A middle-aged vulture has become the first of its kind to undergo a stem cell procedure to help the bird breed more chicks. 

The 28-year-old Eurasian black vulture, which is named Bernard, has had its virility diminished by arthritis in its right leg.

The stiffness in the bird of prey’s joints has prevented “Brother Bernard”, whose name comes from the fact that its species is commonly referred to as monk vulture, from mating properly. 

Conservationists and veterinarians at the Horstmann Vulture Trust in South Wales performed stem cell therapy on its leg at the start of October. 

Bernard fathered the first ever chick of his endangered species to be hatched in the UK and experts hope the operation will revive the vulture’s relationship with its 19-year-old partner, Twinkle. 

Adam Bloch, the CEO of The Horstmann Vulture Trust in South Wales, told The Telegraph that he hopes the pair’s future offspring could be the first monk vultures hatched in the UK to be released back into the wild. 

“He’s got arthritis in one of his legs so to help him continue breeding. We have taken on the idea of trying stem cell treatments to try and improve his capability,” Mr Bloch said. 

“His leg was getting incredibly stiff so we are hoping the stem cells will regenerate some of the tissue within the joint, improve lubrication and reverse some of the signs of arthritis.”

The small procedure cost around £500 and Bernard is already showing signs of improvement.

It is thought to be the first time a vulture has received this type of operation and it is hoped the procedure will help it live well into his 60s. 

“We’re determined to help him as much as we can,” Mr Bloch added.

“He’s looking a lot more comfortable. His movement is much better, he’s much happier wandering around and he’s been carrying sticks around the nest recently.

“I don’t think we are looking at a 100 per cent reversal here but things have definitely improved and this is still early stages.”

The operation, which was carried out by Cell Therapy Sciences, also offers hope for vultures and other avian species suffering from similar joint-related conditions.

Vultures face some of the highest extinction risks of any bird group and The Horstmann Vulture Trust is at the forefront of efforts to conserve the species, which has seen a dramatic decline in recent decades.

In Asia alone, the collapse of vulture populations – largely because of toxic veterinary drugs like diclofenac – has resulted in a 99.9% reduction of population numbers. 

This also triggered a public health crisis as carcasses once scavenged by vultures began to accumulate and caused half a million human deaths.

The Horstmann Vulture Trust is home to around 70 vultures and the flock contains around 8 per cent of the world’s entire captive population of hooded vultures, as well as around 7 per cent of Egyptian vultures.

“It sounds really impressive but that is only about 20 birds of each,” Mr Bloch added.

“Sometimes we breed more in the UK than are bred in-country for the animals.”

Chris Kaba’s family tried to gag the press from reporting the full details of his violence and criminality, it can now be reported.

None of the evidence about his gang connections or his role in the Hackney nightclub shooting was known to the jury in the trial of Martyn Blake, the police officer accused of murdering him.

But following the not guilty verdict handed down on Monday at the Old Bailey, the media should have been able to publish the full details of Kaba’s background.

However, reporting restrictions remained in place after the family made an 11th-hour application to the trial judge Mr Justice Goss.

Through lawyers, his mother, Helen Lumuanganu, argued the bad character information about her son should be kept secret until a jury inquest into his death could be held.

They argued that if the details of his gang connections and gun violence were known it could prejudice the future proceedings, which are not expected to take place for at least a year.

So concerned were the Metropolitan Police about the impact of the public being kept in the dark about Kaba’s background, that Deputy Assistant Commissioner Stuart Cundy wrote to the judge warning him it could result in civil unrest.

DAC Cundy, who is responsible for local policing across London’s 32 boroughs, wrote: “Our assessment is that if the information in relation to Mr Kaba’s character is shared with the public, those who would seek to promote anti-police violence would gain less support and the overall likelihood of disorder and the risk to public safety would reduce.”

He went on: “It is vital that members of the community are as well informed as is possible in relation to the circumstances of this case. Reporting on Mr Kaba’s character would be important in providing background to the case and alleviating community concerns that Mr Kaba was targeted by the police because of his ethnicity.

“If the bad character evidence is not disclosed at the conclusion of the trial, then the local community would be given a misleading impression about who Mr Kaba was, how he came to be stopped by the police and the necessity for armed police deployments to confront criminal gangs who are involved in armed criminality.”

Despite the warnings Mr Justice Goss, who was also the trial judge in the Lucy Letby case last year, delayed his decision overnight meaning nothing could be reported about Kaba’s background when the verdict was handed down on Monday.

Protests were held in London following Mr Blake’s acquittal, but fortunately, they remained largely peaceful.

On Tuesday morning, more than 16 hours after the not guilty verdict was handed down, Mr Justice Goss rejected the family’s application for reporting restrictions and the full details of Kaba’s violent criminality could be made public.

As well as details and footage of the Hackney nightclub shooting, in which Kaba gunned down a gang rival, it has also been revealed that he was a core member of Brixton’s violent 67 organised crime gang.

In addition, it can now be revealed he served four years for firearms offences when he was a teenager and at the time of his death was the subject of an interim gang injunction.