Conservationists are hoping to reintroduce to Wiltshire a bird hunted to extinction in the UK in the 19th Century.

The great bustard is found mainly in eastern Europe, Spain and Portugal.

But a group of environmentalists hopes to get a governmental licence to start bringing over chicks from the Russian steppes to release them on Salisbury Plain.

Dr Patrick Osborne of Stirling University said: "Bringing this bird back is the last great challenge to ornithologists."

Rare species

The great bustard is the heaviest flying bird in the world, with males weighing up to 20 kilograms.

It is recognised as globally threatened, with just 50,000 remaining.

But Dr Osborne, the scientific advisor to the Great Bustard Group, said environmentalists were hopeful about its chances in the UK.

The trend towards lower intensity farming in the region could help the bird.

The group has now completed feasibility studies, and will present the findings to the Department for the Environment, Food and Rural Affairs in the autumn.

Farming danger

They hope to work with Russian conservationists in the city of Saratov and start bringing over week-old chicks next spring.

"The eggs are collected from areas where the nests will be destroyed by agriculture.

"At present, the chicks are tamed and go into collections.

"We will keep them wild."

Dr Osborne said conservationists also hope reintroducing the bird would highlight the need to preserve grassland areas.

"It's a large, spectacular, beautiful bird - a real flagship species."