Rare birds have returned to nest at the nature reserve where they were hatched as part of a conservation project. A total of 33 curlews were released in 2026 at Elmley Nature Reserve on the Isle of Sheppey, Kent after being raised in captivity for a project to bring back the at-risk species to lowland Britain. Elmley curlew keeper Simon Higgs said the ground-nesting birds' decline was mainly been due to changing farming practices and an increase in predators. Elmley is one of three sites involved in the South of England Curlew Recovery Project. Natural England licensed the sites to receive and rear curlew eggs.