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November 10, 2008
WWT Martin Mere welcomes a record brood of swans
A pair of whooper swans have flown into WWT Martin Mere with a record number of nine cygnets.
Three of the cygnets are slightly lighter in colour, which suggest that this is in fact two broods of six and three. The likelihood is that the smaller brood has been adopted as they could have lost their parents during the migration, which is not unusual in poor weather, and subsequently latched onto the family.
Whooper Swans, Martin Mere, copyright Mike Connell, courtesy Wildlife and Wetlands Trust
Centre manager Andy Wooldridge, said: "It is not completely unusual for swans to adopt cygnets that have been orphaned through the migration journey. The research undertaken at Martin Mere is starting to show this trend more and more, making this an invaluable source of information on the migration habits of these birds."
Whooper swans spend the breeding season in Iceland before flying over to winter in the UK, with Martin Mere welcoming approximately seven percent of the Icelandic population from November to March. A pair of whooper swans would usually expect to have three to four cygnets per year, and the cygnets could be as young as one month old when they make the migration journey.
Whooper swans tend to pair for life, and research is being undertaken at Martin Mere over the winter to ring the swans with their own identification numbers. It will then be possible to start building pictures of their family trees and migration habits every year. One of the parents of this brood, H3V, first visited Martin Mere in 2006, but his mate is currently unringed.
Visitors can currently experience a swan spectacular at Martin Mere everyday at 3pm and 3.30pm when the swans have their daily feed.
WWT Martin Mere is open every day from 9.30am to 5.00pm and parking is free of charge. Situated off the A59, it is signposted from the M61, M58 and M6. The centre is also accessible via the Southport to Manchester and the Liverpool to Preston line by train from Burscough Rail Stations. Visit the web site http://www.wwt.org.uk/visitus/4/visit_us.html to find out what's on all year round at Martin Mere and the other eight centres.
Posted by Surfbirds at November 10, 2008 1:59 PM
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