A conservation project to reintroduce the great bustard to the UK appears to be meeting with some success as four chicks have hatched this year. The great bustard was hunted to extinction in 1832 but was reintroduced to Salisbury Plain six years ago. This is the second year that the birds have bred successfully in the wild so looks encouraging for the return of the species. The great bustard is the world’s heaviest flying bird according to this article, weighing up to 44lb and measuring 3ft tall. It is its size that made it such an easy target for hunters and so led to its extinction. The current project to reintroduce the species was launched in 2004 with birds being hand reared in Russia before being released in the UK. So far 104 birds have been released with seven known chicks being hatched so far.
