Conservationists are celebrating as a species of bird has been reintroduced into the wild for the first time in four decades, after going extinct in the wild.
The the sihek, also known as the Guam kingfisher, has been extinct in the wild since 1988, the result of predation by the invasive brown tree snake, according to a press release from the Zoological Society of London.
Native to Guam and culturally important to the native Chamorro, the bird species has been listed under the Guam Endangered Species Act in 1982 and on the U.S. Endangered Species List since 1984.
For decades, there has been a global effort to conserve this species with the hopes of one day reintroducing them to their natural habitat — and recently, those efforts finally paid off.
According to ZSL, six sihek are officially living in the wild after being released into the tropical forests of Palmyra Atoll. The historic release was hailed as a major moment for both the conservation efforts and the local culture.
“This is a momentous day that has been decades in the making,” said Professor John Ewen of ZSL’s Institute of Zoology and Sihek Recovery Program Team Chair Wildlife globally is under threat, and the success of seeing these birds fly in the wild once more highlights just how zoos, scientists and conservationists – working with governments and decision-makers – have the power to protect species and take huge steps in bringing them back from the very brink of extinction.”
“Our Guam Sihek, a symbol of our island’s beauty, with their cerulean blue and cinnamon coloration mirroring our ocean blue water and red-orange sunsets, have been achieving the seemingly impossible,” said Yolonda Topasna, DOAG Division of Aquatic and Wildlife Program coordinator.
“Their return to the wild is a testament to our people’s spirit and our commitment to preserving our heritage,” she added.
Nine birds — four female and five male — were hand-reared for the past several months at the Sedgwick County Zoo, and each was given a health exam ahead of the release. Teams will monitor their movements through tiny radio trackers attached to each bird.
Since the species went extinct due to predation from the brown tree snake, the Palmyra Atoll, a U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service National Wildlife Refuge, was chosen as the site for their release because it is protected and predator-free, ZSL writes.
The hope is that the sihek will thrive and establish a breeding population on the atoll, with the ultimate goal of releasing the species to Guam once they have the invasive snake population under control.
It’s amazing that the sihek has been reintroduced into the wild after four decades! What a huge victory for this conservation effort!
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