London Wetland Centre Building, Barnes, UK - Diliff

The Wildfowl & Wetlands Trust (WWT) is an international wildfowl and

wetland A wetland is a distinct ecosystem that is flooded or saturated by water, either permanently (for years or decades) or seasonally (for weeks or months). Flooding results in oxygen-free (anoxic) processes prevailing, especially in the soils. The ...

conservation Conservation is the preservation or efficient use of resources, or the conservation of various quantities under physical laws. Conservation may also refer to: Environment and natural resources * Nature conservation, the protection and manageme ...

charity in the United Kingdom. Its patron is

Charles III Charles III (Charles Philip Arthur George; born 14 November 1948) is King of the United Kingdom and the 14 other Commonwealth realms. He was the longest-serving heir apparent and Prince of Wales and, at age 73, became the oldest person to ...

, and its president is Kate Humble.

History

The WWT was founded in 1946 by the

ornithologist Ornithology is a branch of zoology that concerns the "methodological study and consequent knowledge of birds with all that relates to them." Several aspects of ornithology differ from related disciplines, due partly to the high visibility and th ...

and artist Sir Peter Scott as the Severn Wildfowl Trust. The first site at

Slimbridge Slimbridge is a village and civil parish near Dursley in Gloucestershire, England. It is best known as the home of the Wildfowl and Wetlands Trust's WWT Slimbridge, Slimbridge Reserve which was started by Sir Peter Scott. Canal and Patch Bridg ...

was a centre for research and conservation. In a move unusual at the time, he opened the site to the public so that everyone could enjoy access to nature. This modest beginning developed in time into the formation of the Wildfowl & Wetlands Trust, the only United Kingdom charity to promote the protection of wetland birds and their habitats, both in Britain and internationally. Although starting out at Slimbridge, the Wildfowl & Wetlands Trust now owns or manages eight other reserves in Britain, and advocates for wetlands and conservation issues world-wide. WWT Consulting is an offshoot of the Wildlife & Wetland Trust and is based at Slimbridge. It provides ecological surveys and assessments, and offers consultancy services in wetland habitat design, wetland management, biological waste-water treatment systems and the management of reserves and their visitor centres. The Queen in later years became Patron to the WWT, and Prince Charles became the President. The WWT was instrumental in saving the

nēnē The nene (''Branta sandvicensis''), also known as the nēnē or the Hawaiian goose, is a species of bird endemic to the Hawaiian Islands. The nene is exclusively found in the wild on the islands of Oahu, Maui, Kauai, Molokai, and Hawaii. In 195 ...

from the brink of extinction in the 1950s.

Nature reserves

The WWT has over 200,000 members and ten reserves with visitor centres. Together these cover over 20 km², and support over 150,000 birds. They receive over one million visitors per year. The reserves include seven SSSIs (

site of Special Scientific Interest A Site of Special Scientific Interest (SSSI) in Great Britain or an Area of Special Scientific Interest (ASSI) in the Isle of Man and Northern Ireland is a conservation designation denoting a protected area in the United Kingdom and Isle of ...

), five SPAs ( Special Protection Areas) and five

Ramsar site A Ramsar site is a wetland site designated to be of international importance under the Ramsar Convention,8 ha (O) *** Permanent 8 ha (P) *** Seasonal Intermittent < 8 ha(Ts) **

WWT Arundel WWT Arundel is one of ten wildfowl and wetland nature reserves managed by the Wildfowl and Wetlands Trust, a nature conservation charity in the United Kingdom. The reserve is situated at the foot of the Offham Hangar, a part of the Arun valley ...

, West Sussex *

WWT Caerlaverock WWT Caerlaverock is wetland nature reserve in southwest Scotland, one of nine reserves in Britain operated by the Wildfowl and Wetlands Trust founded by Sir Peter Scott. It covers a site at Eastpark Farm, on the north shore of the Solway Firth ...

Dumfries and Galloway Dumfries and Galloway ( sco, Dumfries an Gallowa; gd, Dùn Phrìs is Gall-Ghaidhealaibh) is one of 32 unitary council areas of Scotland and is located in the western Southern Uplands. It covers the counties of Scotland, historic counties of ...

Scotland Scotland (, ) is a country that is part of the United Kingdom. Covering the northern third of the island of Great Britain, mainland Scotland has a border with England to the southeast and is otherwise surrounded by the Atlantic Ocean to the ...

(the only centre with accommodation) * WWT Castle Espie, County Down, Northern Ireland * WWT London Wetland Centre *

WWT Llanelli Wetlands Centre WWT Llanelli Wetland Centre at Llanelli, Carmarthenshire, Wales is one of ten wetland nature reserves in the UK managed by the Wildfowl and Wetlands Trust, a nature conservation charity. The visitor centre has accessible toilets, a coffee shop ...

, Carmarthenshire, Wales * WWT Martin Mere, Lancashire *

WWT Slimbridge WWT Slimbridge is a wetland Nature reserve, wildlife reserve near Slimbridge in Gloucestershire, England. It is midway between Bristol and Gloucester on the eastern side of the estuary of the River Severn. The reserve, set up by the artist and ...

, Gloucestershire * WWT Steart, Somerset *

WWT Washington WWT Washington Wetland Centre is a wetland reserve managed by the Wildfowl and Wetlands Trust at Washington, Tyne and Wear, North East England. Established in 1975, its wildlife includes swans, geese, ducks, a family of Asian short clawed otte ...

, Tyne and Wear *

WWT Welney Welney is a village and civil parish in the Fens of England, and the county of Norfolk. The village is about south-west of the town of Downham Market, south of the town of King's Lynn and west of the city of Norwich. The county boundary wit ...

, Norfolk

Consultancy

WWT also operates a consultancy business that provides external clients with a comprehensive range of wetland services. These include ecological survey and assessment, habitat design and management, visitor centre planning and design, and wetland treatment systems.

Organisation

The Wildfowl & Wetlands Trust is a

registered charity A charitable organization or charity is an organization whose primary objectives are philanthropy and social well-being (e.g. educational, religious or other activities serving the public interest or common good). The legal definition of a ch ...

in England and Scotland.

Martin Spray Martin may refer to: Places * Martin City (disambiguation) * Martin County (disambiguation) * Martin Township (disambiguation) Antarctica * Martin Peninsula, Marie Byrd Land * Port Martin, Adelie Land * Point Martin, South Orkney Islands Austral ...

has been chief executive WWT since March 2004. In December 2012, he was appointed

CBE The Most Excellent Order of the British Empire is a British order of chivalry, rewarding contributions to the arts and sciences, work with charitable and welfare organisations, and public service outside the civil service. It was established o ...

References

External links