Ten endangered flamingos have been saved after smugglers were caught trying to traffic them out of Tunisia, according to the country’s customs body.

Photos of the birds crammed into crates with their wings, legs and torsos bound up were posted by the force online.

The flamingos were rescued close to the Algerian border on Sunday, having been “loaded onto a lorry bearing a Tunisian registration plate”, officials said in a statement.

The birds have now been safely returned to their natural habitat, officials added, “as part of efforts to preserve the species”.

But is not clear what action is being taken against the purported smugglers.

It is illegal to hunt or smuggle flamingos in Tunisia because they are protected by Tunisian law.

Other threats to flamingos include pollution and rising temperatures caused by human-induced climate change, say conservationists, causing flamingos’ wetland habitats to shrink.

The greater flamingo, or Phoenicopterus roseus to use its scientific name, is listed as a threatened species by the International Union for Conservation of Nature.

Yet there is some good news, as data gathered in the past decade has shown some population increases.

Latest estimates suggest there are at least half a million left in the wild.

North Africa is one stop among many for these migratory birds, which are also spotted in Europe, West Africa and Asia.

Bird-watching hotspots for flamingos include Djerba island off Tunisia’s south-eastern coast, and Korba Lagoon further to the north.