Dartford warbler is flying back! Rare bird is on the comeback trail after being ...
Dartford warbler is flying back! Rare bird is on the comeback trail after getting perilously close to extinction A British bird that once nearly disappeared from the UK has hit record numbers There were as few as 10 pairs of Dartford warblers left back in the 1960s Now that number has soared to above 180 pairs thanks to milder winters
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A British bird has made a dramatic comeback after being close to extinction.
The RSPB has just recorded 183 pairs of Dartford warblers – the highest number ever – up from only ten pairs in the 1960s.
The bird, which thrives in dense gorse on lowland heathland, is sensitive to the cold and was nearly wiped out by the ‘Big Freeze’ winter of 1962/63 when temperatures fell to -22.2C (-8F). But milder winters and efforts to restore heathland have seen it fare better.
