Crane population steadily increasing in British wetlands Posted on 29 April 2020 As a result of habitat restoration and re-introduction, the crane is slowly starting to flourish once again in Britain’s wetlands. The cranes are the tallest birds in the UK and stand at 1.2 metres. For 400 years these cranes were absent as a breeding bird. This was a direct result of hunting and wetland drainage, according to the BBC. Across the UK in Scotland, the Fens, Gloucestershire, Wales and Suffolk, there are roughly 200 breeding pairs. Their recovery has been a slow process with only one additional breeding pair recorded between 2018 and 2019. In Britain during the Middle Ages, cranes were believed to be common and widely dispersed breeding birds. Chrissie Kelley from the Pensthorpe Conservation Trust in Norfolk, told the BBC that sightings of the birds have been rewarding. ‘We are thrilled to see wild cranes doing so well. Seeing these birds in flight is breath-taking and we have regular sightings of them over our reserve.’ There is hope that the population will increase at a faster pace as second-generation chicks will reach breeding age and the fertility of the current birds improve, according to the The Royal Society for the Protection of Birds. Damon Bridge, from UK Crane Working Group, said to the BBC that the population increase is representative of nature’s resilience. ‘The increase of cranes over the last few years shows just how resilient nature can be when given the chance. They are not yet out of the woods, but their continued population climb year-after-year is a very positive sign.’ View this post on Instagram Common cranes (Grus grus) haven’t been in the UK for long with only 150 wintering pairs! • • • • #commoncrane #ukcranes #lakenheathfen #RBA #rarebirdalert #amber #lakenheathphotographer #lakenheathcranes #thefens #thebrecks #norfolk #suffolk #canonphotography #lumixphotography #nikonphotography #22mm #1200mm #giantbirds A post shared by Wilum Johnston (@wilumjohnston_photography) on Feb 18, 2020 at 10:55am PST View this post on Instagram A post shared by University of Exeter News (@uniofexeternews) on Jul 17, 2018 at 5:50am PDT Image: Instagram/ @uniofexeternews Related Posts The Lady in the Landy: Carla Geyser 7 February 2023 "We cannot sit back and wait for a miracle to happen; every one of us... read more 88 countries agree on shark fin regulation in historic vote 22 November 2022 Panama was host to CITES in November 2022. For the first time in history, 88... read more The big question after Plett’s fatal shark attack: Why? 27 September 2022 By now, we know that sharks are not the mindless killing machines that horror movies... read more PREV ARTICLE NEXT ARTICLE
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