Cincinnati Zoo helps reintroduce birds designated extinct in the wild to Pacific Island

CINCINNATI (WKRC) - Birds that had been designated extinct in the wild are now laying eggs on an island in the Pacific and the Cincinnati Zoo played a big role.

The Guam Kingfisher (also known as the Guam Sihek) hasn't been spotted in the wild since 1988, nearly 40 years ago.

A non-native snake had been introduced to Guam by accident in the 1940s and nearly wiped out the Sihek.

Before they became extinct in the wild, Guam biologists brought 29 Sihek to the U.S. starting a conservation breeding program in Association of Zoos and Aquariums (AZA)-accredited zoos of which the Cincinnati Zoo is a member.

Nine birds were released at The Nature Conservancy’s Palmyra Atoll Preserve. Three of them were from the Cincinnati Zoo.

One of them, Tutuhan, has laid eggs.

“This work on Palmyra is something I couldn’t have imagined witnessing in my lifetime, let alone being a part of,” said Cincinnati Zoo’s Senior Aviculturist Aimee Owen. “We’re so excited that they’ve all come as far as they have and that Tutuhan, Cincinnati’s first egg, first chick produced, and the first chick of the entire project is now one of the first to produce eggs on the island. Her being 'the first of firsts' of this ground-breaking conservation work is a milestone that simply fills us with pride, even beyond playing our role in the first place.”

Plans are underway for more young Sihek to be released at Palmyra Atoll this summer.

“The short-term goal is to establish a fully self-sustaining Sihek population on Palmyra Atoll,” said Owen. “The ultimate goal is to reestablish a Sihek population on Guam.”

The birds are young and new at incubating and caring for eggs, so experts warn it may take a few rounds before the birds hatch chicks but experts are excited by the prospects.