Waterlife 218 March/June 2022 by WWT Waterlife

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The WWT magazine | 218 March/June 2022 | £4.25 | wwt.org.uk

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A climate of hope How we’re flying the flag for wetlands on a world stage

Freeze-frame

The joys of spring

Flyway success!

Secret code

Discover the amazing finalists in our photo competition

Join us to experience the season’s abundance of new life

How a vital stopover for migratory birds was protected

How environmental DNA will transform conservation

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Contents, 1

CONTENTS VERSION

SPEAKING UP FOR WETLANDS While climate change has captured public attention and risen up political and corporate

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We’re excited that the climate and biodiversity crises are becoming mainstream – at last!

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agendas, biodiversity has lagged behind. Fortunately, that’s changing with the growing realisation that our fate is inextricably linked to that of the rest of nature. As nature loss accelerates at an unprecedented rate, with a million species facing extinction, the world is realising that this has grave implications for our own future. This year, another big global conference is due to take place – the UN Convention on Biological Diversity. Its goal: the production of a new plan to save life on Earth (or Global Biodiversity Framework). Now is the perfect time to show how wetlands – and all their amazing wildlife – can play a major role in solving some of the biggest challenges of our time on a global scale. Thanks to your support, we can be there, at the places where the big decisions are being made, giving wetlands around the world a voice. And though there is confusion, anxiety and anger about the lack of action and progress, the profile of these meetings is unprecedented. Never before has climate and biodiversity been the centre of attention of the world like it is today. This can only be a good thing. With your support, we’ll be ready to seize all the new opportunities that emerge from these meetings, to start to turn things around for wetland nature. Read more on page 22. Also in Waterlife, we celebrate the jaw-dropping winners of our photography competition (page 34), introduce an exciting new section that will help you to distinguish between similar wetland species (page 20), and discover the technology that allows our scientists to monitor freshwater wildlife through the traces it leaves behind (page 30).

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In this issue...

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5 7 16 18 20 22 30 34 40 42 45 66

Welcome Kevin Peberdy introduces our new CEO, Sarah Fowler News The latest WWT conservation news from around the world Your views Your letters and the pick of your photos Life on our reserves How we found a jewel of a beetle at WWT Welney ID guide Our new series reveals how to identify common freshwater ducks COPs and connections Why we’re upbeat about the future of wetlands The wetland detectives How new technology is helping us survey aquatic life Freeze-frame Be amazed by the winning images in our photo contest Photo masterclass: up close Top tips for working with smaller subjects Go wild Go quackers and discover our delightful duck facts Great days out There’s still so much to enjoy at a wetland centre near you Back chat Meet one of WWT’s partners and find out what they do

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VISIT OUR ONLINE SHOP… …and give back to wetlands and wildlife with every purchase. wwt.org.uk/shop

WWT is the leading global conservation organisation committed to the protection of wetlands and all that live in and around them. WWT is the only UK charity with a national network of specialist wetland centres that people can visit. It was founded in 1946 by the late Sir Peter Scott, the renowned naturalist and artist. HEADQUARTERS

On the cover: Vladimir Kogan Michael/Shutterstock

Wildfowl & Wetlands Trust Slimbridge, Gloucestershire GL2 7BT wwt.org.uk membership@wwt.org.uk Registered Charity No. 1030884 and SC039410 CENTRES

For full contact details, please see individual centre pages, from page 45 WWT Arundel 01903 883355 WWT Caerlaverock 01387 770200 WWT Castle Espie 028 9187 4146 WWT Llanelli 01554 741087 WWT London 020 8409 4400 WWT Martin Mere 01704 895181 WWT Slimbridge 01453 891900 WWT Washington 0191 416 5454 WWT Welney 01353 860711

WATERLIFE

The magazine of the Wildfowl & Wetlands Trust Managing editor: Sophie Gore Browne waterlife@wwt.org.uk Editor: Sophie Stafford sophie.stafford@thinkpublishing.co.uk Chief sub-editor: Marion Thompson Art director: George Walker Contributors: Amy-Jane Beer, Paul Bloomfield, Dominic Couzens, Derek Niemann, David Tipling Editorial board: Tomos Avent, Kate Dawson, Andrew Foot, Geoff Hilton, Peter Lee, Rob Shore, Mark Simpson Sales executive: Jamie Dawson jamie.dawson@thinkpublishing.co.uk 020 3771 7201 Client engagement director: Clare Harris, Think Media Group, 20 Mortimer Street, London W1T 3JW; thinkpublishing.co.uk

Waterlife is published three times a year, and is printed by Walstead Peterborough on Leipa ultraMag Plus, an FSC® certified paper containing 100% recycled content. Views expressed in the magazine do not necessarily reflect those of WWT.

ISSN: 1752-7392

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Welcome, 1

WELCOME VERSION REPRO OP Peter Jenkin/WWT

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There’s nothing quite like a visit to London Wetland Centre in summer. We pride ourselves on making nature accessible to everyone, especially in the city

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WELCOME By Kevin Peberdy, WWT Chief Operating Officer

Martin Senior/WWT

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Fowler as our new Chief Executive in March. Previously Chief Executive of the Peak District National Park Authority, Sarah has always been drawn to water and is passionate about connecting people to green and blue spaces. Indeed, wetlands feature prominently in her career with the Environment Agency, English Nature, The Wildlife Trusts and the RSPB. Sarah is now getting to know WWT’s work, both in the UK and internationally, leading the delivery of our refocused strategy, and developing our next five-year strategic plan. She is already an active spokesperson, ensuring our voice is heard and that the value of wetlands is better understood. You’ll be hearing more from Sarah in future issues of Waterlife. When Martin Spray stepped down in 2020, I was asked by our Trustees to steer WWT through the worst of the pandemic and

We can’t wait for you to meet Sarah Fowler, our new Chief Executive

Tom Marshall

We were delighted to welcome Sarah

refocus our work to ensure it remains relevant in the modern era. It was hard to imagine then how greatly our lives would be impacted by Covid two years later. But I am proud of how WWT has not only weathered the storm but emerged from the pandemic even stronger. I am particularly proud of our renewed sense of direction and the many groundbreaking wetland projects that are now up and running, despite all the issues. I am always humbled by, and grateful for, the support of all our staff, volunteers and supporters. The ability of wetlands to help tackle the current environmental crises, both for our wildlife and for our own futures, has never been more important. And the opportunities to place wetlands front and centre as a solution have never been greater. It’s been my privilege to lead WWT through one of the most difficult periods in its long history, and I look forward to supporting Sarah in my role as Chief Operating Officer in realising the huge opportunities for the charity.

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News, 1

OUR NEWS

How we’re working to protect wetlands and wildlife around the world REPRO OP SUBS

Soaring hope for world’s rarest duck

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Hopes for the future of the Madagascar pochard, until recently thought lost forever, rest on a small reintroduced population and an ambitious project to restore a remote lake

Roland Digby; Jocelyn Rafaly/Durrell

The future of the Critically Endangered Madagascar pochard looks brighter following the release of 35 captive-bred birds into the wild last autumn.

The world’s rarest duck was recently believed extinct, its habitat of inland lakes and marshes having been devastated by the draining of wetlands, agricultural intensification, overfishing and run-off from deforestation. Then, in 2006, just 20 were discovered on an isolated volcanic lake, and a conservation project to save this endemic species – led by a partnership between WWT and Durrell Wildlife Conservation Trust – was launched. A captive-breeding programme was established in 2009, which has successfully reared more than 200 ducks to date. Lake Sofia, a remote site in Madagascar’s northern highlands, was identified for reintroduction, and in 2018 the first 21

captive-bred pochards were released. To give these vulnerable ducks a fighting chance, we devised various pioneering strategies. “We knew the lake was in poor condition, and did not yet produce sufficient natural food to support the birds,” explains Nigel Jarrett, WWT’s Conservation Breeding Manager. “So we designed the world’s first floating aviaries, platforms and feeding stations, to ensure the ducks can access food and to encourage them to remain on the site.” The released birds fared well, and even bred, but Covid and other restrictions had prevented any further releases, so that by summer 2021, the Lake

Sofia population numbered just 13. So between September and November, the local Malagasy team, supported by expert advice from the UK over Zoom, released a further 35 captive-bred pochards, bringing the total to nearly 50. WWT and our partners are working closely with local communities to make farming and fishing practices more sustainable – enhancing livelihoods as well as the condition of the lake for pochards. And in October, villagers showed their enthusiasm for the project, holding a Joro – a traditional ceremony to ask ancestors for good fortune – for the Fotsimaso, as the bird is known locally. “This is the epitome of successful conservation,” says our project manager Peter Cranswick. “A positive collaboration between many partners and stakeholders, empowering those who live in and off this landscape to shape a sustainable future.” For more good news from Madagascar, turn to page 12. MARCH/JUNE 2022

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VIEWPOINT VERSION

Tom Fewins WWT Head of Policy & Advocacy

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n 2020, when the Covid-19 pandemic hit the world, WWT called for the creation of 100,000ha of wetlands to help the UK’s recovery and address the climate, nature and wellbeing crises. Such a ‘Blue Recovery’ should not stop at the UK’s borders, of course: global crises require a global response, and this must include the world’s wetlands. These wetlands are disappearing at an alarming rate; we’ve lost 35% since 1970 (three times faster than we’re losing forests), so we must act now to protect and restore these critical ecosystems. This summer will hopefully present an opportunity to do so, with the 15th conference of the UN Convention on Biological Diversity (COP15) taking place in Kunming, China. Here, countries will sign up to a new ‘Global Biodiversity Framework’ (GBF) that will guide action to halt the loss of biodiversity by 2030, protect the essential services it provides, and put the world on course to achieve a vision of living in harmony with nature by 2050. The draft goals, milestones and targets are encouraging, but previous COPs have failed to stem the loss of wetlands and their wildlife. How do we ensure the Kunming agreement is a success?

1. By recognising the importance of wetlands to

both people and wildlife. Wetlands provide more critical services – from flood protection to fresh water – to more people than all other terrestrial ecosystems, and 40% of all species live or breed here. 2. By providing sufficient funding to meet agreed

goals. Previous agreements were stymied by the lack of available funds.

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3. By ensuring countries fulfil their promises.

Too often, international agreements are undermined by patchy domestic implementation. The GBF must ensure signatories commit to policies, plans and action at home.

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As the summit approaches, we’re working with partners and governments to ensure the importance of wetlands is fully recognised within the framework. And that 2022 is the year the world finally ‘builds back better’.

A new ‘Global Biodiversity Framework’ will guide action to halt the loss of biodiversity by 2030 and protect the essential services it provides 8

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Read more about COP15 on page 22

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The world is in our hands

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OUR NEWS VERSION

£5

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Could buy colour-rings for headstarted godwits and curlews, helping us monitor their movements, survival and breeding success

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£50

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Could cover one day’s vehicle hire to enable a WWT fieldwork team to search remote lakes for surviving populations of Madagascar pochards

Prices for WWT membership are increasing from April 2022. This was not an easy decision to make but, after freezing membership prices for the past two years, we need to make this change in 2022 to cover rising costs. We believe that membership still offers excellent value for money, covering access to 10 wonderful wetland sites and enabling us to continue our work in the UK and worldwide: protecting endangered species, from the curlew to the eel; restoring existing habitat and creating new wetlands; advocating for change; and helping to address global threats such as climate change, flooding and wellbeing crises. We’re also simplifying our admission and membership policies to make them more inclusive for disabled people. From April, concession prices will no longer be applied automatically to disabled people – instead, prices will be based solely on age and situation. Concession prices will still apply to anyone who is aged 65 and over, unemployed or a full-time student; carers accompanying disabled visitors can continue to visit at no charge. If you have any questions about these changes, please contact us at supporter@wwt.org.uk or call 01453 891198. 10

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£270

James Lees/WWT

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Your membership makes a difference

Could pay for an eight-week course of wetland centre visits and group activities to help one person improve their mental health

News, 3

£10

Could restore a square metre of wetland habitat where biodiversity can flourish

£25

£30

Could buy a sweep net enabling children to catch and observe amazing insects at our wetland centres

Could buy a heat lamp for rearing Madagascar pochard ducklings or spoon-billed sandpiper chicks

£100

10 ways you are helping These are just some examples of the important work that your membership fees help fund.

£400

Could pay for a fence around an endangered curlew’s nest to protect it from predators, such as foxes

Could pay for a day’s training in sustainable rice-farming techniques for a community of 20 people in Madagascar or Cambodia, leading to fewer pesticides reaching the downstream wetlands

£600

£5,000

Could pay for five leaky ‘woody dams’ to reduce flood risk in a threatened community and act as a form of river restoration, creating valuable habitat for wildlife

Could pay for a local contractor to plant and protect 800 native trees to soak up water, disrupt run-off pathways and create vital habitat

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News, 4

OUR NEWS VERSION

Local people need clean, healthy lakes

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Critically endangered eagles, turtles and fish are among species that could benefit from a new three-year project to support local communities managing the conservation of a globally important wetland habitat in Madagascar.

Lake Tseny is one of the most intact wetlands in the Port-Bergé Key Biodiversity Area in the north of the ‘Red Island’, where many wetlands are in poor condition due to over-exploitation and soil run-off from agriculture and deforestation. Some 5,000 people live in the area, many of whom are dependent on the lake and its surroundings for food, water, fuel and livelihoods. Tseny is also home to threatened species including the Madagascar fish eagle, Madagascar big-headed turtle and pinstripe damba fish, all of which are critically endangered. The project was allocated just under £400,000 by the UK Government’s Darwin Initiative and runs until June 2024. It will build the foundations for long-term, climate-resilient conservation management of the lake by local communities. The aim is to develop, test and refine practical tools 12

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and approaches that will be shared nationally, as an example of how this kind of planning and conservation management can be successful at other sites across the country. In the first instance, local Malagasy biodiversity organisation Madagasikara Voakajy (MaVoa) will help us to establish five sustainably financed community institutions to manage natural resources in and around Lake Tseny for the benefit of local people as well as natural habitats and wildlife.

Madagascar fish eagle

The project will help the newly formed community groups to protect the lake’s fish stocks and habitats, and increase the value of these fisheries, as well as improve the quality and increase the extent of aquatic and lakeside habitats. Alongside, research will be carried out with local communities and academics, to understand the impacts of climate change and other threats on the natural systems and biodiversity at the lake. This will better guide local management now and beyond the project. We hope that an application for formal recognition as a Ramsar site will also be prepared. Your support has been integral to successfully secure project funding by the Darwin Initiative to grow our conservation work in Madagascar, working with local communities to protect threatened wetland habitat and species, and restore these vital ecosystems for the long-term future. Thank you!

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Community-based conservation in Madagascar

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PROJECTS

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Good news for…

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We’ve launched a quartet of ambitious new projects, thanks to generous awards of funding from government and corporate donors A fledgling curlew gets fitted with a leg ring

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Curlews

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Our new partnership projects working to restore curlew populations in Dartmoor and Norfolk got off to a flying start last year. In Dartmoor, 33 curlew fledglings were reared and released into the wild, while East Anglia gained 79 fledglings. We hope that in 2023 these individuals will return to these sites – where work is also under way to improve habitats – to help kick-start the recovery of our curlew populations. All of the fledglings were colour-ringed. To help us track their movements, please report any ringed birds you see to curlews@wwt.org.uk

Wetland centres around the world We’re celebrating the world’s great wetland visitor and education centres with a new accreditation scheme for members of Wetland Link International, coordinated by WWT. Applications for the Star Wetland Centre Award, launched on World Wetlands Day (2 February 2022), will be assessed by a panel of expert judges who will recognise excellence with Gold, Silver or Bronze stars. Recipients will be announced at the next Ramsar Convention of the Contracting Parties in Wuhan, China in November. To find out more about the awards, go to: wli.wwt.org.uk/stars

Creating new wetlands We’ve received more than 5,000 pledges and raised over £100,000 (including Gift Aid) in support of our Wetlands Can! campaign. The funds will help to create and restore wetlands to alleviate flooding, store carbon, protect species and help with people’s wellbeing. Sign the pledge at: wwt.org.uk/wetlands-can Thanks also to members who donated to The Times and Sunday Times Christmas Appeal, which raised over £400,000 (including Gift Aid) and featured several stories about our work at Steart Marshes in Somerset and the protection of Bewick’s swans, among others. Biodiversum is a futuristic nature reserve in Luxembourg

Hazel Cottage, Cumbria

Raising awareness about wetlands We’re delighted to be working with the National Garden Scheme to raise awareness of the vital role of wetlands in nature and in our gardens. Together, we’ll be sharing inspiring stories and information about the value of wetlands for wildlife, human health and the environment, along with tips for creating wet spaces in gardens. The National Garden Scheme gives visitors unique access to more than 3,500 exceptional private gardens in England, Wales, Northern Ireland and the Channel Islands, raising millions of pounds for nursing and health charities. Find out more about the partnership at: ngs.org.uk/wwt

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YOUR VIEWS

SEND US YOUR BEST PHOTOS!

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We love to hear your thoughts about wetlands, WWT and Waterlife, and share your photos, so please email them to us at waterlife@wwt.org.uk or write to the address on page 3 The Dalmatian pelican is the largest and rarest of the pelican family

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CATCH THE FISH! PRODUCTION

I was treated to this lovely sight [above] of the pelicans feeding at WWT Arundel in December. Shanti Brophy, via email

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WWT says: We love the way you can see the fish through the skin of the pelican’s gular or throat pouch. Well done, Shanti. Pelicans are fun to watch, but they also help us engage all sorts of visitors, who may have different interests, with wetlands and their wildlife. We aim to take visitors on a journey – showing that wetlands support amazing animals that have incredible adaptations to their watery habitat. The feasibility of reintroducing ‘lost species’ such as pelicans to wetlands in the UK is being assessed, and we hope the discussion will encourage visitors to contemplate the scale of wetland loss that made the species extinct in the first place, and the importance of wetland conservation. BIRTHDAY TREAT

My friends took me to WWT Martin Mere in December for my birthday. We saw lots of waterbirds and had fantastic views of a black-tailed godwit and a ruff from the Swan Hide. Feeding time was amazing, with hundreds of mallards, shelducks and pochards. It was a brilliant day out. Sue Webster, Walsall, West Midlands 16

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75 YEARS YOUNG

I try to get to Slimbridge as often as I can, and always find something different to see. I enjoy the new Waterscapes Aviary built for the 75th anniversary. I feel it has an extra-special appeal to me as I celebrated my 75th birthday last year, too. Hope you like my picture of an egret [left].

RECONNECTING THE SEVERN VALE

I’d love to hear more about efforts to open up the floodplain in the Severn Valley. How and when did the Severn come to be embanked and the plain drained? There’s now a massive drainage board in the lower Severn to keep the land dry. Knowing about climate change, it seems daft to be running pumps to drain land that, if left to its own devices, would be storing carbon and supporting wildlife. Alistair Wasey, via email

WWT says: Healthy floodplains are vital for wildlife, and provide ecosystem services, such as floodwater and carbon storage. The construction of river embankments has a long history and continues to this day, mainly to protect residential and industrial property. Much of the Severn Vale floodplain is currently functioning suboptimally, due to embankments and other physical modifications, abstractions, land-use change and agricultural intensification. Our Waterscapes programme, in partnership with farmers, will restore floodplain habitats within the Severn Vale, monitor and protect curlews, detect European eels, provide training and reconnect people with floodplain natural heritage. Find out more at: wwt.org.uk/flourishing-floodplains

Beryl Biggs, via email

WWT says: Happy belated birthday, Beryl. SPOT THE DIFFERENCE

The eight marsh harriers that visit WWT Arundel are the largest roosting population in Sussex

I was pleased to see this great egret [below] at WWT Arundel in October, as I have never seen this species in the UK before. I managed to catch it feeding alongside a little egret, and you can see clearly what a large bird it is compared to its smaller cousin. Jerry Campbell, via email Great egrets are about the same size as a grey heron

MARSH HARRIER SPECTACULAR

I am a keen amateur photographer. Over the past 15 years, I have caught a wide range of subjects on camera. It is always exhilarating to see species such as great white egrets and kingfishers in their natural habitat at WWT Arundel. But for me, the high point is the marsh harriers [above] that fly in to roost in the reeds in the late afternoon, around 4pm. Paul Soden, via email

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Your Views, 1

LETTERS

IDENTITY HABITATS VERSION

LIFE ON OUR RESERVES

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WWT cares for more than 3,000 hectares of wetland habitat in the UK. Thanks to sensitive management and your support, our reserves teem with wildlife. Dominic Couzens discovers some of the ways we nurture these special places for you to enjoy

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Here be treasure ART PRODUCTION

also suggests that this treasure has been hiding in plain sight all along. Having such a new rarity in your care adds extra responsibility. “Now that we have found this small colony of tansy beetles,” says Leigh, “the team at Welney are continuing the work of the invertebrate specialists to carefully manage the expansion of their range.” It’s clear that the species is vulnerable to large-scale changes, such as grazing or wide-scale coppicing. “So there are no cows allowed,” says Leigh. “We’ve found this beetle along riverbanks with a good mix of light and shade, glorious messy marginal habitat with tall herbs and scattered osiers (a type of willow tree). So, rather than clear-fell any patch of osiers, we carefully manage a handful of 50-metre linear blocks along a 2km stretch, by cutting the trees close to the “This beautiful beetle is about 10mm long, and iridescent green with stripes of red and gold – it is lovely to see,” said Centre Manager Leigh Marshall

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We clear the osiers in small blocks to provide varied conditions for the beetles and many other wetland species

here do you find treasure? It’s rarely in glamorous places, and more often in unexpected ones. Well, everyone was certainly surprised when, during a routine survey of WWT Welney’s outer reaches in 2018, we found treasure in beetle form. The tansy beetle Chrysolina graminis is a completely new record for the reserve. Not only is this species simply stunning to look at, with a brilliant, jewel-like iridescent green body flashed with a purple lustre, it is also very rare. Until that moment, the species had been known from only two other sites in the UK. “Apparently, the beetles hadn’t read the entomology books,” chuckles Leigh Marshall, Centre Manager at Welney.

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“The tansy beetle is supposed to depend on tansy, a tall yellow herb in the daisy family. That’s how it got its name. But here at Welney, we have virtually no tansy at all.” Instead, the beetles were feeding on water mint, purple loosestrife and marsh woundwort, which are abundant in the ditches at this huge site. “If this population doesn’t feed on tansy, it could mean the species has also been overlooked elsewhere,” Leigh points out. The only other populations in Britain are along the River Ouse in Yorkshire, where the beetle is reasonably abundant, and at Woodwalton Fen in Cambridgeshire. The latter population was rediscovered in 2014 after an absence of 40 years, which

Reserves, 1

OUR WILD WETLANDS IDENTITY The holly-leaved or spiny naiad is a nationally vulnerable aquatic herb

base. This gives a balance of wild areas and managed areas. We hope that opening up these areas of scrub may increase numbers and help the beetles become established.” Welney is carefully managed to support a wide range of wildlife, especially breeding waders. “So we have to balance the needs of everything,” continues Leigh. “The tansy beetle is protected by law, but so are our other species. We want to create and enhance wild habitats, but we must make sure we don’t impact anything else in the process.” I wonder if Leigh loses sleep over trying to look after so many fragile things at Welney. But he assures me it’s more a case of sheer wonder. “I can hardly believe that, over the winter, the beetles’ habitat is under three metres of water. Presumably, the adults survive buried down there somewhere. Nature is simply incredible.”

Andy Brown/WWT

e have no idea where it came from,” says Suzi Lanaway, Reserve Manager at WWT Arundel. “We are mystified.” The species surprising everyone is the holly-leaved naiad, which sounds like an alien out of Doctor Who but is actually a native aquatic plant. This is no ordinary plant, it’s an extreme rarity and on the Red List of Threatened Species. Prior to discovery at Arundel the plant had only been recorded in the Norfolk Broads. “We found the naiad in a freshwater lake on the reserve,” remarks Suzi. “This is where we take visitors out for gentle boat cruises that are much loved by children and families. They were floating past one of the rarest plants in Britain.” There was no need to worry. Within months of its discovery in 2015, the holly-leaved naiad had become the dominant plant in

Blickwinkel/Alamy

Spiny surprise at Arundel this freshwater area of the reserve. More recently, it has established in another large pond and in one of the connecting ditches. In 2019, it was found at another location, this time in East Sussex. Water plants are not the most glamorous of organisms, and don’t receive the attention they deserve. “It’s great to have the naiad here. It provides wonderful cover for fish, which suits our fish-eating birds very well,” says Suzi. “After its initial surge, it has reached a healthy equilibrium with the other aquatic plants.” Fortunately, the team needs only to make sure that water quality remains good to keep the naiad happy. “We’re lucky at Arundel to have chalk-filtered water, so botanically it’s a very species-rich habitat,” explains Suzi. There’s no doubt about that – and since 2015 its richness has been enhanced by one rare and intriguing plant. MARCH/JUNE 2022

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THE KNOWLEDGE VERSION

HOW TO IDENTIFY

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UK DUCKS

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The quintessential waterbirds, ducks are fun to watch and easy to identify once you know what you’re looking for. Why not spot all these species at your local WWT centre?

ART PRODUCTION CLIENT Illustrations courtesy of Collins Birds of the World

irdwatching in the UK holds many joys, one of which is learning to identify our many different ducks. Of the 22 species of duck that regularly occur in the UK, several are with us in good numbers all year round, three occur only in winter, and another 15 are more numerous in winter than summer. One, the secretive garganey, is a summer visitor to the UK. Your local WWT centre is the perfect place to hone your duck identification skills – and summer is the time when some of the most exciting behaviour can be seen. A large flock of mixed species can be bewildering, so start by choosing one individual from the group to watch. Study its behaviour – how it feeds and interacts with other ducks – and observe it from different angles. Ducks have bags of personality. The more you watch, the more you’ll learn. Providing wetland habitat is vital to keeping duck populations healthy. And at WWT sites around the UK, you’ll be able to see all of the species in this guide at the right time of year. So swot up and then head to your nearest centre to get acquainted with the colourful world of ducks. For more advice on duck ID and how to be a birdwatcher, visit our website.

MALLARD Anas platyrhynchos

(NORTHERN) PINTAIL Anas acuta

The most familiar duck in the British Isles. The mallard is a typical dabbling duck in that it feeds on the water’s surface and can spring straight up into the air on whirring wings.

The most elegant British duck, on the ground and in the air. Its long, slender neck, wings and tail, and subtle colouring, make it easy to recognise. In most places, a winter visitor.

(EURASIAN) WIGEON Anas penelope

GADWALL Anas strepera

(EURASIAN) SHOVELER Anas clypeata

Wigeon are unusual ducks in that they often graze grass like geese. Look for the male’s chestnut head and pale crown. A small number breed in the UK.

The gadwall looks plain until seen up close. A little smaller than the mallard, the male has obvious black tail feathers. Some spend the summer with us but many more over winter.

The shoveler’s most distinctive feature is its long, spade-like bill, which it uses to sift water to filter out particles of food. Peak counts often occur in winter or during flood events.

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ID Guide, 1

GARGANEY Anas querquedula

(EURASIAN) TEAL Anas crecca

TUFTED DUCK Aythya fuligula

A pair of small ducks springing in alarm from a pool may be your first glimpse of garganey. The male has a pale forewing and eye stripe.

Britain’s smallest ducks are attractive little birds. The male has a chestnut head and broad, green eye patch. They are very agile.

In flight, both sexes have a white bar on the wing. The male has white flanks. Close up, it has long feathers on the back of its head.

(COMMON) POCHARD Aythya ferina

RED-CRESTED POCHARD Netta rufina

(GREATER) SCAUP Aythya marila

The adult male’s brick-red head, black breast and grey back are distinctive. Its take-off is laboured but rapid. Like its close relative, the tufted duck, the pochard nests in reedbeds.

Larger than its cousin with similar plumage, but males sport a fiery head and coral red bill. Occasional wild birds from Europe are seen here, but breeding birds are probably escapes.

Similar to the tufted duck, but the male has a grey back with fine markings when seen up close. They are our rarest breeding duck. Best looked for in winter on estuaries.

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MANDARIN Aix galericulata

COMMON SHELDUCK Tadorna tadorna

These beautiful birds are native to East Asia, but feral populations became established here in the 20th century. Now widespread, they’re easily identified, especially the male.

Bigger than a mallard, smaller than a goose. Females are a third smaller than males. Both have a green head, chestnut belly stripe and red bill. Most leave the UK in summer to moult.

These beautiful illustrations are taken from the new Collins guide Birds of the World (RRP £75). The ultimate reference book for bird lovers, it covers all 10,711 species of the world’s birds. Available to buy from all good booksellers.

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COPs and connections Coming together for biodiversity When the 15th Convention on Biological Diversity COP meeting gets under way in China, WWT will be flying the flag for wetlands. But how optimistic can we feel about the latest government ambitions – and what international cooperation and creative intervention is needed to implement change? or three-quarters of a century now, WWT has been a driving force in wildlife conservation in the UK and overseas: championing, defending and advocating for threatened species. As governments worldwide fail to meet climate and biodiversity action targets, we have already been taking action (see overleaf) to put wetlands front and centre of efforts to tackle this emergency. To this end, in recent years, you may have noticed a shift in our focus – a broadening from species to systems. “You might be

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wondering why you hear less about ducks and geese these days, and more about blue carbon, flood alleviation and water quality, or the benefits of urban wetlands to wellbeing,” says Geoff Hilton, our Head of Conservation Evidence. “You may wonder what this has to do with wildlife.” The answer is, of course, everything. The naturalist and conservationist John Muir wrote: “When we try to pick out anything by itself, we find it hitched to everything else in the universe.” Wetlands, and especially rivers, illustrate this connectivity

in a literal as well as metaphorical sense: actions in upper catchments have implications for species and systems downstream. You can invest massively in a reserve, but if water flowing in is polluted with domestic, industrial or agricultural effluents, the gains are limited. Wetlands are the responsibility of a whole society, and that’s another good reason to ensure everyone has a chance to care. Communities that have nature close to them become inspired and empowered, and are much more likely to respond to calls

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for protection for areas of nature that are under threat far away. The highest-level forums for addressing the future of nature are United Nations meetings like last year’s COP26 climate conference and the forthcoming Convention on Biological Diversity COP15 to be held in Kunming, China – both of which WWT has been deeply involved in.

An emerging trend of these recent COPs – or ‘Conferences of the Parties’ – is the way that insights gleaned from science are increasingly aligned with indigenous wisdom, especially ideas about reciprocity (giving back to nature as we take from it) and sustainability (not taking more than can be replenished) and with what might be called the nature cure revolution. Forest

bathing, wild swimming, prescription rambling, green gyms and birdwatching – the benefits of time spent in nature are gaining scientific credibility. This all chimes with the founding ethos of WWT. “Right back to Peter Scott, our aim has been to bring people closer to nature so that they can care about it,” says Geoff. “Now the wellbeing benefits of MARCH/JUNE 2022

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Willem Kolvoort/naturepl.com

Biodiversity is species, and by extension all their interactions. Call it nature, ecology, wildlife, life… none of these terms can really be isolated from each other, and humans are inextricably part of it all

PROTECTING BIODIVERSITY VERSION

Action at home – for wildlife, for us

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We have plenty to learn at gatherings like the CBD COP, but also a great deal to share. Thanks to your support, we’re world leaders in how to regenerate wetlands – and their ecosystem services. There are some wonderful examples in the UK, all of which also support wildlife

Saltmarsh

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Saltmarsh habitats are fantastic carbon stores – they bury a lot more carbon than woodlands. The saturated conditions slow down the rate at which organic material decays, allowing it to accumulate faster than in dry habitats, with its carbon locked away. The restoration of saltmarshes is not cheap, but it can be achieved by managed realignment of coastal defences, allowing the tide to inundate low-lying land. The biodiversity gains are beautifully showcased by our Steart Marshes reserve, where wildlife now thrives in new abundance. In 2020, a pair of rare black-winged stilts succeeded in rearing three chicks – an astonishing success.

Black-winged stilt

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Floodplains We’re leaders in natural flood management schemes, where wetlands are established to protect towns downstream that also help improve water quality and benefit wildlife. We’re also celebrating achievements elsewhere, like the fabulous rewilding scheme that is reconnecting floodplains to their rivers on the Lowther Estate in Cumbria. Habitats that can help reduce flooding, such as floodplains, provide perfect habitat for cranes, supporting their return to the UK and overseas. Common crane Bittern

Reedbeds The new reedbed filtration system at WWT Slimbridge was designed to improve water quality, by treating effluent from the visitor facilities and returning it safely to nature. Cleaner water also creates better habitat for wildlife such as bitterns and water voles to thrive. Another win-win!

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Wetland areas in England: the future is blue

Kingfisher

Current extent of wetlands Potential future extent of wetlands

The UK beaver population has been estimated at more than 400 animals

Grey heron

Urban rivers Blue spaces in urban areas can benefit people’s health and wellbeing and bring wildlife back to our cities. In Slough, we’re supporting the local council with its ongoing project to restore watercourses in the city. Already the Salt Hill Stream has been transformed from a garbage-choked drain into a valued community blue space with thriving populations of invertebrates and reintroduced fish, attracting kingfishers, grey herons and more, and further funding has been awarded to re-naturalise other stretches of water and bring them to the surface.

nature are recognised, the case is even stronger, especially in places where lots of people live. Giving people access to clean, nature-rich rivers and wetlands has the potential to make happier, healthier people and societies, and create millions more advocates for nature.” Muir was far from the first person to recognise the profound truth that everything in nature (including all the follies and achievements of humanity) is connected. Indeed, the reciprocity this kind of understanding inspires is a feature of indigenous cultures worldwide. But such thinking has been slow to penetrate modern land and water management. Things are changing fast, however, and during COP26 in 2021 we heard everyone from businesses to political leaders, celebrities to farmers, talking about humanity as part of nature and about nature-based solutions. POSITIVE THINKING

Restoring the Salt Hill Stream

“It feels almost miraculous,” says Geoff. “At last, governments and global businesses are acknowledging the climate and biodiversity crises we’ve been shouting about for our whole careers. Yes, it is late in the day, but we don’t have time to complain about that.” And just as the climate became front-page news in November, we should soon start hearing a lot about biodiversity, as representatives from around the world gather in Kunming, aiming to deliver a new global biodiversity framework. The UN Convention on Biological Diversity (CBD) was first signed by leaders of 150 countries in 1992 at the Rio Earth Summit. It aims to guide the world through a now urgent transition to sustainable development, recognising the connection between thriving nature and humanity’s need for food security, shelter, clean air and water, medicines and a healthy environment in which to live. The biodiversity MARCH/JUNE 2022

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Healthy ecosystems, interdependent webs of living organisms and their habitats, are vital to all life on Earth. Our ecosystems provide us with clean air, fresh water, food, resources and medicine

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COP15 in Kunming will sign off a revised framework that aims to reverse current declining trends in nature by 2050. These global agreements play an important role in unlocking the money and cooperation that organisations like WWT and our partners need. They obligate governments, businesses and others to act – and to do so effectively they need the expertise and experience of NGOs. A GLOBAL TEAM

WWT will be representing members and pushing for greater wetland protection and restoration through the new targets that will be agreed at the Kunming COP. We will also be flying the flag for the World Wetland Network, made up of informal groups and wetland conservation organisations, which has valuable insights on local and indigenous issues that may otherwise be missed at major global conventions. “One of our priorities at the biodiversity COP is to highlight the ecosystem services provided by wetlands,” says Geoff. “People have grasped the idea that trees provide all Common frog

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WWT will be at the next COP, wholeheartedly committed to bringing the changes we all need to the biggest political arena on the planet, using the languages of science, creativity and love

kinds of benefits, and that’s a good thing, but sometimes it can be a challenge to get a word in about anything else. “Trees do matter, but wetlands are equally important, and they are disappearing faster than forests. It’s the role of WWT and our partners to get that message across. But all our work for carbon storage, water quality, flood mitigation and human wellbeing is also about delivering biodiversity.” It’s worth bearing all this in mind when the news and social media coverage of recent COPs is full of doom and gloom. While the scale of the climate and extinction crises can make besuited meetings and announcements from conference podiums seem anodyne and woefully inadequate, Geoff finally sees a glimmer of hope. “I was dreading COP26. I feared that seeing things I’ve been losing sleep over for 20 years in the news every day would be overwhelming. But actually it was a relief to see my concerns becoming mainstream. It means the world has finally woken up. That can only be a good thing.”

This cautiously positive approach is shared by singer, naturalist and environmental activist Sam Lee. Sam runs nature-centric concerts and pilgrimages, and has a special affinity with rivers. While Geoff is a scientist, Sam’s background is in the arts, but the fight for biodiversity needs all kinds of voices on the front line. “These big COP gatherings can seem a million miles away from the field,” says Sam, “but they are full of defenders and advocates for nature – all representing a particular patch of ground or species. There’s always an intense exchange of ideas, partnerships are forged, participants learn new Carp practices, new schemes for funding or creative ways to boost public engagement. Perhaps above all, we’re all reminded just how interconnected we all are. We have to take a bigger responsibility than just looking after

Azure damselflies

COPs explained

Ross Hoddinott/naturepl.com

What is a COP? A Conference of the Parties (COP) is a meeting of signatory nations, plus interested organisations and individuals, at which agreements and ambitions are reviewed and updated. COPs can cover different topics, although the term COP has become synonymous with the United Nations climate conferences. The biological diversity COPs are held biannually, while the climate COPs are generally held every year. What is their purpose? COPs are an opportunity for nations to assess their progress, boost collective measures, and ensure that all parties are meeting their pledges.

our own back garden. For so many species, survival depends on collaboration. We can’t protect wildlife from a silo.” Along with fostering collaboration, the COPs are perhaps the world’s best opportunity to bring about practical action. The ambitions established at these global gatherings filter down to national policy, here and overseas, and this translates into money. “There’s never as much money as we’d like for conservation,” says Geoff. “But there is now funding for working with nature to solve problems. Not only are the cost-to-benefit ratios fantastic, the results are transformative.” Of course, COPs on climate change and biodiversity have been taking place for nearly 30 years – and for all the hype and ambitious pledges, they have often failed to deliver real-world change. The promise made by rich nations to channel US$100bn into climate change mitigation for less wealthy countries has not been met. Post-COP26, the goal of the 2015 Paris Agreement, to keep global warming well below 2°C and pursue efforts to limit it to 1.5°C, looks increasingly unlikely to be realised. There is much more to be done, and no cause at all for complacency. But with these issues now firmly in the mainstream, and public opinion increasingly

behind positive change, there is perhaps more cause for hope than there has been in a long time. Needless to say, WWT and its supporters will continue to play a key role in holding governments to account, and calling on them to deliver on their commitments.

What is the ‘implementation gap’? This gap is the difference between what has been promised and what is actually being done. COPs offer an opportunity to narrow that gap, although they aren’t always wholly successful at doing so.

GALVANISING ACTION

Meanwhile, thanks to our members’ incredible support, we are not waiting on policymakers, but pressing ahead with practical action and vital research. In the UK, our Wetlands Can! campaign aims to restore 100,000ha over the coming decades and to mobilise one million people into standing up for wetlands. Everyone can play their part in this, whether that’s through supporting our work, getting involved in creative or community projects, local volunteering or fundraising, or simply adding your voice to our campaigns. Our ambitions are broad, but meetings like COP15 offer a means to make them happen. Leveraging the restoration of saltmarshes, floodplains and peatlands as a means of saving money on flood defence, or of sequestering carbon, is highly effective. “The world is listening and there are opportunities all over the place,” says Geoff. “We just have to be ready to seize them.” Everything is connected. It’s a cliché, but profoundly true. Science is making us more aware of those threads than ever, and the imaginative arts can help show us the shape of how things could be. We need everyone:

scientists, field conservationists, performers and artists, specialists in policy and communication, grassroots activists and local guardians. So, when the dry reporting from China comes in, we are ready to look beyond the grim statistics and podium posturing and take action. WWT is committed to bringing the changes we all need to the biggest political arena on the planet, and will be unapologetically bringing together the languages of science, economics, policy, creativity and love. n

CHAMPION WETLANDS WITH US “It’s a simple if unromantic truth that what we need to seize the opportunity presented by big global conferences is money. That’s what gets us at the table, that’s what gets the voices of all those we represent heard. Every donation and new member makes a difference, so please help by giving or inviting a friend to join us today. Thank you” wwt.org.uk/support

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The gift of nature to last for generations

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Make a gift to WWT in your Will and help wetland wildlife thrive for future generations to enjoy.

CLIENT © WWT 2022. Registered charity no. 1030884 England and Wales, SC039410 Scotland. © WWT images/Sam Stafford

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Request your free Guide to Gifts in Wills today. Visit wwt.org.uk/leavealegacy, call 01453 891150 or email giftsinwills@wwt.org.uk

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MEET THE EEL DETECTIVES Ingenious technology that enables detectives to catch criminals is set to revolutionise our work to protect elusive endangered species. Derek Niemann finds out how it all began with a fish as ‘slippery as an eel’…

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ast summer, volunteer citizen scientists were scouring waterways and ponds to help a special fish that is critically endangered. But they weren’t actually looking for eels – they were testing the water. Nobody is in any doubt that European eels are in deep trouble. WWT’s Principal Research Officer, Laura Weldon, has spent the past five years studying them: “Numbers have plummeted in my lifetime. There are now so few, and yet they are still so understudied because nobody was particularly interested in them before – they were everywhere.” And eels are a valuable guide to the health of a waterbody, since they are both predator and prey.

PRODUCTION Eel image: Neil Aldridge/WWT

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THE QUEST FOR KNOWLEDGE Laura is grappling with understanding the causes of their decline. “We are keen to start mapping eels to find out exactly where they are. Part of the reason for eel declines is that there is insufficient good-quality habitat in which they can grow and stay healthy. We’re interested in learning where they are and why. Are they making it upstream to mature? Which barriers, such as weirs, can they get past and which are impassable, and what are they doing when they get through? Traditionally, it was only the older females that were found far inland and their numbers have just dropped and dropped. Exactly how far are they getting?” Eels are notoriously tricky to monitor. Despite their silvery bodies, they are often hard to see, slinking between waterweeds,

eDNA registered eels in places where nets had come up empty at the first time of dipping 30

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or obscured from view by the sun’s reflection on the surface. Given their scarcity over such a huge network of watery possibilities, they are difficult and expensive to catch with conventional fishing nets. Hauling them out of the water is an invasive way to count such a rare species too. Could there be a more benign method of detecting their presence? One answer lies in a branch of science that has expanded exponentially, ever since police detectives discovered that criminals do not simply vanish without We used to have to catch eels in order to confirm their presence in the lakes around our reserves. Now we can just sample the water for their DNA

trace from the scene of their crime. Invisible and irrefutable evidence remains; the unique DNA that every human leaves in their blood, hair and even flakes of skin. Within the past few years, conservationists have begun to apply the same forensic techniques to wildlife, seeking environmental DNA (eDNA). And such techniques appear to work particularly well with creatures that live in water. Simply collect the water and, if an animal is present, strands of its DNA, its genetic signature, will be there.

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EEL DETECTORS Does it work for eels? Laura began a PhD on eDNA, trialling live eels in a Bristol Zoo aquarium, then tested Slimbridge’s restored Rushy Lake and gained her first positive results. The lake contained eels, and the eDNA testing proved it. Since then, more trials in Ireland have confirmed eDNA’s applicability to eels in a variety of locations. Not only that, when set against monitoring using conventional nets, eDNA registered eels in places where nets had come up empty at the first time of dipping. Testing could give a reliable indication of presence or absence, while the amount of DNA gave a rough idea of whether the animals were plentiful or rare. Generous funding from the Green Recovery Challenge Fund then enabled Laura – by now working for WWT – to furnish Slimbridge’s Wetlands Science Laboratory with equipment for DNA testing. Through last summer, volunteers in a pilot project sampled watercourses and ponds near the River Severn. Laura says: “One of our eDNA days was at Bridgwater Meads, a restoration site in

How to study eDNA 1

PICK YOUR TIME

COLLECT THE SAMPLES

FILTER THE SAMPLE

Many of the aquatic creatures in temperate rivers, lakes and ponds, such as eels and fish, are largely inactive during the winter months, so they will be producing very little eDNA material. Testing waits until spring when the water temperature rises above 8°C. By then, the fish are shedding lots of eDNA, in the form of mucus, scales and faeces.

Wearing gloves to prevent cross-contamination, volunteers scoop up a container of water from a number of locations on the river, stream or pool. Only water at the surface is collected since eDNA degrades quickly, so it’s best to catch it before it settles at the bottom. Surface water gives an indication of the recent presence of the target species.

It’s not the water itself that’s being tested for eDNA but microscopic material suspended in it. The water is poured through a single-use filter, a round disk with a fine mesh gauze that traps all of the important debris. A buffer solution is added as a fixative to preserve the cellular content, because eDNA degrades quickly.

POST AND UNPACK

TAKE A PCR TEST

IDENTIFY THE SPECIES

The filter gauzes are sent to the WWT Wetlands Science Laboratory for analysis. The lab relies on a sizeable number of samples from a number of locations to remove bias from the results. For example, fish may shoal in one spot and be absent from another only a few metres away. The DNA is extracted from the buffer solution.

Using the same chemistry that has been adapted for Covid testing, a machine takes a polymerase chain reaction (PCR) test – a molecular examination of genetic material. It is able to recognise short sequences in the DNA – the signature barcode of a species – and then copy them repeatedly so that the sample is big enough to analyse.

To identify the species in a sample, we check the patterns of eDNA against a reference library that has different sections of code relating to individual species. As every species has a unique barcode signature, it relies on matching codes to samples. It’s not yet a comprehensive library – only about 66% of Cambodian fish can be identified.

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The Lower Mekong region in Cambodia is home to some of the world’s most important wetlands. We’re working with local partners to protect them

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AN eDNA REVOLUTION

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In the UK, single species eDNA monitoring is being carried out on other threatened species to assess their presence, including great crested newts and rare fish such as allis shad and twaite shad. Other species could follow, such as the lamprey, a fish whose larvae burrow deep and so is phenomenally difficult to survey by traditional means. WWT is also using metabarcoding – a technique to identify plants and animals using DNA and rapid DNA sequencing – to try to understand whether natural flood management increases the number and range of invertebrates in a body of water. From the water samples we took last year we identified about 400 species, providing a snapshot of what was around at the time.

Shutterstock; WWT

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Aquatic eDNA is becoming an established tool for monitoring fish, amphibians and other wildlife

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“eDNA is like reading a full orchestral score, where we can identify a host of different fish in a single sample of water” Somerset. We were able to demonstrate that there were lots of eels using the waterways all around, but few actually on the site itself. Once the restoration is complete, we can go back and sample the Meads. If the eels love it, their DNA will be all over the place.” MEASURING CHANGE Plans are under way to extend testing, both in the UK and overseas, starting in the Mekong Delta of Cambodia, where WWT has been working for more than a decade. Research Officer Jon Greenslade explains: “We are targeting 80 square km of wetlands, a landscape that is incredibly important for sarus cranes, but one that is going through massive land-use changes with the introduction of rice and

shrimp farming. One way of measuring the effects of agriculture on wildlife is to study the impacts of these changes on fish populations. “Sampling using traditional methods with nets will only get you the fish that net selects for. For example, big mesh nets are designed to catch bigger fish and will let little fish slip through. But eDNA testing can tell you everything that’s in the waterbody. Local people will sample wetlands for freshwater fish, and then, in the lab, we’ll use eDNA metabarcoding. It’s like reading a full orchestral score, where we can identify a host of different fish species in a single sample of water.” Home and abroad, eDNA monitoring is adding a whole new dimension to our understanding of tricky wetland wildlife. Its use is set to spread yet wider. n

EXPLORE OUR WORLD Discover more about European eels and our work to protect them on our website: wwt.org.uk/severn-vale

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LUCKY ESCAPE BY YVONNE CARRINGTON WWT ARUNDEL

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Yvonne says: “This herring gull suddenly swooped down and grabbed one of the tufted duck’s ducklings. She bravely chased and attacked the gull, which dropped its prize back into the water. The mother was joined by a second tuftie and the pair continued to vigorously attack the gull until it managed to escape.” The jury says: “An extraordinary moment – Yvonne must have lightning fingers! The distraught duck is perfectly framed by the gull’s outstretched wings, and as the gull’s beak opens, the moment the duckling starts to fall is frozen in time. The gull’s eye is pin-sharp and everything is framed by splashing water. An image that truly speaks a thousand words. Well done!”

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his year, the entries to our annual photo competition showcased brilliant technical skills and exceptional creativity. The quality of the images spoke of days spent watching wildlife, impeccable fieldcraft, lightning reactions and the patience to wait for hours for the perfect moment.

It was hard to choose the shortlisted images in these pages and also on our website. Congratulations to all our finalists – and particularly to Yvonne Carrington, who captured this dramatic moment, which tells a compelling story without words. And also to 14-year-old Mia, who has won our young photographer

category with her beautifully observed resting damselfly. Yvonne wins a pair of Swarovski CL Companion 8x30 binoculars and Mia wins a pair of Viking Otter 8x32 binoculars. Huge thanks to SWAROVSKI OPTIC and VIKING OPTICAL for sponsoring our competition prizes. n MARCH/JUNE 2022

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RUNNERS-UP colour, it’s fantastic.”

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BECAUSE I’M WORTH IT!

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BY MIKE DOYLE WWT ARUNDEL Mike says: “This scaly-sided merganser was taking a bath in the Coastal Creek Aviary, and I wanted to get a good shot as its flowing crest just looked like a well-known hair conditioner advert. The bird’s unpredictable movements made it a challenge.”

THE EYES HAVE IT

BY BEN WOOTTON WWT ARUNDEL

Ben says: “The spectacled eiders were being particularly shy on the day I took this photo. I had to wait three or fours hours for them to come within shooting distance.” The jury says: “Ben’s shot shows his amazing patience and creativity. Instead of taking an easier and quicker portrait, he waited for this chance to draw the viewer’s attention to this extraordinary graphic composition of colour and form. Well done, Ben.” 36

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The jury says: “Mike not only knew there was a gorgeous image opportunity in this bathing merganser, he demonstrated exemplary skills, getting down low, waiting for the perfect moment, and freezing the action and the splash perfectly. Exquisite feather detail, great colour – it’s fantastic.”

THREE DANCERS

BY JONATHAN CUTTLE WWT SLIMBRIDGE

Jonathan says: “When I spotted these black-tailed godwits roosting from the Rushy Hide, they didn’t look very interesting. So I waited until they woke up and flapped their wings to get a more dynamic image.” The jury says: “Like three ballet dancers stretching before a performance, these godwits are all legs and angles. Jonathan understands what makes a great image, and has showcased these elegant waders perfectly.”

AUTUMN MIGRATION BY BILL PICKARD WWT MARTIN MERE

Bill says: “It was late morning in mid-November and I was watching

greylag geese come and go from the United Utilities Hide when I realised the sun was in the perfect position behind me to capture a flock flying past

the Kingfisher Hide against a backdrop of autumn colours. After waiting for ages, this group flew in the exact direction I wanted.”

The jury says: “Bill has perfectly captured the essence of Martin Mere in autumn. The warm light and rich colours are gorgeous, and the geese are in beautiful formation.”

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THE REST OF THE BEST

MOORHEN MODEL

BY CHRIS BROOKS WWT SLIMBRIDGE

Chris says: “Last May, four cute and curious moorhen chicks crossed the path in front of me. When their mother started feeding them, I dropped to the ground, angling my camera slightly upwards towards the young birds. Helped by some amazing and willing subjects, these are some of the best images I’ve captured – all it cost me was a muddy coat and dirty trousers.” The jury says: “Moorhen chicks might not be the best-looking birds, but Chris has made this one look like a supermodel. The low angle and depth of field creates a perfect creamy studio-like backdrop for his subject. Dirty trousers are definitely a price worth paying for this great portrait of an often overlooked species!”

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STEALTH HUNTER

BY LUKE KIBBLE WWT SLIMBRIDGE

(Above)

Luke says: “This image was a case of being in the right place at the right time. I was in the Martin Smith Hide waiting for something to happen when this great egret emerged from the reeds. It was hunting. It paused, then plucked this water shrew out of the reeds and ate it! I couldn’t believe it.” The jury says: “Two incredible species in one photo – Luke’s patience certainly paid off! Add a dash of serendipity and you have a remarkable photo of an incredible and rare moment. The colours are rich, the egret perfectly framed, as it eyes the poor, unfortunate shrew. Absolutely mesmerising.” 38

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(Right)

YOUNG PHOTOGRAPHER OF THE YEAR (Right) BY MIA TOTTEN WWT CASTLE ESPIE

Mia says: “This common blue damselfly was photographed in Castle Espie’s car park! To capture a good picture, I had to be very still and wait very patiently for one to land close enough.” The jury says: “With this shot, Mia proves you can take a great nature photo anywhere. She kept her eyes open and spied a photo opportunity where few others would’ve looked. Then she had the incredible patience to wait for the moment she had in her head. Brilliantly executed, this photo showcases the subject against an uncluttered, diffuse green background. One to watch!”

THE HUNTER

(Below)

BY GARRY OLDFIELD WWT MARTIN MERE

Garry says: “I took this photo next to the Ron Barker Hide. I saw the owl quartering in the distance and slowly getting closer. I couldn’t believe my luck when it landed on a gate in front of me.” The jury says: “Owls are often seen at our centres but rarely are such beautiful images captured. Garry has used all his field skills and know-how to get this challenging shot. Sensibly, he moved into a better position to get a clearer view, using the reeds as cover to avoid flushing the owl, and then captured this stunningly detailed portrait amid an evocative reedscape. Nerves of steel!”

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The stunning banded demoiselle damselfly makes an excellent macro subject, with its large metallic blue (male) or green (female) body

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How to improve your…

MACRO PHOTOGRAPHY acro photography can reveal a hidden world that is full of wonder. True macro lenses will magnify your subject to at least life size (1:1), but even without this magnification you can still capture amazing detail. Many telephoto and zoom lenses allow you to focus very closely, and even some mobile phone cameras have a close-focus capacity. Due to a small sensor, phones have the added benefit of lots of depth of field. Depth of field is the area in your photo that appears sharp and in focus. In every picture, there is a zone both in front of and behind the point you are focusing on that also appears sharp. Making sure you have sufficient depth of field is

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crucial for macro photography, as the area that appears sharp decreases the closer you get to your subject and the more you magnify. To shoot at macro level successfully, you ideally need lots of light or you might struggle to get all of your subject in focus. If part of the image is affected by shadow, or if light levels are low, for example on an overcast day, try using flash to rectify this. The torch on your mobile phone can be used to experiment with the direction of light for more control, especially if you are photographing a plant or fungi or a very still insect. Try making a simple reflector out of tin foil stretched over a bit of card, or the foil lining inside some fresh juice cartons. Use this to direct light onto your subject and balance out the shadows.

Look for a clean background Move around and try to find a position to shoot from that gives your subject a clean background with no distractions that compete for the viewer’s attention. Using a longer focal length lens or a shallower depth of field can help to throw messy elements in the background out of focus, and diffuse intrusive foreground elements.

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Your wild photos

Get down low Lowering your camera to the same level as your subject – or lower – can give your images a more intimate feel. This might mean kneeling or even lying on the ground for some subjects, but it will be worth it – this approach can transform your photographs into a more inspiring bug’s-eye perspective. It is especially effective when using a telephoto lens. Bogbean

WINNER “Every time I return from an outing to WWT Slimbridge, I find that the vast majority of my images are of flamingos. Quite often, you’ll find one that seems to be posing for us photographers.” David Hoare

RUNNER-UP

Search for the best specimen If you have the opportunity to choose one specimen or individual from many options, for example butterflies or flowers, then take the time to identify the most pristine one. Look closely to check that your flower petals or insect wings are not damaged. If they are, make sure you photograph them from an angle that hides the imperfection.

“I took this photo at London Wetland Centre last November. After initially missing the bittern when it was out in the water, I was relieved when it returned four hours later in glorious autumn sunlight.” Dave Foker

Red-tailed bumblebee

WIN! WIN! WIN! David wins a copy of Where to Watch Birds in Britain by Simon Harrap and Nigel Redman, worth £25 and available in our shops and online.

Stay parallel As depth of field is often limited with macro photography, you may struggle to keep key elements of your image in sharp focus. Try to get parallel – or at a 90° angle – to your subject to keep as much of it as sharp as possible. If a crucial part of the picture is soft, it can spoil the final result. Keeping the camera at the same level as the subject avoids having to pitch the lens up or down, which reduces the depth of field.

We love to see what you’ve photographed at our centres. Please send your best shots to Waterlife and they could be published in a future issue. Just email your high-res images and a short story about what you photographed to waterlife@wwt.org.uk. We can’t wait to see what you can do!

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Ducks are on the bill this issue, and they’ll drive you quackers, if my terrible puns don’t beat them to it. If you have a WWT centre close to home, then it’s time for you to test your duck detecting skills in our Easter Duck Trail this spring (see far right for details). Whether you can join in or not, put on your webbed feet right now and enjoy fantastic facts here about eight of the UK’s amazing duck species.

1 Top pedigree Most of the domestic breeds of duck that live in backyards and town and city parks come in a range of colours and have some wonderful names. There are Indian runners, Orpington ducks and

Swedish blues, and they can be black, brown, golden, white or blue. These ducks were bred many hundreds or even thousands of years ago from a wild ancestor that is still with us – the mallard.

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beak 2 Big Have you ever tried working in the garden with a shovel, a kind of giant spade? That tool lends its name to a big-billed bird called a shoveler. Watch it swish its huge, broad beak from side to side on the surface of a pond or a lake. It’s sifting the water for floating seeds, tiny insects and other aquatic creatures.

exit 3 AThequick UK’s smallest duck

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really is tiny – a mallard is twice the size and three times as heavy as a teal. But the tiny teal has a special trick for getting out of trouble – it can leap almost vertically from the water if alarmed. “I’m outta here!” 42

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been with us for the winter fly off to lands further north in the spring to nest. Another species is migrating north too, but it’s arriving here in the UK for the summer. And it’s flown all the way from central Africa. The male garganey looks as if someone’s gone mad with a white paintbrush over its head. You might think that makes him easy to spot, but both he and his plain-coloured female are secretive birds, mostly hiding among pools in thick vegetation. A rare sighting of this special bird really is a treat.

crisis? 5 Identity When is a duck also a goose? When it’s a shelduck. These birds are halfway between a big duck and a small goose and scientists have decided they are actually a bit of both. Unlike most ducks and geese, shelducks nest in burrows, sometimes under bushes or in the hollow of a willow tree. They’re a regular sight at our centres that overlook estuaries. They feed on snails, crabs and shrimps in the mud. Look out for eyecatching patches of white, black and brown on their bodies.

EASTER DUCK TRAIL Hair style 6 Which duck has the funkiest feathers? Possibly the tufted duck, which has a stylish crest shooting out from the back of its head. The male’s crest is longer than the female’s and he’s easier to spot too – you can see that big white patch on the side of his black body from the other side of a lake. ‘Tufties’ are ‘now you see it now you don’t’ diving ducks, leaping head first to plunge underwater after snails and insects.

Sea star No duck can match the eider when it comes to Olympian feats. This heavy sea duck is the UK’s fastest duck. Flying straight ahead over the water, it can keep to a steady 65-70km per hour by flapping its wings very fast. And when it dives for mussels, its favourite food, this super athlete can go right down to the bottom of the sea, up to 30 metres below the surface.

8 Its brilliant, startling eyes give the goldeneye One in the eye

its name, but there’s much more to this bird than its appearance. Unusually among ducks, the goldeneye nests high up in trees. Parent birds encourage their ducklings to leave the nest before they can fly, even though they might be nesting 20 metres above the ground. Is this a recipe for disaster? Not at all. These little fluffy ducklings are so light that they pretty much float down, and bounce on the ground without coming to any harm. That’s a relief!

Can you ‘quack the case’ this Easter and find the bright-yellow ducks hiding around our wetland centres across the UK? This Easter, pick up a trail card and crack the clues to find the bright-yellow, cheeky ducks that are hiding around our wetlands on this Easter hunt with a difference! Explore our amazing wetlands as you look for the ducks, and discover more about our real-life ducks at the same time. See if you can spot which of our ducks along the trail are male. We’ll give you a clue: look for the birds showing off their bright breeding feathers. As well as the Easter Duck Trail, there are lots of other quack-tastic activities to enjoy over the Easter holidays. Find your nearest wetland centre to discover more.

DUCKSEARCH

Now you know all about these eight awesome ducks, see if you can find their names in this word search. Draw around each name as you spot it. Z

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In late March, watch nesting lapwings from our hides. By early April, sand and house martins and swallows will be winging overhead looking for somewhere to breed. Our nesting sand martins can be viewed from the Sand Martin Hide – last year, 17 pairs used the artificial bank. Look for kingfishers flitting from the bank on the Arun Riverlife lagoon. A pair has nested here for the past two years and by mid-May they should be feeding young. On the Tranquil Trail, chiffchaffs and blackcaps sing in the hedgerows, while sedge and reed warblers chur along the reedbed boardwalk. Look for blue tits in the many nest boxes in the Wood Loop, and mallard ducklings paddling after their parents in the ponds and ditches. Awakening grass snakes can often be seen swimming from a boat safari. Spot common lizards sunbathing on the walls and decking of our outbuildings. Toadlets leave their ponds on warm, damp days in June to explore, while the larvae of emperor and broad-bodied chaser dragonflies clamber out of the water and up reed stems to transform into adults. Can you spot their exuviae – cast-off exoskeletons – still clinging there? In June, older oystercatcher chicks follow their parents learning what to eat, and second broods of tufted ducklings will be hatching. Red admiral, meadow brown and small tortoiseshell butterflies sip nectar from the wildflowers along wet meadows walkways.

The Easter Duck Trail is back! Explore our amazing wetlands as you hunt for the bright-yellow ducks hiding around them and discover more about our real-life ducks, from 8-24 April. Pick up a trail card and look high and low! Explore the Coastal Creek Aviary, a walk-

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Look for pairs of kingfishers raising chicks in the bank

EXPERIENCE HIGHLIGHTS Pond dipping Book a family ponddipping session over the Easter holidays in April at the admissions desk on the day of your visit. We’ve got nets and trays and our Learning Team to lead you.

Wetland Discovery Board a boat safari with a WWT wildlife guide,

floating through wet meadows and reedbeds bursting with wildlife all around in spring. Book this 15- to 20-minute wetland excursion for £3 per person at the admissions desk when you arrive. One of the best ways to see the wetlands is from the water!

Lakes and Forest With seed in your hand and rare birds from around the world at your feet, giggles of

Watch the antics of the Dalmatian pelicans as they catch fish

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through experience with a wader window, waterfalls and a cutaway diving duck tank. Longtailed ducks, common

scoters and spectacled eiders dive at the fish feeds at noon each day with our friendly WWT keepers.

delight are inevitable while you hand-feed in the Lakes and Forest exhibit. Get close to the friendly nenes with handfuls of grain for 20p from our vending machine.

Bentley Wildlife Carvers Drop into the Outlook In building on the second Sunday of every month to see the Bentley Wildlife Carvers demonstrating techniques and displaying their work.

Pop into Pelican Cove and meet the incredible Dalmatian pelicans! These giant waterbirds once roamed wetlands here in the UK. Join our keepers in the feed bay for a chat at 2pm each day to see these huge birds up close on their islands. Explore the Wetland Secrets Plant House to see modern and traditional uses of wetland plants. Plant tags around the site will also help you to identify our glorious seasonal flowers.

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As the days warm up and nature begins to awaken, take the chance to get outdoors and explore our wetlands. Spring is bright with sunshine-yellow flowers, such as primroses, lesser celandines and

Look to the skies – what will you see?

daffodils. Wander down tree-lined avenues and jump in puddles along the

way. See if you can spot the hole in the old sycamore tree – and you might even be able to squeeze inside it! Look up at the sky for the welcome return of the house martins and swallows. Then sneak quietly into the hides to see the swallows bringing in mud parcels to sculpt their nests on buildings around the reserve. Over the days that follow, watch them brood their

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In early spring, take the final opportunity to see the wild whooper swans before they depart for their breeding grounds in Iceland. A variety of swans, geese, ducks and other waterbirds can be seen on the whooper pond until spring. Go for a Walk on the Wildside through wildflower meadows and alongside tranquil ponds, then head out to River Lochar, where banded demoiselle damselflies dart like shining jewels along the riverbanks and the eagle-eyed may find the footprints of badgers, deer and otters in the mud. Listen for the songs of returning warblers, from the frenetic chattering of sedge warblers to the sweet descending song of the willow warblers and the onomatopoeic chiffchaffs! The hirundines also begin to return, with sand martins swooping over the Folly Pond, house martins nesting around the Farmhouse Tower and swallows darting in and out through hide windows, building nests and feeding chicks! Signs of badgers are all around the reserve. Cubs venture outside to explore their wetland surroundings, adults clean out their setts in the avenue, and snuffle holes appear in the soft ground as the badgers hunt for earthworms.

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eggs and then fly in and out of the hide windows to feed their growing chicks. Listen to the skylarks as they sing high in the sky above the merse and dip for pond creatures in the paddock ponds. Look out for stunning dragonflies as they dart around, catching insects mid-air! While you wander, take photos on your phone or camera of the flowers, insects and birds.

At night, the Caerlaverock badgers become active, roaming by the River Lochar, around the visitor centre, down the avenues and out on the merse

EXPERIENCE HIGHLIGHTS Pond dipping The paddock ponds are host to a variety of creatures: smooth newts, water scorpions, great diving beetles and more. Grab a net and a tray and get lost in this underwater world. Watch bugs swimming in trays and have a go at identifying them.

Wildflower meadow From 1 May, take a relaxing ramble

around our wildflower meadow. The colourful flowers attract insects such as bumblebees, butterflies, green dock leaf beetles and stripy hoverflies! The reserve is a dragonfly hotspot, so look out for species such as emerald damselflies.

Walk on the Wildside From 1 May to 31 August daily, wander through meadows with red clover, yellow rattle and other flowers. Listen to the buzzing

of bees and look for orange tip, greenveined white, peacock and small tortoiseshell butterflies. Watch the returning swallows hunting for insects, and dragonflies zooming around.

Swan feeds Head to the Sir Peter Scott Observatory to see the daily commentated swan feeds, until 31 March. Learn about the whooper swans, and read some leg rings and see if you can

identify any of our named swans. Watch the drake ducks, as they perform their wonderful displays to impress the females!

Guided walk Learn about the reserve and how the habitat is managed for natterjack toads using Hebridean sheep, and how saltmarshes help combat climate change. One Saturday each month, 1-2pm. See the website for details.

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EXPERIENCE HIGHLIGHTS Easter Duck Trail

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This Easter (14-24 April) explore our wetlands as you hunt for the bright-yellow ducks, and discover more about our real-life ones. Can you ‘quack the case’ and find all the ducks?

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Wildwood outdoor adventure play area Go wild and test your balance and bravery on our log obstacle course, forge a den, fly high on the rope swing and see if you can find the secret swamp!

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Castle Espie AR Have fun in our adventure playground

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WILDLIFE WONDERS Spring sees Castle Espie burst into life. Courtship rituals are all around – birds sing in the trees and over the meadows, and terns show off their elegant aerobatics, diving into the water to capture their meal. We welcome the return of our large colony of black-headed gulls, which nest around the reserve.

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FAMILY FUN As the days grow longer and the wildlife starts to spring back to life, there is lots of fun for all the family at Castle Espie. Enjoy a bird’s-eye view of the reserve from the discovery hides, and the spectacular views across Strangford Lough.

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It’s not only wildlife that comes alive. Wildflowers start to bloom in our woodlands, including several species found only in Ireland. We love to hear about what wildlife you’ve spotted at Castle Espie, so don’t forget to tag us on social media during your next visit!

See who can spot the most wildlife! Look out for ducklings and other young birds finding their feet and

Experience the perilous journey of the brent goose first-hand thanks to our new AR experience, which is available until 31 March. Search for ‘Castle Espie AR’ on the App Store.

Monthly Birdwatching Morning Take a closer look at the variety of birds on our wetland reserve on the last

learning about their new surroundings in the duckery. Then follow the signs past the wishing tree and deep into the woods on a woodland adventure, where our fabulous treehouse, zip wire and dazzling green swamp awaits you. Once you’ve built up an appetite stretching your

Wednesday of every month, at 10.30am. Numbers are limited, so make sure you pre-book your ticket (call 028 9187 4146).

Art gallery Join us for two exhibitions this spring. From 2-24 April, we will be exhibiting works by Frank Eggington, and from 30 April to 22 May, prints and wood engravings by Peter Brown can be seen.

Warden for a Morning Have you ever wondered what it takes to look after our nature reserve? Now’s your chance to find out! On 18 May and 18 June you can meet the team and participate in our important conservation work (activity varies, but does not stop for bad weather). The day begins at 9am (before we’re open to the public) and finishes at 11.30am with refreshments.

legs and filling your lungs with fresh air, enjoy a picnic at one of the many outdoor benches, or treat yourself to lunch from the Kingfisher Kitchen.

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Longer, warmer days with breathtaking displays of flowers, emerging insects and noisy nesting birds remind us all why we love spring. Even on damp or wet days the air smells incredible; it’s fresh and earthy, reminiscent of lush vegetation and new growth. Our wetlands nourish every human sense, and provide peace and recovery from our hectic modern lives. Spend some time mindfully watching dabbling ducks or listening to the breeze through the young reeds to reconnect with nature and recharge your batteries. Mood-boosting sunlight reflects off the gentle waters, offering a dazzling backdrop for star species such as kingfishers, godwits and statuesque egrets (and great opportunities for patient photographers!). The variety of birdsong that fills the air provides an immersive soundtrack for your visit, and learning how to identify the species you hear can give you a real sense of accomplishment. Sunday 1 May is International Dawn Chorus Day and we’ll be organising a special early bird event with an expert guide to celebrate. Please check our website and social media for details of the start time, ticket cost and how to book.

Spring is always a special time at Llanelli, and signs of new life are everywhere you look. From the bright new leaves and blossoms on the trees to flowers bobbing in the breeze and adorable new fluffy additions to our feathered families. As the days warm, there are birds arriving from all around the world and

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Listen out for the sound of happy bees bumbling around in the blossom

EXPERIENCE HIGHLIGHTS Mother’s Day

Make mum feel like the main character. This Mother’s Day (27 March) treat your mum or grandma to something she’d really like – quality time with her loved ones! Mums visit for free with a paying adult or child, so be sure to make the

exciting things for you to explore and discover! During the Easter break (Saturday 9 to Sunday 24 April) pick up a trail card

most of this fab offer and celebrate her special day together.

Easter fun During the Easter holidays (9-24 April) we will need your help to find all the yellow ducks that are hiding among their real-life friends in the wetlands.

Pick up your free trail card and follow the clues to spot these cheeky birds and learn more about the real ducks you see.

Father’s Day On Father’s Day (19 June), bring dad or grandpa for free with any paying child or

and crack the clues to find the bright-yellow, cheeky ducks that are hiding around our wetlands and win a tasty prize for your efforts. You’ll go quackers for this Easter trail with a difference! As we move into summer, life on the reserve gets more and more interesting. Sunny days bring out coldblooded reptiles

adult. A unique way to say thanks to the special man in your life and, who knows, birding might become a new hobby to enjoy together! Delicious craft ales are sold in the gift shop, if that’s more his thing.

from beautiful slow-worms to stunning grass snakes and lightning-fast common lizards basking in the sun, trying to warm up. You’ll need to be quiet though, as these creatures are all very shy and will hide if they hear – or feel – you coming.

Can you spot a sunbathing lizard? Watch our adorable young waterbirds

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Bring your young ones to meet ours! Spring is a great time to see all our adorable new waterbirds, like these mute swan cygnets

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Our most colourful season is nearly upon us; from sweet cherry blossoms scenting the breeze to the flamboyant daffodils and bluebells scattered around the reserve. As our wetlands come to life, they provide a picture-perfect place to enjoy a quiet moment and appreciate the simple things in life. The waterside vegetation will be dotted with nests full of young waterbirds, the ponds and lakes will feature flotillas of swimming chicks and the footpaths will be full of unsteady young birds and their protective parents. Keep an eye out for smaller birds such as reed warblers, swallows and sand martins, which make their nests in our wetlands. Listen out for the iconic sound of the cuckoo in May. Its cheery spring-like call is strangely at odds with its cuckolding nature of laying eggs in other birds’ nests and tricking them into raising its young. As summer migrants start to return to breed, the sound of birds marking their territory with their unique songs fills the skies. Wading birds such as black-tailed godwits wing their way back to the UK to nest in the fens of eastern England. 52

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FAMILY FUN Get outdoors and take in the season’s highlights with the family. There’s loads to keep kids entertained. Spring is the perfect time to get up close to adorable ducklings, goslings and cygnets around the reserve. Look out for secretive water voles and see how many nene – the world’s rarest geese – you can spot! Listen to the sounds of ducks, and see if you can hear the female mallard’s insistent “quack, quack, quack”.

Get close to nature on our Wild Walk or head to an otter feed to watch our adorable otters eat their snacks. This Easter, explore our wetlands as you hunt for the brightyellow ducks, and

Visitors enjoy learning about nature

discover more about our real-life ones. Can you ‘quack the case’ and find all the ducks? Go wild in our Explore Playground to take on zip wires, swings and more in the spring sunshine.

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EXPERIENCE HIGHLIGHTS

Dawn Chorus Guided Tour

Can you ‘quack the case’ this Easter from 2-18 April and find the bright-yellow ducks hiding around our wetlands? You’ll need all your special detective skills to track them. Look up as well as down; our ducks like to perch above you sometimes. They also love splashing around, so they won’t be far from the water.

Meet Tod and Honey, our Asian short-clawed otters, at feeding time (11am and 2pm), when our warden will tell you more about these amazing aquatic mammals.

Poisoner’s Walk

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On 26 June, join a naturalist on a tour of the reserve to learn about the heroes and villains of the plant world.

Join our wardens as they feed our collection birds from around the globe. Discover more about the

Unlock your talent behind the camera with our new photo classes on 29 April, 26 May and 25 June, with

Otter Feed

basic principles behind environmental surveying. Participants will spend most of the day out on the reserve doing practical work.

birds we are helping to save from extinction. Weekends only at 3pm.

A special opportunity to enjoy our reserve before daybreak, as we celebrate International Dawn Chorus Day. On 23 April, at 5am, our expert guides will take you around the reserve, listening to the birds sing, as the sun rises. They’ll also help you identify the birds by their song. Book your tickets now.

Fresh air, fun and exploration: outdoor play allows children to develop their self-confidence, independence and self-esteem

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Birdsong ID

photographer Jackie Rado, and turn your average wildlife shots into sharp, beautifully composed photos. The day will begin with an introduction inside before heading out. This course is suitable for beginner and intermediate photographers, and tuition will be tailored to suit individual requirements.

As birds declare their territories and try to attract mates, they’re often hidden in foliage or reedbeds, but now you can get to know them by their song. In this one-and-ahalf-hour session (25, 26, 27 and 28 April), you’ll learn how to identify birdsong and try out your new skills, guided by one of our experts.

Introduction to Freshwater Ecology This one-day workshop on 11 June will introduce participants to the principles of freshwater surveying, with a focus on aquatic plants and animals. Think pond dipping for grown-ups! It’s suitable for beginners keen to understand the

Our black-tailed godwits return

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Easter Duck Trail

They will introduce you to a variety of plants and flowers, and their abilities to harm or heal. Find out what’s so great about the great burnet, how digitalis will make your heart skip a beat, and why hemlock will take your breath away.

Wild About The Wetlands: A year in the life of the London Wetland Centre

Join us on a walk through the reedbeds

More than three years ago, local photographer Andrew Wilson approached us about creating a photography book celebrating our muchloved WWT wetland centre in Barnes, south-west London. And finally, it’s here. Packed with stunning images and with a foreword by our Vice President, Mark Carwardine, it is available now in the WWT online shop (wwt.org.uk/bird-books) and all good bookstores.

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FUN FOR ALL THE FAMILY Wandering around our reserve is a feast for the senses in spring. Hear the eiders’ ‘ah oOo’ call, smell the lavender in the eco-garden, see the cute fluffy ducklings, goslings

and cygnets following their mothers, and taste some fantastic food in the Mere Side Café. Every weekend from 2 April, you can immerse yourself in our ponddipping experience to see what creatures you can find lurking in the ponds. Or grab a paddle and

“I loved visiting Martin Mere with my five-year-old son. We were kept busy for about four hours. Loved the pond dipping, seeing the otters and handfeeding the birds. The staff were very friendly. Thank you very much” Chrissie B 54

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explore our award-winning canoe safari as a family, as you glide along looking for insects flying around the wildflowers. Want a more relaxing experience? Take a guided boat tour around the safari and learn all about our wetlands. Get nose to beak with many of our feathered

friends, who enjoy nibbling grain from your hand; favourites include the nene and Ross’s geese. Enjoy building a den or running wild in our wild walk experience as you explore the reedy maze and find hidden swings and balancing beams, surrounded by nature.

Wild walk

Richard Williams/WWT

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Sarah Freeman/WWT

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Children can enjoy fun and freedom in natural surroundings

Martin Mere, 1

The stunning bearded reedling is found only in reedbeds. Listen out for its ‘ping’ call

EXPERIENCE HIGHLIGHTS Reedbed walk Immerse yourself in wetland nature on our reedbed walk, accessible from the Harrier Hide. Discover secretive and rare species, such as water rails, bitterns and bearded tits, as well as marsh harriers. Our new hide, the Gordon Taylor Hide, offers spectacular, up-close views of our summer migrants, including Cetti’s and grasshopper warblers. There are also regular sightings of roe deer, otters and stoats. It truly is one of Martin Mere’s best-kept secrets (don’t tell anyone!).

Creative workshops The centre is once again hosting wildlife photography workshops with Heather Beckett and watercolour workshops with Kerry Newell. Visit the website for dates, times and information, and book in advance.

Easter Duck Trail

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Wild orchids

WILDLIFE WONDERS The mere is a hive of activity over the spring, as avocets and black-headed gulls set about raising families. Last year, 22 pairs of avocets and 509 pairs of gulls nested here. It was spectacular! We even recorded three pairs of terns making nests. From the Ron Barker Hide, you may see oystercatchers, lapwings, redshanks, snipes and reed buntings feeding in the fields, as well as our resident kingfishers and barn owls hunting on the grasslands. Raptors can be seen over the marshes – a sure sign of a healthy habitat with rich biodiversity. Hen harriers, hobbies, merlins and peregrine falcons are all seen. Dragonflies, butterflies, brown hares and bats become more active, and summer waders return to breed and feed. The Janet Kear Hide is a lovely place to sit and watch small birds as they collect food from the feeders. Regular spring sightings include chaffinches, greenfinches, reed buntings, tree sparrows, blue and great tits and great spotted woodpeckers. Nest boxes have been put up along the nature trail to increase the number of tree sparrows nesting on-site. In the past two years, at least 16 broods have fledged!

hide from aerial predators. Their manure also attracts insects, offering plenty of food to help young chicks grow.

If you love orchids, then a visit in May is a must. The reedbed walk and main nature trail are a treat for your senses thanks to all the scented wildflowers as you try to spot bee and other orchids. The canoe safari, eco-garden and wild walk are some of the best places to discover wildflowers from May onwards.

Grazing cattle See our herd of longhorn cattle and this year’s calves as they graze closer to the hides in May. Our wetland lawnmowers, as the cows graze, their hooves create divots – little pockets – that waders will nest in and where chicks can

The Easter Duck Trail returns! Pick up a trail card and crack the clues to find the bright-yellow cheeky ducks hiding around our wetlands on this Easter hunt with a difference! The trail is £1 to take part and there is a treat at the end.

Annual duck race All Easter, design your own plastic duck and bring it back to race on 2 May. There will be three races on the day – 12 noon, 2pm and 4pm – and you can cheer your duck on to victory. Winners get a £30 shop voucher as well as joining the elite club of duck race winners!

Bug Week Have a bugtastic day out at Martin Mere (28 May to 5 June), meeting our giant bionic bugs, doing bug hunts, pond dipping, opening the moth traps, bugthemed crafts and much more.

Ben Cherry/WWT

Richard Williams/WWT

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SLIMBRIDGE Wetland Centre

Slimbridge Gloucestershire GL2 7BT 01453 891900 Pre-book events online at wwt.org.uk/slimbridge events.slimbridge@wwt.org.uk

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Visit Slimbridge in springtime for some seasonal highlights

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Enjoy the first signs of spring at Slimbridge with the arrival of swallows and sand martins swooping through the air. Listen out for the sounds of our summer warblers including grasshopper, reed and sedge warblers, and the iconic call of the first cuckoo. Look out for the adorable ducklings, goslings, cygnets and other chicks. Take a trip down to the Estuary Tower to see a variety of wading birds as they pass through on their migration north, including dunlins, ringed plovers, curlews, common sandpipers, sanderlings, black-tailed godwits and greenshanks, seen on the estuary most days. Visit the estuary during a high tide and you may see hundreds of birds being pushed off the mud by the water and flying overhead to find suitable roosting grounds. 56

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A trip to Slimbridge wouldn’t be complete without a visit to the Kingfisher Hide to see our kingfishers busily darting around to feed their young. Keen birders should keep their eyes peeled and their fingers crossed for rare species, such as a purple heron or Temminck’s stint.

If you’re lucky, you might even see a rare purple heron

“We spent the whole day at Slimbridge. It was raining, but that didn’t spoil it, as there was so much to see. Lots of hides to sit in and watch the wild birds. The staff are professional, knowledgeable and happy to answer questions. We saw wild cranes from the top of the Estuary Tower, which was amazing. I’d happily visit again” AMBSurreyYK

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Amy Alsop/WWT

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WILDLIFE WONDERS

Learn more about Slimbridge with our Wetland Heroes app

The Easter Duck Trail returns! Pick up a trail card and crack the clues to find the bright-yellow cheeky ducks hiding

around our wetlands on this Easter hunt with a difference! Heat up at the Hawaiian landscape of Mission Possible. Meet

Hire a canoe and look out for wildlife as you paddle along our water trail

study wildlife including the Bewick’s swans. Splash about at Welly Boot Land or go wild in Riverlife outdoor play areas in the spring sunshine. Look for adorable ducklings, goslings and cygnets around the grounds, see if you can spot all six species of flamingo and meet our friendly otter! From May, climb aboard a Canoe Safari through our waterways or spot awesome amphibians at Toad Hall. Make your visit extra special using our Wetland Heroes app and unlock the secrets of Slimbridge!

EXPERIENCE HIGHLIGHTS

future. Select dates in April and June, book online.

Easter Duck Trail

Family Wildlife Photography

This Easter, 9-24 April, can you ‘quack the case’ and find the bright-yellow cheeky ducks hiding around our wetlands? Pick up a trail card and crack the clues to win prizes as you enjoy our Easter Duck Trail – it’s the perfect opportunity to get outdoors with all the family.

On 13 April we have a practical and enjoyable day for budding young wildlife photographers (aged 8+) and their parents. Learn how to get great shots of wildlife this season with tutor David Broadbent. Suitable for all skill levels and camera types (compact or SLR). Book online.

Canoe Safari From May, hire a canoe and cruise down our kilometre-long trail in a canoe, which can take up to three people. Sit back and relax as you look out for wildlife along the way, such as water voles, dragonflies, warblers and ducks. Canoes are suitable for children aged 3+ and each canoe hired must be accompanied by at least one adult (18+). Ben Langdon Photography/WWT

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Amy Alsop/WWT

FUN FOR ALL THE FAMILY

the world’s rarest goose, the nene, and learn how WWT founder Sir Peter Scott brought the species back from the brink of extinction! At the Living Wetland Theatre, meet species such as the crowned crane and pink-backed pelican and learn how these amazing birds have adapted to the wetlands they live in. Then immerse yourself in the Waterscapes Aviary, one of the largest in the UK. Visit the Arctic Adventure – recreating life on the Arctic Tundra where WWT researchers

Young Birder ID An event for young birdwatchers, aged 13-18. Get to grips with bird identification with the help of one of our experienced wardens. Discover why wetlands are amazing and become the naturalists of the

Wetland Heroes app Whether you’re first-timers to Slimbridge or seasoned members, there’s always something new to learn. Download our free, familyfriendly app and go on factfinding missions this spring!

Birdsong Workshop On 7, 8 and 9 May, come to listen to the fabulous chorus of song as the birds wake to a new day. Join our wardens to explore the reserve at one of the most productive times of the year. Learn how to identify these birds by sound, as each one has a most beautiful call and song. Book online.

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WASHINGTON Wetland Centre

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Warmer weather, longer days, the first signs of new life… spring is the perfect season to experience our wetlands with family or friends. Why not get together for an outdoor adventure and explore our woodlands, meadows and waterways as they start awakening after the long winter?

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check our website fo r the latest updates a t wwt.org .uk/ washingto n

WWT Washington

wwt.org.uk/washington

The lapwing’s splendid crest is distinctive. Inset: a bee orchid mimics a furry bee

Spring on our wild reserve is all about fresh beginnings, new life and the buzz of activity that comes with it. Squabbles over territories, elaborate courtship displays and mating calls, frenetic nest-building… this season has it all! In March and April, Wader Lake and its meadows become a haven for an array of wading birds. The ‘pee-wit’ call of the Red Listed lapwing fills the air, as spiky-haired grey heron chicks fledge and hunt, while regionally rare avocets court on the shingle islands. Our common tern colony joins them in May, with up to 120 pairs noisily jostling for space; offering protection for smaller species such as little ringed plover by warding off predators in the commotion. Their chicks begin to hatch and grow rapidly by June, adding hungry cries for food to the daily din. A spectacle for the eyes and ears that’s not to be missed! As early summer meanders along, vivid dragonflies and butterflies take to the wing, while other pollinating insects seek nectar from the blooming flora. Our wildflower meadows explode with colour, with northern marsh orchid, foxglove, bee orchid and bird’s-foot trefoil.

FAMILY FUN

Washington

Tyne and Wear NE38 8LE 0191 416 5454 info.washington@wwt.org.uk

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WILDLIFE WONDERS

BEFORE YOU VISIT please

EXPERIENCE HIGHLIGHTS LEGO® Brick Wetland Safari Returning this spring from 9 April to 5 June – the popular giant LEGO brick wetland safari! Meet exciting larger-than-life LEGO brick models including favourites such as the otter, short-eared owl and kingfisher, plus two new models that haven’t visited before. Self-led; included with admission.

LEGO® Brick Workshops Take part in an hour-long LEGO brick workshop! Race against the clock to complete group and individual challenges before building a mini model to take

Join us for Easter weekend fun as we host our popular Easter Duck Trail. Find the 12 bright-yellow ducks hiding around our wetlands and discover more about our real-life ducks. Top tip: be sure to search both high and low. They’re very good at hide-and-seek!

home. Daily sessions from 10.30-11.30am or 1-2pm on 9-24 April and 28 May to 5 June. Advised age 4+; £7.50 per child; accompanying adults are welcome to attend free of charge (general admission costs apply for all). Booking via website essential.

10.30-11.30am. Advised age 4+; £7.50 per child; accompanying adults are welcome to attend free of charge (general admission costs apply for all; essential carers free when accompanying a paying concession admission ticket). Booking via website essential.

Relaxed LEGO® Brick Workshops

Easter Duck Trail

Enjoy a special, relaxed one-hour workshop perfect for LEGO brick fans of all ages and designed for visitors who may benefit from a more informal experience, more space and smaller crowds, such as those with autism and sensory or communication needs. Held 20 and 24 April and 1 June from

Can you ‘quack the case’ this Easter (15-18 April) and find the bright-yellow ducks hiding around our wetlands? Pick up a trail card and explore amazing habitats as you search for the 12 ducks and discover more about our real-life ones. Self-led; included with admission.

Don’t miss our even bigger LEGO® brick animals, as they make a welcome return to Washington. These largerthan-life LEGO brick wetland creatures will be here

throughout the Easter and May half-term holidays, giving you plenty of time to come and see how amazing they look in our stunning spring surroundings and to discover their important conservation stories. Prefer your wildlife a bit smaller? Then pick up a free bug hunt trail leaflet and guide yourself around our diverse habitats, identifying brilliant bugs as you go.

Meet Kate – the LEGO brick kingfisher

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WILDLIFE WONDERS

SUBS ART PRODUCTION CLIENT Kim Tarsey; Ben Langdon Photography; Shutterstock

Waterlife

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ck ou r for th updat e latest e sa wwt.o rg.uk/ t welne y Look for elegant avocets at the beginning of June to see their adorable newly hatched chicks

WIGEON HOUSE

This spring, get ready to explore our wetlands. As the days lengthen and get warmer, breeding birds return for the summer and insects start to emerge – all of which provide a riot of colour and activity to enjoy. Grab an explorer backpack, then stroll

Cambridgeshire PE14 9TN 01353 860711 info.welney@wwt.org.uk WWT Welney

websit e

Enjoy the sights and sounds of spring in our wetlands. Excitement builds as summer arrivals and spring passage migrants are spotted. While the lapwings will have already started nesting, March sees the return of garganey ducks, little ringed plovers and black-tailed godwits. In April, breeding displays are under way, and avocets, redshanks, blacktailed godwits and snipes are putting on a show. The hides, footpaths and viewing points provide the best viewpoints to enjoy the activity. By May the willows and reedbeds come alive with the songs of cuckoos, sedge EXPERIENCE HIGHLIGHTS and reed warblers. By June, we hope the these mammals feeding, Bat and barn first sections of our summer walk will be and explore the moth owl evenings open, allowing more space to explore. The Join us on 28 May and traps. Booking essential ponds will be busy with early dragonflies 4 June to experience via the website. £12 per nocturnal wildlife. adult, £5 per child. and damselflies on the wing, and we Watch barn owls should start to hear proof that male hunting, use bat Guided walk events corncrakes and bitterns have returned, Look out for walks detectors to listen to as they call to claim their territories. celebrating our wetlands June is the best month this spring. Our team to enjoy wetland plants in will help you make the most of your visit and bloom – from the yellow Be our guest at Wigeon House appreciate the flora and of flag iris and loosestrife and enjoy a unique opportunity fauna here. Walks to the creamy white include: Dawn Chorus to stay on our reserve surrounded of meadow rue and Day (early morning); by the sights and sounds of summer meadowsweet, and the Project Godwit guided wildlife. Book your stay now purple of water mint and tours; wetland plants; through Airbnb. See website marsh woundwort. and conservation for further details.

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BEFORE YOU VISIT please che

across the footbridge from the visitor centre onto the reserve, where footpaths lead to trails and bird hides. Follow the bridge trail to find out about our work to protect blacktailed godwits. Information boards on the footpath are suitable for older children. Inside your backpack, you’ll

grazing. Keep an eye on our website and social media channels for details, times and prices.

Easter Duck Trail Have a quacking time at our wetlands as you enjoy our Easter Duck Trail (2-19 April). The perfect opportunity to get outdoors with all the family. Explore and discover more about the species that visit. You can also pond-dip, use our explorer backpacks and learn about blacktailed godwits on our self-guided trails. Collect a backpack and enjoy

find a trail leaflet for the brass rubbings posts, a bug hunting kit, binoculars and identification charts to help you get started exploring. Discover what’s under the water – go pond dipping!

birdwatching and bug hunting and search for the brass rubbings trail posts to learn about our wildlife.

Sketch to screenprinting workshops On 7 April and 29 May with artist Nicola Bramley, spend time taking in some of our species and turning them into a print on a canvas bag to take home. Booking essential via the website. £12 per child, one adult included to accompany child. Workshops are two hours long.

The pond-dipping stations are open from the Easter holidays, and as the water warms up more creatures start to stir. Enjoy looking for dragonfly nymphs, newts, water hogs and ramshorn snails (top of page). We provide all the equipment you need. This also helps us to prevent the spread of disease.

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STEART Marshes

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site so openac ca but ple nnot be clo cess sed, ase re a d statem ent be our latest fore vis wwt.o iting. rg.uk/ steart The rare black-winged stilt nested at Steart in 2020, the most westerly point in the UK that the birds have ever bred

SUBS ART PRODUCTION CLIENT

WILDLIFE WONDERS Spring is marked by the arrival of migratory birds. Swallows and house martins gracefully swoop over the water, while ducks and waders such as avocets, oystercatchers and little ringed plovers gather to breed. In previous years, we have been delighted to record sightings of whinchats, curlew

EXPERIENCE HIGHLIGHTS

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Tide tables to help you plan your visit can be found on the ‘Visiting’ page of our website: wwt.org.uk/steart

Pond dipping

Willow weaving

Dive beneath the water’s surface to discover wetland wildlife close up. Drop-in sessions for all ages are available some weekends and school holidays. Look out for more details on our website and social media channels.

Your chance to learn a new skill. Drop-in sessions for all ages are available some weekends and school holidays. Look out for more details on our website and social media channels.

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sandpipers, sandwich terns, ruffs, cattle egrets, barnacle geese and even black-winged stilts. As the weather warms, livestock return to graze on the reserve, helping us to manage the habitat in a traditional way, and brown hares can be seen boxing across Otterhampton Marsh.

Self-led activities: Willow Sculpture Trail Visit the Willow Trail and see if you can spot the latest additions to our sculptures. Leaflets available on-site. Sculptures are all made by local artists.

Wildlife Rubbings Trail Bring a crayon and try out our Wildlife Rubbings Trail. Pick up a leaflet from the decking as you enter the site.

Somerset TA5 2PU 01278 651090 info.steart@wwt.org.uk

WWT Steart Marshes

wwt.org.uk/steart

“We enjoyed our walk to the hides to see the birds. Well-laid-out paths through the marsh land. A great place to walk off lunch” Stuart Bin, Surrey As the season advances, large families of mute swans cruise the ditches, the islands fill with juvenile waders, and raptors take advantage of the glut of prey, sending the flocks into a panic as they fly by. By April, the reserve is splashed with bright colours: clumps of yellow marsh marigolds, spikes of purple loosestrife and blankets of white scurvy grass. Later in the season our wildflower meadows bloom, their nectar attracting lots of pollinating insects. The reserve is a hotspot for dragonflies and damselflies, with more than 18 species present on-site. Keep an eye out for the stunning goldenringed and emperor dragonflies darting purposefully through the air. In summer, butterflies and other insects are attracted by the abundance of flowers.

Geocache Trail

Join us for a walk with an expert guide

Download the app to your phone and follow the directions to find hidden treasures around the reserve. A great way to explore!

Guided wildlife walks Keep an eye on our website and social media channels for organised guided walks.

Bespoke walks Learn more about birds and other

wildlife at Steart with your own local guide. Contact us to

arrange a bespoke tour. Suggested donation: £20.

Harley Todd/WWT

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Waterlife chats to Hyeseon Do, a champion of the East AsianAustralasian Flyway Partnership, about its success and hopes for the future

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What is the East Asian-Australasian Flyway (EAAF)? The flyway is a

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migratory route for 50 million waterbirds stretching across 22 countries, from the Russian Far East and Alaska to Australia and New Zealand (wwt.org.uk/eaa-flyway). Since 2006, the EAAF Partnership has been working to protect the wetlands along the flyway – and the wildlife and people who depend on them. It is formed of 39 partners from governments and international NGOs to the private sector. What is your role? Based in the EAAFP Secretariat in South Korea, I provide coordination and strategic planning to develop and strengthen the partnership and its programmes, to build capacity and to support national partnerships in the countries along the flyway. How does WWT contribute? WWT has been a huge supporter and active partner of the EAAFP since joining in 2010. Its expertise in planning, designing and managing wetlands – and educating people about them – is of great value to our partners. WWT also contributes to our strategy. When I recently visited WWT centres, I saw how much people love and enjoy the wetlands. They inspired me to shout about the importance of conserving them, not only for wildlife but for all of us. 66

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Why does the flyway matter? For

Hyeseon Do Programme Officer, East AsianAustralasian Flyway Partnership Secretariat

shorebirds, the stopover sites on their annual journeys between their breeding and wintering sites are vital. On the flyway, the most important site for millions of migratory birds is a region called the Yellow Sea. Sandwiched between China to the west and north, and South Korea and North Korea to the east, this is the world’s largest intertidal mudflat ecosystem. It’s vitally important for the survival of 17 Red Listed migratory waders, including the Critically Endangered spoon-billed sandpiper. But it is threatened by development and coastal reclamation, which is causing irreversible damage and declines in waterbird populations. Is there any good news? In 2021,

important tidal flats of the Yellow Sea in China and South Korea were inscribed on the UNESCO World Natural Heritage List as migratory bird sanctuaries. This was a victory for the partnership and the protection of these wetlands, their wildlife and the communities they support. How will the UNESCO designation help protect the sites and the birds?

The designation of parts of the Yellow Sea as World Natural Heritage Sites will ensure that the highest protection measures are implemented, and help raise their conservation profile globally. But it is only a first step,

as we must ensure protection for migratory species is enhanced and expanded before more wild areas disappear, and that other critical areas we have identified are safeguarded. Tell us more about the spoon-billed sandpiper. The ‘spoonie’ is a flyway

superstar. In 2000, the species was predicted to go extinct within a few years. But the united efforts of international members of the EAAFP successfully highlighted the species’ plight, and now there are about 300 to 700 individuals left in the world. How does the EAAFP support conservation along the flyway?

Through its partners and collaborators, the EAAFP aims to expand the network of protected wetlands throughout the flyway. We will scale up the protection and sustainable management of wetland sites that host globally important biodiversity and provide critical ecosystem services. Our newly launched Regional Flyway Initiative – with Asian Development Bank and BirdLife International – will help governments to fulfil their commitments on climate change and biodiversity, assist local communities to live with migratory birds, and help mobilise the resources needed to tackle the issues on the ground to safeguard these special sites.

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Waterlife 218 March/June 2022

Articles inside

Back chat Meet one of WWT’s partners and find out what they do

Welcome Kevin Peberdy introduces our new CEO, Sarah Fowler

Photo masterclass: up close Top tips for working with smaller subjects

The wetland detectives How new technology is helping us survey aquatic life

Your views Your letters and the pick of your photos

ID guide Our new series reveals how to identify common freshwater ducks

Freeze-frame Be amazed by the winning images in our photo contest

Life on our reserves How we found a jewel of a beetle at WWT Welney

COPs and connections Why we’re upbeat about the future of wetlands