Scientists have rediscovered a bird thought to be extinct for 140 years in the forests of Papua New Guinea.
After a month of searching, a team in September captured footage of the black-naped pheasant-pigeon, the first time the long-lost bird has been documented by scientists since 1882, reports BBC.
Rediscovering the bird, the expedition team had to conduct countless interviews with locals, set 20 camera traps, even had a run-in with pirates.
After capturing footage of the thought to be extinct species, expedition co-lead John Mittermeier had only one comment in mind. “It felt like finding a unicorn,” he said.
“It is the kind of moment you dream about your entire life as a conservationist and birdwatcher,” he expressed his emotion by saying.
The expedition team had tried to find the large, ground-dwelling pigeon before back in 2019 when three members of the team searched Fergusson Island. Fergusson Island is claimed to be it's only habitat. However, that expedition failed without any sight of the rare bird.
The team started their grueling effort again in 2022. They thought they would fail this time as well until they reached villages on the western slop of Kilkerran. Kilkerran is the highest peak of the Fergusson Island.
“We started meeting hunters who had seen and heard about the black-naped pheasant-pigeon,” Jason Gregg, a conservation biologist and co-leader of the expedition team, said.
One hunter in particular raised the hope to rediscover the bird when he said he saw the black-naped pheasant-pigeon several times in steep ridges and valleys of the mountain. He also were able to describe the distinctive call of the bird, reports BBC.
Being sure that they finally reached the habitat of the bird, the expedition team set up cameras in the area. And finally, just as their trip was ending, they captured footage of the bird walking on the forest floor.
“I was stunned by the photo of this bird walking past the camera when I was exploring the captures,” Cornell University researcher Jordan Boersma said.
The black-naped pheasant-pigeon is a large, ground-dwelling pigeon with a broad tail. Scientists still know little about the species and believe the population is small and decreasing.
However, the researchers now hope they can protect the remaining birds with the information they gathered.
