Nature's cleaners: Cyprus returns rare vultures to wild

Griffon vultures, birds that perform the vital job of clearing carcasses that could otherwise spread disease, are on the "brink of extinction" on the Mediterranean island due to poisoning, experts warn.

But 15 have been returned to the wild in recent weeks in a bid to boost numbers, nearly tripling the population to an estimated 23, helping restore an iconic species critical to the health of the ecosystem.

"They are nature's clean-up crew," said Melpo Apostolidou, from BirdLife Cyprus, an environmental group coordinating the vulture reintroduction programme.

"They provide an efficient, cost-effective and environmentally beneficial carcass disposal service."

With a white head and graceful sand-coloured wings stretching up to 2.8 metres (over nine feet) they are as majestic as eagles.

The eight birds released on Wednesday were the last of a batch of 15 birds, rehabilitated after being injured as juveniles in Spain before being brought to Cyprus.

Since December, they were acclimatising in an aviary in the hills some 15 kilometres (10 miles) from the port city of Limassol.