Crested Ibises: China and Japan work together to stop species extinction

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The crested ibis - an endangered bird could once easily be spotted in Northeast Asia. Its binomial name, Nipponia Nippon, can be literally translated as The Japanese Bird of Japan. The crested ibis has deep cultural roots in Japan. Yet, the last Japanese crested ibis died in 2003. The good news — crested ibises from China flew in to help. CGTN reporter Xu Xinchen has more.

It's a bird that has existed for 6,000 years. Its slender figure and dense plumes are matched with a poetic name — the crested ibis.

The bird has a symbolic status in Japan — its feathers and drawings of it are often found in decorations for the Imperial House of Japan.

However, the once widespread bird went virtually extinct on the island nation — until the arrival of Meimei — a female crested ibis from China.

ZHANG YUEMING, SENIOR ENGINEER SHAANXI HANZHONG CRESTED IBIS NATIONAL NATURE RESERVE ADMINISTRATIVE BUREAU "This is a photo of Meimei taken by Japanese breeders after she was sent there."

Zhang Yueming helped escort Meimei to Japan in 2000. It was not the first Chinese crested ibis sent to help revitalize the dying population of the red-headed bird in Japan, but she laid a strong foundation.

ZHANG YUEMING, SENIOR ENGINEER SHAANXI HANZHONG CRESTED IBIS NATIONAL NATURE RESERVE ADMINISTRATIVE BUREAU "After arriving in Japan, Meimei excelled in terms of reproduction. Plus, the Japanese took advantage of the crested ibis' habits to let Meimei lay more eggs and have more offspring."

Meimei passed away in Japan a few years later, but it helped the country bring crested ibises back.

Now, there are over 500 healthy crested ibises in Japan — descendants of Meimei and other Chinese crested ibises sent there.

As efforts to save crested ibises from extinction continue, China now has almost 4,000 of them — over half are in Northwestern China's Shaanxi Province where the last group of seven were found forty years ago.

And the battle is not over. We were lucky enough to catch local conservationists setting crested ibises free on camera.

DUAN YING, CONSERVATIONIST SHAANXI HANZHONG CRESTED IBIS NATIONAL NATURE RESERVE ADMINISTRATIVE BUREAU "I treat crested ibises like my children. It's hard for me to let them leave my heart when seeing them off. But the sole purpose for protecting crested ibises is to let them return to nature."

These birds were rescued from the wild as fledglings that fell from their nests.

As the number of crested ibises living in the wild continues to increase, Duan's team is expecting more rescue missions. And as a local, she is proud that nearly all crested ibises around the world now are descendants of the last seven birds found in her county.

China sent a total of ten crested ibises to Japan to help reproduce, and the two nations have been sharing knowledge and breakthroughs to keep the 6,000-year-old species alive.

Xu Xinchen, CGTN, Yangxian County in Shaanxi Province.