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After more than a decade of regular occurrence, the first confirmed breeding of the Sacred Ibis Threskiornis aethiopicus in the lagoon of Venice (Italy) was observed in 2020, in three sites. The ibises nested in colonies with of one or more species of Ardeidae and Phalacrocoracidae. The colonies were on islets < 2 ha in size, covered with thick vegetation. Nests were placed on the top of bushes or trees, at a height of 1.5-5 m. The colony sites seemed not occupied by adults until the end of February - half of March; laying took place from early May, with hatchings occurring from the end of that month until July. Overall, 22-24 pairs nested in 2020. Birds were observed feeding at saltmarshes, freshwater wetlands and arable fields; a public garbage collection site was also used regularly. Given the high number of suitable nesting and feeding sites, a rapid growth of the Sacred Ibis population is expected in the next years. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

During 1993-2010 we have monitored at Lake Trasimeno the population of colonial nesting herons, with the exception of Ardea purpurea. Two distinct heronries have been found, placed 9 km away from each other and composed of the following species: Nycticorax nycticorax, Ardeola ralloides, Bubulcus ibis, Egretta garzetta, Ardea cinerea, Casmerodius albus (the last perhaps not breeding). We have usually carried out a total census of the nests and assessed the proportions of the different heron species on a sample of visible adults. Nycticorax nycticorax and Ardeola ralloides have decreased, whilst Ardea cinerea and Bubulcus ibis have shown positive trends. The cumulated breeding population has shown a strong decrease, followed by a recovery. The population size of the last year (298 pairs) is of great importance in Central Italy, accounting for 10% of the heron population of the whole region.