The RSPB has
hand-raised chicks
for the first time
in a ground-breaking project to bring an endangered bird back from the brink of extinction.
Black-tailed godwits went extinct in the UK 100 years ago as humans built on the fens and stole their eggs, and until recently all that remained were a handful of lost birds which overshot on their migration route on the way to the Netherlands.
Now, there are over 150 godwits in the fens of Cambridgeshire and Norfolk with their population set to multiply many times over thanks to a new project from the RSPB and the Wildfowl and Wetlands Trust.
Eggs are taken from nests of breeding pairs, and taken to hatch in captivity. These chicks are hand-reared by experienced staff until they are strong enough to be released into the wild.... DT.
