A record 161 choughs have been counted nesting along the Cornish coastline this summer, an increase of 32 birds on last year that conservationists say shows the species is in "robust health". The RSPB and National Trust said the milestone caps a quarter-century of conservation work since choughs, which died out in Cornwall in the 1970s, returned naturally in 2001 when three birds believed to be Irish landed at Lizard Point.

The 161 birds came from 56 successful breeding pairs, giving an average of three fledglings per nest, with the Lizard peninsula remaining the prime breeding ground, producing 26 chicks from eight nests. The recovery has been credited to habitat restoration, local farmers and land managers, and around 50 volunteer chough watchers who monitored the coastline from Roseland to Bude, according to RSPB Cornwall conservation officer Andrew Jones and National Trust volunteers Peter Hall and Lydia Allt.