KUNMING -- A group of rare ibis once thought extinct in China have been spotted in the southwestern province of Yunnan.

Ten glossy ibis were first captured by a photographer in the Dianchi Lake wetlands in the provincial capital of Kunming late January. The flock has remained there for over two weeks.

The glossy ibis, a close relative to the endangered crested ibis, is under second-class state protection in China. Most common in Africa, South Europe and Central America, but rare in China, zoologists believed the birds had become extinct in China in the 20th century as their habitat was destroyed by human activity and pollution.

But in 2012, a glossy ibis was found in Yunnan and several others have been spotted in the province over the last few years.