A aquatic warbler (Acrocephalus paludicola) was found on April 20, 2026 in the Nagyiván steppe, part of the Hortobágy National Park, according to the park directorate.
The bird was caught using a mist net as part of the international Life4Aquatic Warbler conservation project. The significance of the finding is further increased by the fact that the captured individual was wearing a metal ring, which was placed at a ringing station in the Basque Country in Spain.
The aquatic warbler is Europe’s rarest breeding songbird. Between 1971 and 2011, it regularly bred in small numbers in the Hortobágy region.
Experts say its reappearance may indicate that the species still passes through its former Hortobágy habitats during migration. This has taken 14 years to confirm.
The aquatic warbler is a strictly protected species, with a conservation value of 1 million forints.
