News
Duck adapting to climate change twice as well in EU protected areas
The smew – a rare but striking winter visitor to the UK – is doing twice as well within areas protected by EU wildlife laws as they spread northeast across Europe in response to climate change, according to a new study. Scientists studied data from w
26 January 2015
Boom year for cygnets at Martin Mere in 2015
The International Swan census has been in active since 1995 and takes place every five years to compile the numbers of both Bewick and Whooper swans and to give an estimation of their population. The survey incorporates census numbers compiled from Briti
21 January 2015
Silent Auction Ending Soon
The Silent Auction to raise money for the development of the new Swan Link Hide is coming to an end on the 31st January. Don't miss out on your opportunity to grab a bargain before the gavel finally comes down at the end of the month. if you would like to
20 January 2015
Meet Martin Mere's young volunteer of the year!
This is Abi Hayes who has been volunteering at Martin Mere since she was 16. She is just one of a group of young people who help out with family activities at weekends. Abi has proved to be ...a brilliant volunteer, showing her enthusiasm and commitment w
15 January 2015
Artwork in our silent auction
Martin Mere currently has a silent auction in progress to help raise money for the Swan Link hide development. Don'y worry if you can't get to the centre before it finishes on 31 January - below is a selection of photographs of the auction (more to foll
7 January 2015
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