Link: https://www.derbyshirewildlifetrust.org.uk/news/special-delivery-white-storks-make-historic-return-midlands

Following a landmark land acquisition at Middleton Moor, a significant milestone in the Trust’s vision to reconnect landscapes and create more space for nature at scale, this project marks the next major step in its long-term strategy to restore lost species.

Supported by more than £300,000 from Veolia Environmental Trust through the Landfill Communities Fund, the project represents an exciting opportunity for white stork recovery in the region. Centred at Willington Wetlands, the Trust plans to create a purpose-built white stork enclosure in consultation with Celtic Rewilding, specialists running a captive breeding facility just over the border in Staffordshire.

The enclosure, located within a low-disturbance conservation area and designed to be predator-proof and adaptable for future species recovery projects, will support breeding, chick development, and carefully managed soft releases into the wider landscape.