Malaga province becomes home to rare bird that changes route of threatened species

The northern bald ibis had disappeared from much of Europe centuries ago when one of the birds unexpectedly appeared in Cártama four years ago. At first, experts treated the sighting in Malaga as an isolated case. It ultimately triggered a major shift in the migration strategy for one of Europe's most endangered bird species.

Several years later, Malaga province has become a regular stopping point for some of the ibises thanks to an ambitious international project that combines microlight aircraft, GPS tracking, science, volunteers and public cooperation.

The story, little known outside ornithology circles, is extraordinary. The northern bald ibis (Geronticus eremita) has featured in international recovery programmes for decades. Its almost prehistoric appearance helps explain the fascination it attracts: glossy black plumage with metallic reflections, a bald reddish head, a long curved beak and a silhouette very different from the classic ibis in marshes and wetlands.

However, Malaga province now plays a key role in the species' recent history.

"All the ibis currently seen in Malaga come from the European Waldrappteam reintroduction project," Chúss Fernández, who oversees monitoring in Spain for the Central European northern bald ibises in the international LIFE programme, says.

For years, the project has worked in Austria and Germany to teach captive-bred young ibises to recover the ancient European migration route to Italy. Researchers use an unusual but effective method: humans hand-rear the birds, which then learn to follow microlight aircraft piloted by their caretakers.

The turning point came in 2022, when a female ibis called Ingrid unexpectedly reached Cártama on her own. Researchers identified her through the GPS transmitter and identification rings carried by all birds in the project.

"Ingrid was the first Central European northern bald ibis to reach Spain and the bird that inspired the new migration route to Andalucía launched in 2023," Fernández says.

The discovery mobilised the teams of both the European Waldrappteam programme and Andalucía's Proyecto Eremita. The operation involved, among others, Waldrappteam director Johannes Fritz; Miguel Ángel Quevedo, veterinarian at Jerez ZooBotánico and coordinator of Proyecto Eremita; José Cabral, another coordinator of the Andalusian programme; Helena Wehner, one of the "foster mothers" who guide the ibises during assisted migrations with microlights; and environmental officer Antonio Tamayo.

Technicians from the regional environmental department, including Sergio Artacho and Cristina Benages, also joined volunteers and bird-monitoring specialists in Malaga.

The unexpected arrival eventually led to a completely new strategy: linking the migratory Central European ibises with the sedentary colony already established in Cadiz through the long-running reintroduction programme run by Jerez ZooBotánico and the Andalusian egional government.

Since then, groups of between 32 and 36 young ibises have flown south every season behind microlight aircraft to spend their juvenile years in southern Spain before returning to breeding areas in Austria or Germany once they reach maturity.

Meanwhile, Malaga has gradually become familiar territory for some of these dispersing birds. "These are young or non-breeding individuals exploring new territory. Malaga is not part of their normal settlement area, but it does sit along their migration route," Fernández says.

This helps explain why northern bald ibises have recently begun appearing in Campillos, Antequera, Marbella, Cártama and various spots in the Serranía de Ronda mountain range. Birdwatchers and wildlife enthusiasts have closely followed some of the sightings, generating large numbers of photographs on specialist forums.

The best-known bird in the province at the moment is Diva, spotted near Campillos. The male ibis hatched in 2024 at Austria's Rosegg zoo, where humans hand-reared him before caretakers guided him by microlight to Vejer de la Frontera. Like all Waldrappteam birds, he carries a GPS transmitter, identification rings and a name chosen by his foster carers.

But the project has also suffered setbacks. Only days ago, another young ibis called Voldemort reportedly died after colliding with power lines in the province. Previous incidents proved even more serious.

"Someone shot Tarifa and investigators are still trying to bring the person responsible before the courts," Fernández says. The bird had travelled with Spechti, which survived with a broken beak and now remains in a zoo awaiting surgery to fit a prosthesis.

"After analysing the main causes of death, the leading human-related factor is electrocution or collisions with power lines," Fernández warns. Birds also face risks from road traffic, loose dogs and even golf balls.

One of the project's most striking aspects is the human network that has formed around the northern bald ibis. Environmental officers, technicians, volunteers and birdwatchers constantly collaborate to track movements, report incidents and respond quickly when problems arise.

"Birds connect people and the ibises prove that to me every day," Fernández says. He receives photographs, sightings and location updates from across Spain almost daily. "Today alone people sent me updates from Burgos and Murcia."

Fernández particularly praised the support network in Malaga. He recently travelled to the environmental office in Ronda to collect transmitters from dead ibises and said local cooperation had been constant.

"The response in the Voldemort case was incredibly fast and flawless," he said.

All Central European ibises carry GPS transmitters and people can track them through the free Animal Tracker app. The data helps researchers identify dangerous power lines, collision hotspots and other risk areas where authorities can later intervene.

"In the end, anything that benefits the ibis also benefits other wildlife," Fernández says. Improvements to power infrastructure, habitat restoration and reducing disturbances all help many other species too.

Public involvement around the northern bald ibis has grown especially strongly in Cadiz, where educational work in schools and associations has made the species relatively well known. Locals even use nicknames to distinguish the different populations: the Central European birds are known as 'waldis' after Waldrappteam; the sedentary Cadiz birds are 'jandis' after La Janda; and birds from a newer Catalan project are called 'mornis'.

The population keeps epanding. Cadiz now hosts around 300 birds and experts consider the colony stable. At the same time, dispersing ibises appear in unexpected places. Some have reached Galicia, Asturias and Morocco, while others currently move between Madrid, Girona, Cordoba, Ciudad Real and Murcia.

In Malaga, the northern bald ibis has started to lose its status as a complete rarity. That does not mean the province will host a colony in the short term, but it has become part of a much larger map than many once imagined.

Perhaps that is the most remarkable aspect of the story: behind every ibis photographed in Campillos, Fuente de Piedra, Antequera and the Serranía de Ronda lie decades of scientific work, migration routes rebuilt from scratch and a vast network of people devoted to birds that once seemed destined to disappear from Europe forever.

Local birdwatchers have also played an important role. In Malaga, it all began with Ingrid, the ibis that unexpectedly appeared in Cártama in 2022 and ended up inspiring a new migration route to Andalucía: a story so unusual it almost feels written for a Pixar film.