People at a wetlands centre in south west Wales got stuck in the mud this weekend to celebrate the natural resource.

Wales' first mud festival was staged at the centre in Penclacwydd near Llanelli on Saturday and Sunday.

Children were offered a fun environment

Demonstrations of the importance of mud and its many uses were held with events such as mud wrestling, mud safaris and mud masks.

The organisers hoped the unique event would help people appreciate the significance of mud to the ecology of the south west Wales coastline.

Marketing manager Sarah Robinson said: "Mud is arguably one of the most undervalued and forgotten environmental resources.

"The aim of this festival was to communicate its importance in a fun and interesting way."

Events organised included a muddy tug-of-war and a dinner featuring mud wrestling.

We scheduled some wild and wacky evens for this mud festival

Organiser, Sarah Robinson

Cosmetics displays and demonstrations involving mud took place throughout the weekend.

There was also a celebration of the foods that could be derived from local wetlands including watercress, seaweed, lava bread and cockles.

On a scientific level there was a series of talks on why mud is such a vital component within the ecology of local wetlands.

Dragonfly

Mud safaris were run out on to the estuary to find out more about the wonders of mud.

Organisers did warn those attending that they should come prepared for being muddy.

The National Wetlands Centre Wales in Penclacwydd, Llanelli is one of nine centres in Britain and Ireland run by The Wildfowl and Wetlands Trust (WWT).

Its newest feature is the Millennium wetland complex, home to wildlife as diverse as dragonfly and Little Egret.