Conservation charities have celebrated a significant milestone in their efforts to reintroduce a long-lost bird species back into the South East of Kent. After more than 200 years, the red-billed chough, a striking member of the corvid family, has returned to the region’s skies through dedicated rewilding initiatives.
The Return of the Red-Billed Chough
The red-billed chough, recognisable by its distinctive curved red beak and glossy black feathers, vanished from Kent more than two centuries ago. Habitat loss and persecution were the leading causes of its disappearance. However, after years of painstaking work, the bird is once again thriving in its historical home. Conservation charities, including Wildwood Trust, Kent Wildlife Trust, and Cornwall’s Paradise Park, have led this pioneering project.
In 2023, a breakthrough moment came when the first cohort of eight birds was released back into the wild. These trailblazing choughs were carefully reared and eventually introduced to the Kent countryside, where they have adapted to their new environment remarkably well. Now, a second group of 11 birds has been successfully released near Dover, where they have already been spotted soaring over the chalk cliffs and surrounding grasslands.
Decades of Preparations
The revival of the red-billed chough has not been an overnight success but the culmination of 40 years of dedicated conservation work. Kent Wildlife Trust, in collaboration with English Heritage, the National Trust, and the White Cliffs Countryside Partnership, has been working tirelessly to restore suitable habitats for the chough. This has primarily involved the restoration of chalk grasslands, a critical ecosystem for the species.
“Chalk grassland is an incredibly rare habitat and is considered the UK’s equivalent of the rainforest,” said Paul Hadaway, Kent Wildlife Trust’s conservation director. “By restoring these grasslands, we’re not only creating a home for the chough but also supporting an array of other wildlife.”
The conservation charities’ meticulous planning has focused on recreating and managing the grassland areas that choughs favour, which provide an ideal habitat for foraging and nesting.
Careful Rearing and Release
Choughs belong to the corvid family, which includes rooks, ravens, crows, and magpies, known for their intelligence and social nature. This year’s released group consisted of six females raised in a creche at Wildwood Trust, just outside Canterbury, and six males from Paradise Park’s zoo-based breeding programme in Cornwall. These birds have been carefully raised in captivity to prepare them for the challenges of life in the wild.
Their release into the Kent countryside has been a highly anticipated event for both conservationists and bird enthusiasts alike. The rewilding effort has seen the choughs take to the skies over the district, marking a significant step toward re-establishing a stable breeding population in the region.
Signs of Success and Challenges
Excitingly, the efforts of the rewilding project have already shown signs of success. A chough chick was found nesting at Dover Castle in May—a positive indicator that the reintroduced birds are beginning to breed in their natural environment. While the chick’s sudden disappearance a few days later, likely due to strong winds, was a blow, it nonetheless showed that the conditions are right for the species to start re-establishing itself in Kent.
“While we were disappointed by the disappearance of the chick, we were heartened by the fact that its very existence showed that creating an established breeding population of choughs in the wild in Kent for the first time in generations was very much within our reach,” said Laura Gardner, conservation director at Wildwood Trust.
“Little more than two years ago, there was no chance of seeing a chough in the South Eastern skyline. Now there are 19 flying free over the district.”
Ambitious Plans for the Future
The rewilding project is ambitious, aiming to release up to 50 choughs into the Dover countryside by 2028. These efforts form part of a broader conservation initiative to restore and protect native species and habitats. Earlier in the year, Cornwall saw a particularly fruitful breeding season, with 108 choughs successfully fledging, according to Cornwall Birds charity.
More Than Just Choughs
The work of Kent Wildlife Trust and Wildwood Trust extends beyond the reintroduction of choughs. The organisations have previously collaborated to bring back a host of other species to the region, including bison, Iron Age pigs, Exmoor ponies, and longhorn cattle. Each species plays a role in shaping and maintaining the landscape, supporting a diverse range of wildlife.
The success of the chough rewilding project is not just a victory for one species but a powerful demonstration of the positive impact that conservation can have. Restoring native wildlife and habitats has the potential to breathe new life into the landscape, promoting biodiversity and ecological balance.
A Hopeful Outlook
The return of the red-billed chough to Kent’s skies is a significant conservation triumph. Through careful planning, dedication, and collaboration, the species is being given a chance to reclaim its historical habitat. The sight of these elegant birds flying free over the chalk grasslands is not only a spectacle but also a symbol of hope for the future of conservation in the UK.
As the choughs continue to settle into their newly restored home, the project stands as a shining example of what can be achieved when conservationists, landowners, and local communities work together toward a shared goal—bringing back the wildlife that once thrived across our countryside.