Once pushed to the brink of extinction due to industrialization, the crested ibis—a striking white-plumed bird with a crimson face—is making a remarkable comeback in Shaanxi Province! 🎉 Conservationists in China have turned the tide, growing the population from just 10 birds in the 1980s to over 7,700 today. Talk about a glow-up! 💫
A Conservation Success Story
Zhang Junfeng, a senior engineer at the Qinling Giant Panda Research Center, told CGTN that tech like satellite tracking and seasonal food support helped revive the species. 🌱 'In 2020 alone, we tracked over 4,400 ibises,' she shared. The team even trains captive birds in survival skills—like foraging and dating (yes, courtship rituals matter! 💘)—before releasing them into the wild.
Why This Matters
This isn’t just a win for biodiversity; it’s proof that human effort can reverse environmental damage. 🌿 With over 20 breeding centers across China, the crested ibis could soon repopulate habitats lost in Japan, Russia, and the Korean Peninsula. 🕊️
