Purple herons breed in Kent

(PA)

A pair of purple herons has managed to breed successfully in Britain for the first time.

The striking birds breed in southern Europe and visit Britain in small numbers each year. But this pair has nested on the Dungeness peninsula in Kent, and appear to have managed a UK first by hatching eggs, the RSPB said.

The species has struggled in Europe in recent decades, and more pairs are expected to nest in southern Britain as climate change pushes wildlife northwards.