‘They do look majestic’: tears and pride as first white storks set free in Cornwall
Summary
Twenty-one white storks were released into the wild in Cornwall after being raised in captivity at an aviary near Bodmin Moor. The birds are expected to spend a few months in Cornwall before migrating south for the winter, with hopes they will return in future years to breed.Key Facts
- The Cornwall Stork Project released 21 white storks, most hatched on site in 2024.
- The released storks will likely migrate to places like southern Spain or Morocco for the winter.
- The project uses breeding aviaries to raise storks that then accept the local area as home.
- The project is based at Hamatethy farm, which also focuses on organic farming and rewilding.
- The project started in 2021 and now has five pairs of adult storks bred or rescued there.
- Natural England advises that white storks were never native breeding birds in England and does not prioritize their release.
- Project leader Yan Swiderski noted climate change is shifting bird ranges northward in Europe.
- The project follows a similar successful white stork reintroduction model from the Knepp estate in West Sussex.
Read the Full Article
This is a fact-based summary from The Actual News. Click below to read the complete story directly from the original source.
