One of the UK’s rarest birds is raising a family in Kent after escaping record temperatures further south, nature experts say.
Four black-winged stilt chicks have recently fledged in Worth Marshes, near Sandwich, after a pair of the birds arrived from Africa in the spring.
It is believed the species is flying further north as climate change causes its natural habitat in countries like Spain to become too hot.
“The wetland habitat is so incredibly important for them to breed,” said Izzy Donovan, Royal Society for the Protection of Birds (RSPB) senior site manager at Dungeness and Worth Nature Reserves.
Ms. Donovan highlighted that the exceptionally high temperatures in Spain are leading to the gradual drying of the birds’ wetland habitat.
“As the effects of climate warming persist, we anticipate the expansion of their habitat northward,” she remarked.
To accommodate black-winged stilts, celebrated as “one of the world’s most elegant birds” by wildlife presenter Bill Oddie, the nature reserve has undergone meticulous preparations. Innovative water control structures have been installed, regulating water levels during winter and managing them throughout spring and summer.
“It’s marked a significant transformation, yielding splendid outcomes,” commented RSPB warden Vicki Peaple.