Giant bird breeds in Britain for first time in 177 years

[Dead_Parrot]

The world's heaviest flying bird, the globally-threatened great bustard, has bred successfully in Britain for the first time since 1832.

Five years into a reintroduction programme, which has brought young birds from southern Russia where the species is relatively plentiful, a female produced two chicks last week at a secret site on Salisbury Plain in Wiltshire. Their birth is a conservation success story on a par with the return of the sea eagle to the west coast of Scotland, bringing back to the UK one of Europe's most charismatic and unmistakable creatures. The turkey-sized males can reach nearly 50lb in weight.

Once common on extensive grassland, from south-west England to the Scottish borders, Otis tarda was a bird which was so remarkable, in its mammoth size and bold plumage, that it impressed itself deeply on rural culture.

It still sits on the coats of arms of Wiltshire and Cambridgeshire county councils; there are still two pubs called The Bustard, one in Wiltshire and one in Lincolnshire; there is a beer called Great Bustard, part of the Stonehenge Ales range; the bird is the badge of Wiltshire girl guides; and it is the badge of the Royal School of Artillery on Salisbury Plain.

more: http://www.independent.co.uk/environment/nature/giant-bird-breeds-in-britain-for-first-time-in-177-years-1695480.html

Hmmm. Great Bustards and Beavers. There's a joke in there somewhere...

[chaplainM]

1. The sex lives of the Windsors is none of your business. n/t

[baldguy]

4. .

:rofl:

[Dead_Parrot]

5. ...

:rofl:

[IntravenousDemilo]

2. I thought this was yet another thread on Susan Boyle. n/m

[doc03]

3. Dayum that's one old bustard

[obliviously]

6. What do they taste like!

just sayin

[LiberalEsto]

7. Like chicken!

:9

[obliviously]

8. Only more of it right?

[Nihil]

9. Depends how much of it you find ...

... considering that a large part of Salibury Plain is used
as Army training grounds (with live fire) ...

:evilgrin:

ETA: In all seriousness though, it is a great benefit having that
much space off limits to civilians (honest or otherwise) and this
doesn't just apply to the "unofficial nature reserve" aspect ...
When an archeological dig encounters anything valuable, they usually
have to work 24x7 to recover it before the news gets out as it is
not uncommon for sites to be raided overnight (few digs can afford
significant security and a single unarmed watchman isn't a good bet
either). The digs on Salisbury Plain are guarded by armed Military
Police and so everything stays *very* safe indeed!
:hi:

[XemaSab]

10. A lot of military bases in the US are similar

Camp Pendleton, Fort Bragg, Fort Huachuca, and other military facilities have some of the best preserved habitat in the US.