Two bald ibises have made their home in the village of Vaulruz in Switzerland, marking the first time the species has nested in the country. These birds, once common in Central Europe but hunted to extinction by the 17th century, are now being reintroduced through a conservation effort that began in 2014. Supported by Austria, Germany, Switzerland, and Italy, the LIFE Northern Bald Ibis project, led by Vienna zoo, has focused on releasing captive-bred birds into the wild. By 2019, 142 bald ibises were living in the wild north of the Alps, migrating to Tuscany in Italy for the winter. To teach them migration routes, the birds were guided by ULMs (ultralight aircraft) from Central Europe to Italy. However, many of the ibises in Italy faced threats such as electrocution and poaching, which reduced their numbers by half. This led to a second phase of the reintroduction project, which began in 2022. The goal is to reach 360 wild bald ibises by 2028 to ensure the long-term survival of the European population. Oscar and Grazia, two of the reintroduced birds, have chosen to nest in Vaulruz. Oscar was born in 2018 in Germany, while Grazia was born in 2022 as the offspring of a wild pair in Germany. They returned to Vaulruz in 2026, having previously explored the area in 2024 and 2025. In 2026, four young ibises hatched and are now feeding with their parents. Despite the challenges faced by the species, the project's executive director, Dr. Johannes Fritz, expressed optimism about their survival, noting that the Swiss Alps offer ideal conditions for the bald ibises. The nesting site is located at an altitude of 820 meters in an area with meadows and pastures, providing enough food for the ibises. The local residents have adapted well to the presence of the birds, even though their droppings occasionally land on a nearby building. To minimize disturbances, a tarp was installed in 2025 and 2026. In 2023, the released ibises were guided only to Italy, but a new migration route to Andalusia in Spain was established to avoid the difficult crossing of the Alps. On August 23, 2026, two ULMs took off from Baden-Württemberg in Germany to guide 30 juvenile bald ibises born that spring. Globally, the estimated number of wild bald ibises is around 1,000. The largest population is found in Morocco, where about 700 individuals live, while approximately fifty are in Andalusia, where they live year-round. The successful nesting in Vaulruz represents a significant step forward for the conservation of this rare and once-extinct species in Europe.