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Guam Rail Conservation: a Milestone 30 Years in the Making by Kurt Hundgen, Director of Animal Collections

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Guam Rail Conservation: a Milestone 30 Years in the Making by Kurt Hundgen, Director of Animal Collections CONSERVATION & RESEARCH UPDATES FROM THE NATIONAL AVIARY SPRING 2021 Guam Rail Conservation: A Milestone 30 Years in the Making by Kurt Hundgen, Director of Animal Collections t the end of 2019 the conservation Working together through the Guam best of all, recent sightings of unbanded world celebrated a momentous Rail Species Survival Plan® (SSP), some rails there confirm that the species has achievement:A Guam Rail, once ‘Extinct twenty zoos strategized ways to ensure the already successfully reproduced in the in the Wild,’ was elevated to ‘Critically genetic diversity and health of this small wild for the first time in almost 40 years. Endangered’ status thanks to the recent population of Guam Rails in human care. The international collaboration that successful reintroduction of the species Their goal was to increase the size of the made the success of the Guam Rail to the wild. This conservation milestone zoo population and eventually introduce reintroduction possible likely will go is more than thirty years in the making— the species onto islands near Guam that down in conservation history. Behind the hoped-for result of intensive remained free of Brown Tree Snakes. every ko’ko’ once again living in the collaboration among multiple zoos and Guam wildlife officials have slowly wild is the very successful collaboration government agencies separated by oceans returned Guam Rails to the wild on the among many organizations and hundreds and continents. It is an extremely rare small neighboring islands of Cocos and of dedicated conservationists. conservation success story, shared by Rota. Reintroduction programs are most And we hope that there will be only one other bird: the iconic successful when local governments and California Condor. another headline-grabbing story to share: citizens invest in and drive the efforts. after decades of work in select zoos, the The Brown Tree Snake (Boiga Reestablishing wild populations of ko’ko’ population of Guam Kingfishers—another irregularis), which was accidentally birds, as the species is called on Guam, ‘Extinct in the Wild’ species—may soon introduced on Guam in the mid-twentieth has been a tremendous source of pride be large enough to support another century, underwent a population explosion, for the people of Guam. historic reintroduction effort. Our partners reaching densities of up to 30,000 snakes Even during the COVID-19 pandemic, continue to focus on preventing further per square mile by the late 1980s. They the work of conserving the species has spread of Brown Tree Snakes so that the rapidly decimated populations of nine continued. In October 2020, 49 more restored population of Guam Rails (and, of Guam’s 11 endemic forest bird species. rails were introduced on Rota, eight of potentially, of Guam Kingfishers, too) will In 1987, wildlife biologists managed to which hatched at the National Aviary. be able to once again thrive in the wild. n rescue the few remaining Guam Rails— The National Aviary has hatched more a mere 21 birds—and place them in the Guam Rails for reintroduction than any Your support makes conservation success stories like this possible. Donate today. care of a handful of Association of Zoos other North American zoo. Birds are and Aquariums (AZA) accredited zoos. thriving in their new island homes, and, A Guam Rail and her recently hatched chicks in the National Aviary’s Tropical Rainforest. More Guam Rails have hatched at the National Aviary than any other North American zoo. SPRING 2021 | 1 FROM THE EDITOR Conservation Involves Us All t the National Aviary, our vision statement emphasizes the importance of avian conservation through the use of “education, entertainment, ecological research, husbandry,A and healthcare.” Indeed, the integration of conservation throughout the National Aviary and other Association of Zoos and Aquariums (AZA) institutions is one of our great strengths as leaders in bird conservation. The National Aviary inspires respect for nature through an In FlightPaths we often highlight our ecological research efforts, but in this appreciation of birds. issue we focus on the diversity of conservation programs offered across the many departments at the National Aviary. For example, our Director of Animal Collections shares the incredible story of the Guam Rail, which will go down in conservation history. Only the second bird Editor Steven Latta, Ph.D. species to ever be rescued from ‘Extinct in the Wild,’ the National Aviary played a Director, Conservation and Field Research fundamental role in breeding birds in human care to be released back into the wild. [email protected] Even under the increased precautions dictated by the COVID-19 pandemic, partners in the Guam Rail recovery effort were able to release another 49 birds into the wild, Managing Editor including eight raised at the National Aviary. Robert Mulvihill, M.Sc. We look for comparable success now as world leaders in the conservation of Ornithologist [email protected] the African Penguin. In this issue of FlightPaths we introduce you to our new staff member, Dr. Patricia McGill, who is also the African Penguin SAFE (Saving Animals From Extinction) Program Leader. Joining Senior Aviculturist Chris Gaus, a key 700 Arch Street member of the Species Survival Plan® program, we will use our expertise to find and Pittsburgh, PA 15212-5201 fund solutions, and leverage the collective power of AZA institutions to solve the 412-323-7235 challenges facing our beloved penguins. Our crew from Buildings and Grounds seeks conservation-minded solutions to various challenges on a daily basis, but also works closely with contractors and staff to achieve long-term results. Here we put the spotlight on our recent adoption of a specially laminated, bird-friendly glass product from Vitro Architectural Glass in the construction of our new event space, The Garden Room. We look long term, too, in highlighting the importance of children’s education in nurturing the next generation of conservationists. This year the National Aviary designed aviary.org and introduced innovative virtual programming to Follow us on Twitter: @National_Aviary reach children and learners of all ages in a safe yet Facebook.com/NationalAviary engaging manner. The integration of our conservation mission Your donation supports the National Aviary’s work to save birds and across the National Aviary is key to our progress. protect their habitats. Browse this issue of FlightPaths to see examples of how all of our departments contribute to conservation success! Steven Latta, Ph.D. Director, Conservation and Field Research Taking the Lead to Keep African Penguins SAFE by Dr. Patricia McGill, AZA African Penguin SAFE Program Leader and Senior Conservation Scientist at National Aviary enguins are among the most The National Aviary helps support and respond to emerging medical issues Pcharismatic, endearing, intriguing conservation efforts for African Penguins in wild populations. creatures on earth—known to us from in South Africa, and it is a leader in The SAFE program is also focused on the time we were children. Importantly, sustaining a very healthy population of finding solutions to longer-term challenges. we all need to understand that, with few African Penguins in human care. As a Using RFID/PIT tags and readers, we will exceptions, the world’s 18 penguin species recent addition to the National Aviary’s learn about local movements and dispersal are in serious decline, and humans are the staff, I will continue to lead the Association patterns to detect important sites and reason why. The National Aviary is taking of Zoos and Aquariums (AZA) Saving local threats. We will uncover and mitigate the lead to keep one Endangered species, Animals From Extinction (SAFE) potential negative interactions with fisheries. the African Penguin, safe from extinction. program for African Penguins. SAFE SAFE will develop management solutions Thirteen penguin species are Near is a collaborative conservation effort informed by an understanding of penguin Threatened, Vulnerable, or Endangered focused on threatened species. SAFE movements at sea, including long-distance according to the International Union engages colleagues across the species’ dispersal patterns at different life stages, for the Conservation of Nature (IUCN) range in conservation, and works to and correlate these with fluctuating fish Red List. All penguin species found in achieve strategic conservation outcomes densities. And, we will engage the staff, temperate and sub-tropical latitudes in time to preserve species. volunteers, members, and guests of the (African, Humboldt, Magellanic, Galapagos, National Aviary Senior Aviculturist National Aviary, and encourage them and Little Blue Penguins) plus temperate Chris Gaus is also directly involved in to learn about and take action on behalf populations of Yellow-eyed Penguins, are the SAFE program through his increasing of African Penguins. showing population declines. Recently, the activity as a key member of the Species The National Aviary, working with IUCN Penguin Specialist Group designated Survival Plan® (SSP) steering committee. its partners in the African Penguin SAFE three species, including African Penguins, Chris ensures best management of the program, will continue to work toward as requiring urgent conservation action. SSP population and engages SSP institutions a better understanding of the issues Why are the world’s penguins in such to become directly involved in SAFE facing African Penguins in the wild.
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