Great Bustard chicks are finding it hard surviving on their once native Salisbury Plain so SAUL COWEN and the team headed east for inspiration

WHILE only six of the 28 Great Bustard chicks that arrived on Salisbury Plain last year remain in the wild, members of the Great Bustard Group say they have learned a lot in the first year of the project.

Ten birds are still alive, a good percentage according to Dave Waters, the chairman of the group, compared to the normal 78 per cent fatality rate among chicks in the wild.

Four of them are being kept in captivity at site south of Salisbury. Three will remain in captivity as they have damaged themselves so badly and will probably end their lives in a zoo, but the fourth is likely to be re-released in the next few weeks.

The main causes of the fatalities have been attacks by foxes, which was expected, but by far the biggest problem has been the huge animals the heaviest flying birds in the world flying into barbed wire.

The birds bleed profusely when injured and some have simply bled to death before they could be found. The group is planning major changes to the design of their pens, so that the birds can see the wire more easily.

The group has also decided not to fit the new birds, which will be arriving at the end of June or beginning of July, with the same design of radio transmitter as last year's intake.

It has been found that the radios damage the birds' plumage, so much smaller equipment has been ordered.

Also, because the group has overcome a lot of the bureaucratic delay it encountered last year, the birds coming from the Saratov area of Russia will still be young enough to be kept in "soft" pens until they receive anti-predator training.

Mr Waters remains upbeat about the project. He said: "Once they are through the first year, they stand a very good chance of being around in ten or 12 years."