Latest news with #storks
BBC News
13-06-2025
- General
- BBC News
Storks soar over Devon again after '600 years'
Storks have made a "phenomenal" return to Devon after centuries of being extinct in the white storks have been released from a privately owned farm in north Devon as a result of a long-term rewilding and species recovery project. Dorette Engi, who owns the farm, said those watching "all had their breath taken away" when the 10 storks flew free for the first stopped breeding in Britain 600 years ago due to hunting and habitat loss. 'Extraordinary' Mrs Engi and her children have spent several years rewilding her land, which now includes recreated wetlands, mixed grasslands and restored storks were raised in two large aviaries at the site, which forms part of a growing network of satellite locations developed by the Keep It Wild storks released in north Devon are not tracked with GPS, but early signs suggest they are staying close, building their strength and confidence before migrating abroad."It's extraordinary. These birds haven't lived freely here in over 600 years, yet as soon as they were given the choice, they stepped out into the landscape like it had always been theirs," she storks are expected to leave in August and fly through France to Spain. The hope is they will stay in Europe until they pair up and will then return to Devon where they were born, as long as there is a colony to come back to. In order to achieve this Mrs Engi is planning to get two breeding pairs of flightless storks as an anchor to create a colony and attract them back in. She said: "It's a dangerous journey but I hope they have a good time and enjoy their Spanish holiday." "I'm Swiss - there are storks everywhere - so for me they are a little bit part of the landscape," she said."We all look up and stop whatever we're doing. They're beautiful."She said the release was "phenomenal" and "it was completely unexpected how nerve-wracking" it Viney, director at Keep It Wild, said: "My hope is that more and more landowners will see these magnificent birds and be able to reimagine the land in their stewardship, into one where we can all thrive."
BBC News
07-06-2025
- General
- BBC News
Storks migrate back to conservation project at Knepp estate
Storks born in England have successfully returned home after migrating to White Stork Project, launched in 2016, releases young storks at the Knepp estate in West Sussex and Wadhurst Park in East Sussex to encourage the birds to later return there to least six birds born at Knepp in 2024 returned to nest in the colony, including one who has set up home in the same tree as her parents, according to project officer Laura estate owner Isabella Tree said the estate's storks were "interacting with wild birds and bringing wild birds back with them as pairs". Storks stopped breeding in Britain centuries ago due to hunting and habitat now living at Knepp had given birth to more than a dozen fledglings by May and about 40 more were expected in 2025. The project began reintroducing storks to southern England in 2016 by taking on rescued, non-flying birds from Warsaw Zoo, in Poland, breeding them at Cotswold Wildlife Park, then releasing their young in Polish storks, some of which have injuries that mean they can fly short distances but not migrate, live in or around a fox-proof enclosure at Knepp, breeding and establishing the founding colonies that will attract other ground-nesting storks are hand-fed pieces of fish to supplement food their parents can source in the storks' success at Knepp showed that "sort the habitat out, the soils, insects, healthy water systems, and then your storks will come eventually," Ms Vaughan-Hirsch said."We all see the white stork as a big charismatic species but what it really is, is an emblem for nature recovery."The landscape at Knepp has undergone rewilding since 2000, converting agricultural land into scrub, disturbed ground and are also areas of woodland, the nearby river has been restored to a more natural state, and reintroduced beavers in an enclosure have turned a small stream into insect-filled Tree added: "What are we are seeing is that even species that don't have a reputation as being keystone species have an effect on ecosystems."They are doing extraordinary things that we had never really known about." Additional reporting by PA Media.
