Rare stork chicks born in UK for first time in 600 years

Image source, Brad Albrecht

Image caption, The same pair are thought to have failed to hatch their eggs last year

A stork chick has hatched in the wild in the UK for the first time in 600 years!

The storks are part of a special conservation programme called the White Stork Project.

Around 250 of the birds have been released in Sussex and this is the first pair to successfully hatch a chick.

It's brilliant news for the birds, who are traditionally associated with babies and are thought to bring good luck.

Image source, Brad Albrecht

Image caption, The birds build huge nests high up in the trees

Lucy Groves, project officer for the White Stork Project, said: "After waiting 33 days for these eggs to hatch, it was extremely exciting to see signs that the first egg had hatched on 6 May."

She added: "The parents have been working hard and are doing a fantastic job."

Image source, Getty Images

White Storks were almost hunted to extinction in the middle ages, and lost most of their watery habitat in the wild due to farming.

The last record of storks breeding in Britain was at St Giles' Cathedral in Edinburgh in 1416.

Image source, Getty Images

Four other stork couples have made nests, so conservationists are hoping that there may be more chicks on their way.

Re-introducing storks back into the wild in the UK is not just good news for the storks, its also great news for lots of other animal species who enjoy the same habitat as them.