Crested ibis efforts

The crested ibis, one of the oldest avian species in the world, once flourished in China, the Korean Peninsula, Japan and Russia. It is believed that these birds have existed for more than 60 million years.

However, the widespread use of pesticides and fertilizers, hunting, and habitat loss due to deforestation brought this species, known as the "oriental gem", to the brink of extinction.

In 1963, the crested ibis was regionally extinct in Russia. In 1975, the species vanished from the Korean Peninsula, and in 1981, Japanese experts caught the last five wild crested ibises in the country and kept them in captivity. Japan's last crested ibis born in the wild died in 2003.

By the 1970s, the birds were nearly wiped out in the wild and were included on the International Union for Conservation of Nature's Red List of threatened species.

In 1978, Liu Yinzeng, then a researcher at the Chinese Academy of Sciences, led a team to search for the birds throughout China.

"At that time, I had prepared my paper concluding that the crested ibis had become extinct," Liu said.

After three years of relentless search efforts that took Liu and his team on a 50,000-kilometer journey through 14 provinces, the remaining group of the endangered species, comprising just seven birds, was finally found in Yangxian county, Shaanxi, in May 1981.

Liu was worried whether such a tiny population could survive, but the team came up with solutions. "Our breeding program followed two approaches: one was natural breeding in the wild, and the other was artificial breeding," Liu said.

In addition to breeding, protection measures were implemented in Yangxian, including establishing observatories, rescue centers and a national nature reserve; prohibiting mining, hunting and logging; ending the use of fertilizers and pesticides; and guiding farmers to keep natural wetlands for the birds to forage.

The government, experts and local residents have made considerable efforts to make Yangxian a better place for this once-endangered species.

After 40 years of hard work and determination, the number of wild crested ibises in the world has risen from seven to 7,000, with more than 3,000 making Yangxian their home. The habitat area for the birds has expanded from less than 5 square km at the time of discovery to 15,000 sq km.

Townshend learned about Liu's inspiring experience after spending an afternoon with him in Yangxian, and believes that this remarkable story is worth sharing.

"The overall picture of the biodiversity world is quite grim. What this example shows is that we can make a difference. It's not all lost," Townshend said.

He told Liu, now 85, "Maybe in a previous life you were a crested ibis!"