An award-winning photo has revealed how a couple taught a flock of birds to migrate to Spain by flying 1,615 miles alongside them in a paraglider.
Helena Wehner and Johannes Fritz are part of an Austrian conservation group known as Waldrappteam, which is dedicated to bringing the Northern Bald Ibis to Europe.
The endangered birds are raised in Germany and then made to migrate south for the winter so that it is warm enough for them to survive.
The Northern Bald Ibis’ natural migratory instinct was lost when it went extinct in Europe more than 400 years ago, so researchers have had to physically teach them how to make their way back.
The flock imprinted on the couple, where they formed an instant attachment, and their bond was so strong that they willingly followed the aircraft and were guided with calls and shouts.
An astounding image shows the 36 birds flying over fields of the south of Spain in Andalusia, in a journey that took 50 days.
The photo was taken in 2024 by Gunnar Hartmann and the chicks were hatched in April in Rosegg, Austria before spending three months at a training camp in Taching am See, across the border in Bavaria, where they were taught to follow a microlight in the air.
Mr Hartmann, a BioGeoSciences undergraduate at the University of Koblenz, said: ‘The birds are parentally imprinted on their foster parents from the first two weeks of life, creating a social bond so strong that they will reliably follow them over thousands of kilometers.
Gunnar Hartmann’s photo of 36 northern ibis birds migrating to Spain by flying 1,615 miles and being guided by a paraglider was the winner of Nature’s 2026 Scientist at Work photography competition
The endangered birds are raised in Germany and then made to migrate south for the winter so that it is warm enough for them to survive (file photo of a northern bald ibis)
‘The image was captured on a rather cold September morning in Jaén, southern Spain, during the final leg of our journey.
‘On the specific morning I took the photo, the atmosphere was quite tense because the birds had been struggling with motivation.’
He added: ‘There are so many emotions for me… I can smell the air from this day and imagine the sounds’.
It took the group just short of two months to complete the journey which began in August and finished in October.
They were then kept in an aviary before being released so they could acclimatise. They will then go back to Germany to breed once they have reached sexual maturity.
Northern Bald Ibis are amongst the rarest birds in the world after they were hunted to extinction in Europe more than 400 years ago.
For the migratory birds to survive in the wild, they must fly south in the Autumn over the perilous Austrian Alps to the warm feeding grounds of Italy.
But climate change has meant the thermals over the Alps are not strong enough to allow them to cross the mountains, leading the team to change the destination to Spain.
Mr Hartmann added: ‘The goal is for these released birds to return to their breeding grounds in their third year and eventually lead the next generation themselves, creating a new, independent migratory tradition.’
His photo was the winner of Nature’s 2026 Scientist at Work photography competition.
Another winning image is that of marine biologist Uli Kunz of Kiel, Germany, who captured the installation of an incubation chamber at the ‘coral probiotics village,’ a project in the Red Sea off the coast of Saudi Arabia
But the journey is no easy feat. Last year, strong winds and rain meant that a flock of birds failed to make it to Andalusia and some birds were injured after colliding with a power line.
This year, 32 birds have been hatched and microlight training is set to begin in July.
The competition is now in its seventh year and saw more than 220 entries from scientists across the world.
It aims to capture the worldwide realities of scientific work both in the laboratory and the field.
Whale sharks, algal blooms, and mosquito experiments also feature among five spectacular images showcasing the diversity and challenges of scientific research.
Another winning image is that of freelance marine biologist Uli Kunz of Kiel, Germany, who captured the installation of an incubation chamber at the ‘coral probiotics village,’ a project in the Red Sea off the coast of Saudi Arabia.
The project aims to investigate how different coral species are adapting to the rising water temperatures caused by climate change.
‘In this photo, I wanted not only to capture the research divers in the midst of their often-hectic work, but also to show a moment of quiet contemplation,’ says Kunz.
