Celebrity ducks due to land at Arundel Wetland Centre

A very different type of duck is landing at WWT Arundel Wetland Centre next month, thanks to the likes of Joanna Lumley, Michaela Strachan and Chris Packham.
WWT Celebratory Dusty Duck Trail Launch. Picture by Antony ThompsonWWT Celebratory Dusty Duck Trail Launch. Picture by Antony Thompson
WWT Celebratory Dusty Duck Trail Launch. Picture by Antony Thompson

The ‘Dusty Duck’ models, designed exclusively for the Wildfowl and Wetlands Trust (WWT) by Aardman studios and given a makeover by celebrities, will form a special trail from February 4 to March 5.

Joanna Lumley said she is ‘very proud’ of her Patsy Dusty Duck.

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“She’s absolutely fabulous! And what’s even better is that she and the other fab Dustys will help children fall in love with amazing wetland wildlife.”

Designs also include a Tiger inspired Dusty by CBBC presenters Sam and Mark, a ‘Sir Quackalot Dusty’ by Matthew Baynton (Horrible Histories) and Springwatch’s Chris Packham’s ‘Ziggy StarDusty’.

Chris said: “As vice president of WWT and a massive fan of the late, great David Bowie I’m very proud of Ziggy StarDusty – he’s a fine fellow. More importantly he and the other Dusty Ducks are an imaginative way to get the next generation engaged with nature and hopefully inspired to want to protect it for the future.”

In addition to following the Celebrity Dusty Duck Trail children are being offered a chance to ‘make a splash’ with the return of the ‘South East Puddle Jumping Championships’ between February 18-26.

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In a statement it explained: “Children will compete against each other to see who can produce the biggest splash from their puddle jump. They will also be judged on their enthusiasm and jumping style.”

Daily winners, from the competitions at 11am and 2:30pm, will then be announced throughout the half term.

Dave Fairlamb, Arundel Centre Manager said he was ‘thrilled’ to welcome the giant Dusty Ducks and that ‘they’ll look fantastic in amongst our real life wildlife’.

He added: “The trail and the puddle jumping contest are a great ways to get children out and about exploring nature while having the loads of fun.”

The Celebrity Dusty Duck trail and Southeast Puddle Jumping Championships activities are included in admission, along with a trip on the boat safari. More details at wwt.org.uk/arundel.

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