News
An unusual story about our swans
Over the winter at WWT Martin Mere Wetland Centre we get lots of fantastic stories about the incredible journeys of our Whooper swans that visit us over the winter, but few as unique as the following story. Over the summer, our Species Monitoring Assistan
6 January 2015
Developments to start the next 40 years
A conservation silent auction has begun at WWT Martin Mere Wetland Centre to raise money for a new Swan Link Discovery hide in 2015. The current swan link hide was built in the 80s and at its time was the longest hide in Europe, allowing over 100 people t
29 December 2014
Meet Steve, another long term member of staff
How long have you worked at Martin Mere? I’ve been at Martin Mere for 17 years, the first 2 as a volunteer. What was the first job you did? On my first day, I put sticky labels on envelopes in publicity. Being indoors didn’t really suit me, though
23 December 2014
Sigrunn the Swan Scientist
Like many of our named whooper swans, Sigrunn has been a regular visitor to Martin Mere over the years. He was first caught in December 2002, as an adult, and was given a plastic darvic ring on his right leg with the number LP7, to enable him to be spotte
19 December 2014
The ring binder that shaped conservation as we know it
New insights into the origins of conservation and how we classify endangered species New details have emerged at the Wildfowl & Wetlands Trust (WWT) about how the global system for classifying endangered species - which forms the bedrock for modern co
12 December 2014
Meet Belinda who has been here 18 years
How long have you worked at Martin Mere? I will have worked here for 18 years next April – I started in 1997 at the age of 16. What was the first job you did? I worked in the cafe in a part time job while I was at college. I did everything from was
5 December 2014
A welcome to Mike Dilger
It was the North West Bird Watching Festival last weekend. We have hosted this event for 15 years and every year we enjoy meeting new guest speakers. This year we were joined by Mike Dilger and he had some lovely comments to say abou the centre. "This yea
24 November 2014
Pintail numbers over 40 years
Every winter thousands of Whooper swans and Pink-footed geese descend on WWT Martin Mere to use the reserve as a safe haven, but there are also thousands of ducks that come and spend the winter at the wetland centre. Each year thousands of shelduck, pinta
11 November 2014
Its beaver catch time again
Beavers were the first mammal we kept at Martin Mere and they arrived in 2007. Every year we have to catch them up to check on their health and this allows us to tell you all about their weight and habits. Over the last two nights we have started doing
5 November 2014
Virginia – International swan of mystery...
Virginia (VJA) has perhaps one of the most interesting life stories of all our swans. She was first caught on 15th December 1993 as an adult, right here at Martin Mere. She was seen around the reserve up until 9th of January 1994, but then did something a
3 November 2014
How to construct a log cabin
The first thing most people notice on arriving at Martin Mere is the slightly unusual nature of our Visitor Centre. With its turf roof and low profile, the centre was designed specifically to blend into the landscape – unlike many buildings of the 60s a
27 October 2014
Memories of 40 years
We are asking our visitors to tell us their favourite memories of the last 40 years at Martin Mere. Below are some of the memories we have recieved - please complete a potcard next time you are at the centre.
24 October 2014
The life and times of Cynthia the goose
Cynthia was a much loved doyenne of Martin Mere who welcomed visitors to the centre and enjoyed conducting the occasional tour around the grounds. She celebrated her birthday with a Duke, and after her death she was much mourned by staff and visitors alik
20 October 2014
Our volunteer: Bett Leech
Meet Bett, our volunteer who has been here over 20 years. How long have you worked at Martin Mere? Just over 23 years, now. What was the first job you did? I started in the education department, and on my first day I had to type up a report, and th
17 October 2014
Incredible journeys of our geese
Looking out across a field full of 45000 geese, it can be difficult to imagine how our researchers are able to pick out individual birds and track their movements during their migration, but with the help of light but highly visible plastic neck rings, we
14 October 2014