Swans named after Olympic stars at Slimbridge
STAFF at the Wild Fowl and Wetlands Trust bird sanctuary at Slimbridge has named a group of rare swans after some of the region’s Olympic greats.
The five young Bewick’s swans which have made Slimbridge their winter home have been named after Zara Philips MBE, Alex Gregory MBE, Zac Purchase MBE, Ed Clancy MBE and Peter Reed MBE.
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The family of Bewick's swans have been named after Olympic heroes
Rower Zac Purchase said he was “delighted” to lend his name to one of the rare birds.
“As a rower I spend a lot of time outdoors so really appreciate the natural world. I’m delighted to have one of these special wild swans named after me and hope he lives a long and healthy life,” he said.
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Throughout their lives the swans Zara, Alex, Zac, Ed and Peter will need to demonstrate incredible feats of endurance on their epic annual migrations between their wintering grounds at Slimbridge and Arctic Russia, so staff felt it was fitting to name them after the sport stars as a tribute.
Julia Newth, swan expert at Slimbridge, said: “Some of the swans on the lake have flown more than 100,000 miles in their lifetime. They are incredible birds with amazing levels of endurance and an ambition to survive in often quite hostile environments with threats of predation and hunting.
“We were amazed by the achievements of team GB and loved reading about the competitors, particularly the ones with local links, so thought this would be a nice tribute to their achievements in reaching the Olympics and how well they did.
“Watching the Bewick’s swans arrive and feed at Slimbridge is a fantastic experience for families introducing their children to nature. We are working hard to protect this beautiful animal for many years to come.”
The public can see the swans up close during commentated feeds at 4pm each day until the end of this month. Over the next fortnight the Bewick’s swans will start to head off to their summer breeding grounds on the Tundra.
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