Rare bird makes a comeback in the UK

A rare bird, called a Dartford warbler, is making a comeback in the UK.

Having been on the brink of extinction, surveys are now showing a 44% increase in the species in the past five years.

The Dartford warbler suffered a population crash in the 1960s that left only a few pairs in Dorset.

However, the Heathland Birds Survey now estimates the UK population of Dartford warblers at 4,100.

The Dartford Warbler is a small, dark, long-tailed bird with a black beak.

It lives in heathland, which are wild, open spaces with low-growing plants like heather or gorse.

Often these birds can be seen perched on gorse shrubs to sing, flying between bushes, or hunting for spiders and caterpillars.

It is currently regarded as an amber list species, which means it is a bird of medium conservation concern in the UK and requires monitoring.

The Heathland Birds Survey is carried out by the British Trust for Ornithology (BTO) and the RSPB.

Its aim is to survey three types of birds - nightjars, woodlarks and Dartford warblers - throughout the UK and Channel Islands.

The RSPB has also been carrying out habitat restoration in areas where these birds live to help increase numbers.

In RSPB Arne, where some of this restoration has taken place, a record of 97 pairs of Dartford Warblers were spotted.

Site manager Peter Robertson said: "Visiting heathland during summer, the sound of Dartford warblers singing is everywhere."