Wandering through the wetlands

The field teacher had his hands full dealing with 30 excited schoolchildren visiting the Ghadira Nature Reserve to mark World Wetlands Day on February 2. Let loose in the reserve, the neat line of twos quickly disintegrated as the children peered into bushes and pointed at plants and insects they recognised from their teachings.

When they arrived at the hides, the children were on their tip-toes to see the waders, including shellducks and moorhens, making their way through the water. The children's enthusiasm escalated with the sight of the flamingo, currently resident at the reserve.

The children remembered the teachers' advice on keeping quiet so that they wouldn't disturb the reserve's wildlife, until someone shouted out "chameleon".

The next five minutes involved the children jostling each other as they vied to get a picture of the little creature. Despite evident excitement, the children were careful to keep a visible distance between themselves and the chameleon. They didn't touch the reptile or any of the branches near it. The knowledge and ability to appreciate nature without causing any damage or disturbance is one of the key messages of environmental education programmes, like Dinja Wahda.

Each year, towards the beginning of February, government agencies and various groups from civil society take the opportunity to raise public awareness about the wetlands' ecological value. Wetlands are habitats rich in biodiversity and they play an important role in local and global ecosystems.

To celebrate World Wetlands Day, BirdLife Malta and Bank of Valletta, as part of the Dinja Wahda education programme, organised a special set of activities for children at the Ghadira and Is-Simar (Xemxija) nature reserves.

Both Ghadira and Is-Simar are internationally recognised Ramsar sites. The children visiting the reserves had the opportunity to learn about the importance of this rare and ever-decreasing habitat in Malta. The Ghadira reserve was once again attacked last Tuesday, when unknown individuals tried to set it alight.