Wednesday 30 January 2013

Green Tinkerbird rediscovered in Mozambique!



For anyone with an interest in African birds and birding, the following should be of immense interest…

 
Green Tinkerbird by Hugh Chittenden

After extensive searching, Greg Davies & Hugh Chittenden have rediscovered an isolated population of Green Tinkerbird (Pogoniulus simplex) in Mozambique, 55 years after the original (and only) southern African specimen was collected! This species occurs very sparsely in E Africa and disjunctly in Malawi and southern Mozambique, where it is only known from a single specimen collected in 1958! Previously thought to be extinct due to lowland forest exploitation and fragmentation, no less than 8 pairs (territories) were located over just 2 days this January in an unexpected habitat. As if this wasn’t enough, Hugh also managed to obtain several excellent images of the birds (in fact, the first ever published photos of this species!), which he has very generously allowed us to share. Well done Greg and Hugh on what is truly a monumental achievement!








(For further details on this amazing discovery, click on the following link: http://www.rarebirds.co.za/rarebirds/54_green_tinkerbird.htm)