Extinct-In-The-Wild Bird Species Is Breeding On A New Island Home

The Guam kingfisher was extinct in the wild for almost 40 years but this species was recently released into the wild where it is now breeding.

A pair of Sihek or Guam Kingfisher, Todiramphus cinnamominus, on Palmyra Atoll. Five males and four females were rewilded on Palmyra Atoll in September 2024. This pair (Female, left and male, right) are the parents of the first confirmed eggs laid in the wild for 40 years. (Credit: Martin Kastner / TNC-ZSL)

In the face of growing national despair and hopelessness, the Guam Kingfisher, better known as the Sihek, Todiramphus cinnamominus, is the source of yet more good news: eggs! These beautiful birds, extinct in the wild for 40 years, were recently rewilded on Palmyra Atoll (read more here, here, and here). Although these captive-bred Sihek were not released on their native home of Guam, this development is nevertheless a critically important step closer to their eventual return home.