Exotic bird to breed in the UK

AN EXOTIC bird normally found in the Mediterranean is expected to start breeding in the Uk this year due to Britain’s warming climate.

The glossy ibis is to ‘make wildlife history’ and may start breeding in the Uk this spring and summer, according to the Met Office and RSPB.

Extremely dry conditions in the south of Spain and Portugal, and mild winter temperatures here have already encouraged large number of glossy ibis – a distant relative of storks and herons – to spend the winter here. Birdwatchers are hoping this could lead to the first nesting in the Uk of a wetland bird found mainly in the Mediterranean. Grahame Madge, from the Met Office, said: ‘Although it is tempting to speculate about which species may arrive in the Uk, many of our traditional species are losing out, especially in southern England, as their ranges shift further north.’