Welcome to our Icelandic Visitors!
We're excited at the moment at the National Wetlands Centre Wales in Llanelli as six Whooper Swans have arrived, having travelled along a treacherous journey all the way from Iceland.
So why not come along to the reserve and welcome our Icelandic visitors, join the Wildfowl and Wetlands Trust wardens and follow a feed or simply relaxe and observe the Whooper swans from the Observatory. It's a special hide looking out onto a lagoon that's home to a wide range of birds including herons, black headed gulls as well as nine resident Whooper swans.
The Whoopers have joined us for the winter from Iceland, as they've done for the past seven years. They'll stay with us until early March before heading back to their summer breeding grounds. When visiting the reserve you'll notice that three of the swans are grey - these are this years cygnets that travelled with their parents on the treacherous 500 mile journey from Iceland to Scotland before making their way down here to Llanelli.
Although the January 2000 winter survey recorded just under 21,000 Whoopers in Britain and Ireland, only about 20 reach South Wales every year so we reasonably feel proud of our visitors here at the Wetlands Centre.
There's every reason why the population should increase here at Llanelli over the next few years. Whooper Swans are site-faithful birds, meaning they'll return to the same wintering grounds year after year - this year's young in turn bringing their cygnets with them. The lagoon is a safe place with a plentiful supply of food and the resident Whooper Swan family seem to attract them in and help them feel relaxed.
What can we do to help the Whoopers?
The Whooper Swan is protected from hunting but there are still threats to its breeding habitat both through land drainage and the creation of hydroelectric reservoirs in Iceland. There may be some casualties as a result of bad weather during migration too. Once over land the main cause of death appears to be collision with overhead wires.
See the swans for yourself!
The National Wetlands Centre Wales is just 15 minutes from Swansea and 1 hour from Cardiff, on a unique site stretching over 550 acres. Situated on the Burry Inlet, we have a beautiful mosaic of lakes, pools and lagoons which are home to countless wild species as diverse as dragonfly and little egret. There are also over a thousand ducks, geese, swans and flamingos to admire as you wander through landscaped pathways and beautiful water gardens.
The Wildfowl and Wetlands Trust studies swan populations to investigate underlying reasons for population change. This helps us advise on management and site protection so that the population of Whooper Swans wintering in Britain can be safeguarded for years to come.
The Trust's innovative centre at Llanelli is the only centre of its kind in Wales. It's at the forefront of Wetland conservation and by visiting us you will be helping wildlife conservation as well as supporting the important work of the Wildfowl & Wetlands Trust, both in the UK and internationally. To find out more about our work, visit our website by clicking here.
The combination of beautiful surroundings, panoramic views and easy access from the M4 (only 4 miles away) makes us the ideal venue to visit. The Centre's open year-round - click here to find out more!
Wetland Whoopers!
