Endangered Dartmoor Curlews Monitored to Portugal

Highly endangered birds from the UK, which were raised and set free on Dartmoor, have been followed to Portugal. Several curlews, released in Devon during the summer, covered a distance of 1,300 miles (2,092km) to reach the Algarve region. Jon Avon, a curlew recovery project officer representing the Duchy of Cornwall, stated, “Several individuals travelled around the South West estuaries in Devon, Cornwall and the Isles of Scilly, however, this year some undertook an epic journey south, following the warmer weather.” He further commented: “Three of the birds were located in northern Spain while two others made it all the way to the Algarve, in Portugal and southern Spain.” The curlew species is included on the UK Birds of Conservation Concern Red List, a designation attributed to its decreasing population figures. The five-year initiative, launched in 2020, seeks to restore curlew populations on the moor by collecting eggs, artificially incubating them, and subsequently releasing the young birds. During August, 25 juvenile curlews were successfully raised and set free, contributing to a total of 107 introduced since the commencement of the scheme. Trackers were attached to some of these birds, documenting their migration overseas in pursuit of warmer climates. Mr. Avon noted: “Two wild pairs also returned to Dartmoor, but their nesting attempts were unsuccessful this year.” Eric Heath, who serves as senior project manager for species recovery at the wetland restoration charity WWT, expressed approval of this development. He commented: “It’s wonderful to learn that some of our ‘headstarted curlew’ have been spotted soaking up the winter sun in Spain and Portugal, using the rich coastal wetlands in Iberia as a point of connectivity to the wider European curlew population.” He added: “It’s still early days for this project, but we’re hopeful that Dartmoor’s curlew will once again flourish and will help to lead the way to a brighter future for curlew across the UK.” Follow BBC Devon on X, Facebook and Instagram. Send your story ideas to spotlight@bbc.co.uk. Copyright 2024 BBC. All rights reserved. The BBC is not responsible for the content of external sites. Read about our approach to external linking.