Wildfowl and Wetlands Trust
Encyclopedia
Wetland
A wetland is an area of land whose soil is saturated with water either permanently or seasonally. Wetlands are categorised by their characteristic vegetation, which is adapted to these unique soil conditions....
conservation
Conservation movement
The conservation movement, also known as nature conservation, is a political, environmental and a social movement that seeks to protect natural resources including animal, fungus and plant species as well as their habitat for the future....
charity
Charitable organization
A charitable organization is a type of non-profit organization . It differs from other types of NPOs in that it centers on philanthropic goals A charitable organization is a type of non-profit organization (NPO). It differs from other types of NPOs in that it centers on philanthropic goals A...
in the United Kingdom
United Kingdom
The United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern IrelandIn the United Kingdom and Dependencies, other languages have been officially recognised as legitimate autochthonous languages under the European Charter for Regional or Minority Languages...
. Its patron is Queen Elizabeth II
Elizabeth II of the United Kingdom
Elizabeth II is the constitutional monarch of 16 sovereign states known as the Commonwealth realms: the United Kingdom, Canada, Australia, New Zealand, Jamaica, Barbados, the Bahamas, Grenada, Papua New Guinea, the Solomon Islands, Tuvalu, Saint Lucia, Saint Vincent and the Grenadines, Belize,...
.
It was founded in 1946 by the ornithologist
Ornithology
Ornithology is a branch of zoology that concerns the study of birds. Several aspects of ornithology differ from related disciplines, due partly to the high visibility and the aesthetic appeal of birds...
and artist
Artist
An artist is a person engaged in one or more of any of a broad spectrum of activities related to creating art, practicing the arts and/or demonstrating an art. The common usage in both everyday speech and academic discourse is a practitioner in the visual arts only...
Sir Peter Scott
Peter Scott
Sir Peter Markham Scott, CH, CBE, DSC and Bar, MID, FRS, FZS, was a British ornithologist, conservationist, painter, naval officer and sportsman....
, initially as the Severn Wildfowl Trust. It has over 200,000 members and nine reserves with visitor centres, together covering over 20 km² which support over 150,000 birds and receive over one million visitors per year.
The sites include seven SSSIs (site of Special Scientific Interest
Site of Special Scientific Interest
A Site of Special Scientific Interest is a conservation designation denoting a protected area in the United Kingdom. SSSIs are the basic building block of site-based nature conservation legislation and most other legal nature/geological conservation designations in Great Britain are based upon...
), five SPAs (Special Protection Area
Special Protection Area
A Special Protection Area or SPA is a designation under the European Union Directive on the Conservation of Wild Birds.Under the Directive, Member States of the European Union have a duty to safeguard the habitats of migratory birds and certain particularly threatened birds.Together with Special...
s) and five Ramsar sites.
- WWT ArundelWWT ArundelWWT Arundel is one of nine wildfowl and wetland nature reserves managed by the Wildfowl and Wetlands Trust, a nature conservation charity in the United Kingdom...
, West SussexWest SussexWest Sussex is a county in the south of England, bordering onto East Sussex , Hampshire and Surrey. The county of Sussex has been divided into East and West since the 12th century, and obtained separate county councils in 1888, but it remained a single ceremonial county until 1974 and the coming... - WWT CaerlaverockWWT CaerlaverockWWT 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....
, Dumfries and GallowayDumfries and GallowayDumfries and Galloway is one of 32 unitary council areas of Scotland. It was one of the nine administrative 'regions' of mainland Scotland created in 1975 by the Local Government etc. Act 1973...
, ScotlandScotlandScotland is a country that is part of the United Kingdom. Occupying the northern third of the island of Great Britain, it shares a border with England to the south and is bounded by the North Sea to the east, the Atlantic Ocean to the north and west, and the North Channel and Irish Sea to the...
(the only centre with accommodation) - WWT Castle EspieWWT Castle EspieCastle Espie is a wetland reserve managed by the Wildfowl and Wetlands Trust on the banks of Strangford Lough, three miles south of Comber, County Down, Northern Ireland. It is part of the Strangford Lough Ramsar Site. It provides an early wintering site for almost the entire Nearctic population...
, County DownCounty Down-Cities:*Belfast *Newry -Large towns:*Dundonald*Newtownards*Bangor-Medium towns:...
, Northern IrelandNorthern IrelandNorthern Ireland is one of the four countries of the United Kingdom. Situated in the north-east of the island of Ireland, it shares a border with the Republic of Ireland to the south and west... - WWT London Wetlands CentreWWT London Wetlands CentreWWT London Wetland Centre is a wetland reserve managed by the Wildfowl and Wetlands Trust in the Barnes area of the London Borough of Richmond upon Thames, by Barn Elms....
- WWT National Wetlands CentreWWT National Wetlands CentreWWT National Wetlands Centre is one of nine wetland nature reserves managed by the Wildfowl and Wetlands Trust, a nature conservation charity.-Location:...
, CarmarthenshireCarmarthenshireCarmarthenshire is a unitary authority in the south west of Wales and one of thirteen historic counties. It is the 3rd largest in Wales. Its three largest towns are Llanelli, Carmarthen and Ammanford...
, WalesWalesWales is a country that is part of the United Kingdom and the island of Great Britain, bordered by England to its east and the Atlantic Ocean and Irish Sea to its west. It has a population of three million, and a total area of 20,779 km²... - WWT Martin MereWWT Martin MereWWT Martin Mere is a wetland nature reserve managed by the Wildfowl and Wetlands Trust at Tarlscough, Burscough, Lancashire, England, on the West Lancashire Coastal Plain, from Ormskirk and from Southport...
, LancashireLancashireLancashire is a non-metropolitan county of historic origin in the North West of England. It takes its name from the city of Lancaster, and is sometimes known as the County of Lancaster. Although Lancaster is still considered to be the county town, Lancashire County Council is based in Preston... - WWT SlimbridgeWWT SlimbridgeWWT Slimbridge is a wetland reserve managed by the Wildfowl and Wetlands Trust at Slimbridge, Gloucestershire, England. Slimbridge is halfway between Bristol and Gloucester on the estuary of the river Severn. The reserve was the first WWT centre to be opened, on 10 November 1946, thanks to the...
, GloucestershireGloucestershireGloucestershire is a county in South West England. The county comprises part of the Cotswold Hills, part of the flat fertile valley of the River Severn, and the entire Forest of Dean.... - WWT WashingtonWWT WashingtonWWT Washington is a wetland reserve managed by the Wildfowl and Wetlands Trust at Washington, Tyne and Wear, North East England. The site is part of James Steel Park....
, Tyne and WearTyne and WearTyne and Wear is a metropolitan county in north east England around the mouths of the Rivers Tyne and Wear. It came into existence as a metropolitan county in 1974 after the passage of the Local Government Act 1972... - WWT Welney, CambridgeshireCambridgeshireCambridgeshire is a county in England, bordering Lincolnshire to the north, Norfolk to the northeast, Suffolk to the east, Essex and Hertfordshire to the south, and Bedfordshire and Northamptonshire to the west...
WWT also operates a consultancy business called WWT Consulting 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.
See also
- Conservation in the United KingdomConservation in the United KingdomThis page gives an overview of the complex structure of environmental and cultural conservation in the United Kingdom.With the advent of devolved government for Scotland, Wales and Northern Ireland and of evolving regional government for England, the responsibilities for environment and...
- List of Conservation topics
- Ramsar ConventionRamsar ConventionThe Ramsar Convention is an international treaty for the conservation and sustainable utilization of wetlands, i.e., to stem the progressive encroachment on and loss of wetlands now and in the future, recognizing the fundamental ecological functions of wetlands and their economic, cultural,...
- Wetlands InternationalWetlands InternationalWetlands International is a global organisation that works to sustain and restore wetlands and their resources for people and biodiversity. It is an independent, not-for-profit, global organisation, supported by government and NGO membership from around the world...
- Malcolm OgilvieMalcolm OgilvieDr Malcolm A. Ogilvie is a British ornithologist and freelance natural history author and consultant. One of his areas of expertise is wildfowl....