Main
News
Science
In Japan, rare crested ibises, which had become extinct in the country several decades ago, have been reintroduced into the wild

In Japan, rare crested ibises, which had become extinct in the country several decades ago, have been reintroduced into the wild

01 June 2026, 19:46

In Japan, rare crested ibises, which had become extinct in the country several decades ago, have been reintroduced into the wild — Crested Ibis

For the first time in several decades, eight crested ibises – a species that became extinct in Japan in the last century – have been released into the wild.

The Washington Post reports on this.

The ceremony took place in Hakui, in the Noto region — the very place where these birds were last seen in the wild.

Crested ibises, known in Japan as ‘toki’, are famous for their white plumage with a pinkish-orange tinge on their wings and bright red patches around their eyes. They were once widespread across East Asia, but began to die out in Japan due to overhunting and environmental degradation in the 1970s. The last wild Japanese ibis died in 2003 on Sado Island.

The birds were successfully reintroduced thanks to a long-term breeding programme and support from China. Back in 1999, a pair of ibises transferred to Japan from Beijing produced their first offspring in captivity.

Since then, the population has been gradually recovering: following a previous release on Sado in 2008, there are now almost 500 ibises living there.

The birds’ current return to the Noto region has also become a symbol of hope for locals — the area is still recovering from the devastating earthquake of 2024.

Science

A nature reserve is to be established near the Ukrainian Antarctic research station 'Akademik Vernadsky'

Ukraine has secured the establishment of a new specially protected area in Collins Bay, located near the Akademik Vernadsky station in Antarctica. The initiative was approved following three years of intensive international negotiations.