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Chester Zoo welcomes world's rarest Ducklings

Four rare white-winged ducklings have hatched at Chester Zoo. Credit: Chester Zoo

Four of the world's rarest Ducklings have hatched at Chester Zoo.

The white-winged ducks, which are classed as an endangered species, have been caught on camera enjoying a swim with their mum.

Experts fear that wild numbers may be as low as just 350 individuals - a result of widespread habitat destruction throughout South East Asia, where the ducks were once found in abundance.

  • White-wing Duck Facts
  • White-winged ducks were historically widely distributed from north-eastern India and Bangladesh, through South-East Asia to Sumatra and Java, Indonesia
  • The ducks live in stagnant or slow-flowing wetlands, within or adjacent to evergreen, deciduous or swamp forests. They depend on these areas for roosting and nesting, usually in tree-holes
  • Chester Zoo is one of the few institutions in Europe currently working with this Asian duck
  • The species is listed by the International Union for the Conservation of Nature (IUCN) as endangered. They are threatened due to widespread forest and wetland destruction.
Four rare white-winged ducklings have hatched at Chester Zoo. Credit: Chester Zoo