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Julia Newth is a wildlife health research officer at WWT and has been involved with monitoring the 300 or so wild Bewick's swans that spend their winter at Slimbridge, for four years.
The Bewick's swan study was started in February 1964 by Sir Peter Scott, when the first wild Bewick's swans were attracted to a lake in the Rushy Pen at Slimbridge. Peter and his family took a very close interest in the swans. By drawing each swan's bill pattern (which is unique to each individual), a detailed study of the species began which continues to this day, making it one of the longest running research projects of any single species in the world!
Julia's winter months at Slimbridge are spent identifying the swans by their bill patterns as they arrive. Once the individuals are identified and named, the behaviour and movements of each can then be closely studied on site. The Bewick's swans are particularly special in that they have great winter site fidelity and so over half of the swans that visit Slimbridge each winter are known to have visited us before.
It is always exciting to see who will be arriving next and whether they have brought any cygnets with them. Some of our swans are also ringed which enables us to track them on their Autumn and Spring migrations to and from arctic Russia. It is always lovely to receive news of old swan friends in foreign lands as they progress on their 3,000 km journeys!
