ORNITHOLOGISTS say a scheme in Scotland might have saved one of the

world's most endangered species from extinction.

The corncrake, once common in the countryside, has been unable to

adapt to modern farming practices and has been wiped out in many parts

of the country.

Its only remaining footholds in Britain are the Western Isles and the

northern Highlands.

Numbers in the UK have fallen from about 900 calling males --

recognisable by the rasping ''crek crek'' -- in 1978, to fewer than 479

last year. But the Royal Society for the Protection of Birds has

revealed that this year the breeding season is likely to show an

increase in successful hatchings.

Corncrakes traditionally nest in hay meadows, but with changes in

agriculture, there are fewer safe areas available. The birds and their

eggs are destroyed because of the earlier cutting of grass and the

spread of sheep grazing.

The RSPB has now established corncrake corners, or corncrake

corridors, where grazing is halted, allowing grass to grow as cover for

the birds when they return from Africa in the spring. The society pays

crofters and farmers with corncrakes on their land to cut hay or silage

after July 31, so the young have time to fledge.