What’s the trick to counting flocks of birds?
Volunteers and staff will spend this Monday, November 21, spotting and recording the hundreds of waterbirds that migrate to WWT Arundel in winter.
Staff and visitors at all nine WWT wetland reserves will be taking part in the annual Wetland Bird Survey to count the numbers of different species, identify the sites they use and any changes in their populations.
Many of the birds being counted will have flown thousands of miles from breeding sites in the Russian and Canadian Arctic, Greenland and Iceland. WWT reserves offer protection and food, give the birds chance to recover from their long flights and prepare themselves for their return migration in spring.
Britain’s long coastlines and protected inland sites make it a critically important region for birds in winter. The information gathered from the survey will help direct conservation effort to species most in need.
