WILDLIFE lovers donated £220,000 to create the first nature reserve that spans the river Thames.

The Berks, Bucks and Oxon Wildlife Trust (BBOWT), which raised a further £355,000 in grants, handed over the cash to buy Duxford Old River last Friday, September 29.

The 113 acres of farmland on the southern banks of the Thames near Bampton is just over the river from the trust's 645-acre Chimney Meadows nature reserve.

The charity is now planning to flood its new territory, creating wetlands on the southern side of the river which will provide homes to water fowl and aquatic mammals.

These animals will, for the first time, be able to swim from one side of the Thames to the other without ever leaving the safety that a nature reserve provides.

All of this was made possible by the generosity of hundreds of wildlife lovers, many of them here in Oxfordshire.

Trust chief executive Estelle Bailey said: "I've been astounded by the response to our public appeal and delighted that so many people share our vision to create one of the largest nature reserves in Oxfordshire.

"Creating a nature reserve on both sides of the river is an exciting project, and will create an important haven for the wildlife of the Upper Thames such as otters, curlew and dragonflies.

"The farmland at Duxford Old River is a vast blank canvas with so much potential for wildlife: we will let Mother Nature take the lead, with just a little bit of help from us to get things going."

The wildlife trust launched its £220,000 public appeal in July and hit the target in three months.

Spokeswoman Wendy Tobitt said: "It was so lovely looking through our appeal webpage and seeing why people were donating.

"One of the first people said they were doing it in memory of a friend who used to walk his dog on the Thames towpath there."

The charity secured a further £355,000 in grants including £86,500 from the Heritage Lottery Fund and more from Viridor Credits Environmental Company, The Banister Charitable Trust, The Schroder Foundation, Trust for Oxfordshire’s Environment (TOE2) and Grundon Waste Management.

In due course the trust aims to allow the River Thames to flood the new land and hold water in ponds and pools, providing much-needed undisturbed habitats for curlew and lapwing to breed, and large flocks of birds such as snipe and teal to overwinter.

New backwaters and a fish passage will give safe havens for fish to spawn and insects to thrive, providing more food for bats and birds.

Ms Tobitt said the charity would like to one day create a bridge allowing people to walk the whole reserve from one side of the river to the other, but creating a thriving new wetland ecosystem would have to come first.