WWT Washington
Encyclopedia
WWT 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.
Established in 1975 its wildlife includes swan
s, geese
, duck
s, and a growing flock of Chilean Flamingo
s. WWT works towards the conservation of wetlands and have a successful breeding program for some of the worlds most endangered wildfowl.
Outside the main park there is a nature reserve with many hides to watch the wildlife in their natural environment, some dragonfly lakes in which many large species of dragonfly live along with newts, frogs and toads.
The park sells bags of seed which can be used to get an up-close and personal encounter with most of their birds whilst feeding them, many of the birds will happily feed out of the hand and allow you to touch them.
The park holds the following species:
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....
reserve managed by the Wildfowl and Wetlands Trust
Wildfowl and Wetlands Trust
The Wildfowl & Wetlands Trust is a wildfowl and wetland conservation charity in the United Kingdom. Its patron is Queen Elizabeth II.It was founded in 1946 by the ornithologist and artist Sir Peter Scott, initially as the Severn Wildfowl Trust...
at Washington
Washington, Tyne and Wear
Washington is a town in the City of Sunderland in Tyne and Wear, England. Historically part of County Durham, it joined a new county in 1974 with the creation of Tyne and Wear...
, Tyne and Wear
Tyne and Wear
Tyne 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...
, North East England
North East England
North East England is one of the nine official regions of England. It covers Northumberland, County Durham, Tyne and Wear, and Teesside . The only cities in the region are Durham, Newcastle upon Tyne and Sunderland...
. The site is part of James Steel Park.
Established in 1975 its wildlife includes swan
Swan
Swans, genus Cygnus, are birds of the family Anatidae, which also includes geese and ducks. Swans are grouped with the closely related geese in the subfamily Anserinae where they form the tribe Cygnini. Sometimes, they are considered a distinct subfamily, Cygninae...
s, geese
Goose
The word goose is the English name for a group of waterfowl, belonging to the family Anatidae. This family also includes swans, most of which are larger than true geese, and ducks, which are smaller....
, duck
Duck
Duck is the common name for a large number of species in the Anatidae family of birds, which also includes swans and geese. The ducks are divided among several subfamilies in the Anatidae family; they do not represent a monophyletic group but a form taxon, since swans and geese are not considered...
s, and a growing flock of Chilean Flamingo
Flamingo
Flamingos or flamingoes are gregarious wading birds in the genus Phoenicopterus , the only genus in the family Phoenicopteridae...
s. WWT works towards the conservation of wetlands and have a successful breeding program for some of the worlds most endangered wildfowl.
Outside the main park there is a nature reserve with many hides to watch the wildlife in their natural environment, some dragonfly lakes in which many large species of dragonfly live along with newts, frogs and toads.
The park sells bags of seed which can be used to get an up-close and personal encounter with most of their birds whilst feeding them, many of the birds will happily feed out of the hand and allow you to touch them.
The park holds the following species:
- Hawaiian GooseHawaiian GooseThe Nene, also known as Nēnē and Hawaiian Goose, is a species of goose endemic to the Hawaiian Islands. The official bird of the state of Hawaii, the Nene is exclusively found in the wild on the islands of Maui, Kauai and Hawaii...
- Baer's PochardBaer's PochardBaer's Pochard is a diving duck found in eastern Asia. It breeds in southeast Russia and northeast China, migrating in winter to southern China, Vietnam, Japan, and India. The name commemorates the Estonian naturalist Karl Ernst von Baer.At 41–46 cm, it is similar in size and stance to its...
- Ringed TealRinged TealThe Ringed Teal is a small duck of South American forests. It is the only species of the genus Callonetta...
- EiderEiderEiders are large seaducks in the genus Somateria. Steller's Eider, despite its name, is in a different genus.The three extant species all breed in the cooler latitudes of the Northern hemisphere....
- Common CraneCommon CraneThe Common Crane , also known as the Eurasian Crane, is a bird of the family Gruidae, the cranes.It is a large, stately bird and a medium-sized crane at 100–130 cm long, with a 180–240 cm wingspan and a weight of 4.5–6 kg...
- Chilean FlamingoChilean FlamingoThe Chilean Flamingo is a large species closely related to Caribbean Flamingo and Greater Flamingo, with which it was sometimes considered conspecific...
- Andean GooseAndean GooseThe Andean Goose, Chloephaga melanoptera, is a member of the duck, goose and swan family Anatidae. It is in the shelduck subfamily Tadorninae.It is resident around lakes and marshes in the high Andes, usually well above 3000 m...
- White-faced Whistling DuckWhite-faced Whistling DuckThe White-faced Whistling Duck, Dendrocygna viduata, is a whistling duck which breeds in sub-Saharan Africa and much of South America.This species is gregarious, and at favoured sites, the flocks of a thousand or more birds arriving at dawn are an impressive sight...
- Red-breasted GooseRed-breasted GooseThe Red-breasted Goose is an endangered species of goose in the genus Branta. It is sometimes separated in Rufibrenta but appears close enough to the Brent Goose to make this unnecessary, despite its distinct appearance.- Description :All the species of the Branta genus are distinguished by their...
- Mute SwanMute SwanThe Mute Swan is a species of swan, and thus a member of the duck, goose and swan family Anatidae. It is native to much of Europe and Asia, and the far north of Africa. It is also an introduced species in North America, Australasia and southern Africa. The name 'mute' derives from it being less...
- Black SwanBlack SwanThe Black Swan is a large waterbird, a species of swan, which breeds mainly in the southeast and southwest regions of Australia. The species was hunted to extinction in New Zealand, but later reintroduced. Within Australia they are nomadic, with erratic migration patterns dependent upon climatic...
- Black Necked Swan
- Spur-winged GooseSpur-winged GooseThe Spur-winged Goose is a large bird in the family Anatidae, related to the geese and the shelducks, but distinct from both of these in a number of anatomical features, and therefore treated in its own subfamily, the Plectropterinae...