpse of the new pond in the Provost’s garden, which will provide habitat for creatures like dragonflies, hoverflies, frogs and newts.  Ponds are also home to everything from leaches to aquatic snails, packing in a lot of life into a relatively small space.

Research Associate Collie Ennis tells us that the upkeep of a wildlife pond is minimal, adding:   

 “This pond will be an incredible resource for wildlife biodiversity in campus and beyond. Ponds like this, specifically designed for nature, are rare, especially in the concrete jungle of a city centre. By building it Trinity has provided habitat for everything from dragonflies to frogs and a source of fresh water for foxes, birds, and bees. Really looking forward to seeing what we find in it when spring arrives!”   

Once a year, excessive plant growth will be trimmed, and dead leaves netted from the pond and placed on the edge of the water for a day to allow any pond creatures a chance to crawl back in.  The location was picked because it is surrounded by trees and adjacent to the Provost’s garden. The inclusion of a pond in this area creates a rich mosaic of habitat for wildlife and biodiversity. One interesting bit of this project is that the logs around the edge are from the old maple tree that died on front square.  It is great to see the beloved maple trees getting a second life on campus and helping nature at the same time. 

Provost Linda Doyle says “It is really fascinating to see how this pond will develop now as part of a dynamic ecosystem. It’s also exciting to see the creation of more biodiversity in our city centre. We need more of this! The pond is a small but inspiring step.”