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From The Times
June 20, 2007

People dressed as cranes to help species take off in Britain

People dressed as cranes to help species take off in Britain

SLIMBRIDGE Hopes that the crane will be a common sight in the countryside once again have been boosted by the birth of six chicks.

They were born at the Wildfowl and Wetlands Trust (WWT) in Gloucestershire where staff are to dress up as parent cranes and teach them how to survive in the wild.

Once they are sufficiently adept at looking after themselves they will be released into a semi-wild environment at the reserve. From 2009 they will be used to look after and teach survival skills to other chicks that will be released into the wild as part of a reintroduction scheme.

Jane Waghorn, of the WWT, said that dressing people as adult cranes and getting them to educate chicks in the ways of birds was a proven technique.

The common crane, Grus grus, was widespread in Britain until the 17th century when, in part because it was a popular dish, it was wiped out.

The six chicks will be on display to the public at Slimbridge from next month.

This is fantastic news. After getting swamped with all that negative nonsense about global warming it makes a refreshing change to read that somebody, the WWT, is grasping the nettle by doing something positive for our environment.

I can't wait to see these awesome birds soaring and calling once more as part of Britains mosaic of wild nature.

Well done!

Nick Tesla, Lyme Regis, Kingdom of Britain

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