TV presenter’s nationwide nature quest
On 25 January TV naturalist Mike Dilger starts a nationwide tour to raise awareness and money for wetland conservation.
The quest will take in all nine Wildfowl & Wetlands Trust (WWT) centres across the U.K. in just nine days, with Mike visiting Castle Espie Wetland Centre, Co. Down on Tuesday 29th January.
Whilst visiting Castle Espie, Mike and a select team will undertake a search for Black-tailed Godwits. These elegant wading birds spend the winter in areas around our coastline with some going as far south as Portugal. During the spring and summer they then return to their breeding grounds in Iceland. The team at Castle Espie have thrown down the gauntlet for Mike to discover where these often elusive birds are and if possible to find birds that have coloured bands on their legs. These banded individuals will have been caught by teams of researchers in the UK, Ireland, and the Mediterranean and the data on each can be accessed to discover the bird’s movements. Not an easy task, but one which will give him a flavour of the wild and enchanting beauty of both Belfast and Strangford Lough.
To finish off his hectic one day visit, Mike will then be giving an informative and entertaining talk at Castle Espie at 7pm on his many wildlife adventures.
Speaking from the WWT headquarters at Slimbridge on the shores of the Severn Estuary, Mike said:
“Wetlands are amazing. At this time of year in the UK they are simply teeming with wildlife. So my mission is to encourage as many of you as possible to get outside and experience them for yourselves.
“And, as we build up to World Wetlands Day on 2 February, it is worth remembering that wetlands around the world and their wildlife are incredibly vulnerable. WWT works all around the world and is striving to secure a future for species such as the unique spoon-billed sandpiper, which has been driven to the brink of extinction by the misuse of wetlands on the other side of the world.
Mike’s talk starts at 7.00pm and is £10pp (including soft drink or glass of wine on arrival from 6.30pm). Booking is essential, to book please call 02891 874146 or email info.castleespie@wwt.org.uk
