Cranes make comeback in Britain's wetlands

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The graceful crane - the tallest bird in the UK - is making a comeback into Britain’s wetlands thanks to re-introduction and habitat restoration.

It was absent as a breeding bird for 400 years because of wetland drainage and widespread hunting.

Now, an estimated 200 of them are dispersed in Wales, Scotland, the Fens, Suffolk and Gloucestershire.

The crane is thought to have been a common breeding bird in Britain during the Middle Ages. English place names with the prefix ”cran”, such as Cranfield in Bedfordshire, refer to areas frequented by the birds.

A small number of wild cranes returned to Norfolk county in East Anglia in 1979, and work by conservation groups to improve wetland habitat for them has seen them spread to other areas of the country.

Chrissie Kelley, from the Pensthorpe Conservation Trust in Norfolk, said: “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.”

“They are not yet out of the woods, but their continued population climb year-after-year is a very positive sign.”

S: https://www.bbc.com/news/science-environment-52384853, https://www.breakingnews.ie/discover/crane-comeback-continues-in-the-uk-as-population-reaches-400-year-high-995434.html

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The earth is healing, we are the virus