Over 30 new species of bird has been discovered in a recent expedition to Alto Sinú, in the Department of Córdoba, Colombia. The expedition team concluded of researchers, local naturalists and biologists, who had their sights set on one particular species known as the Sinú parakeet. This particular bird is on the Global Conservation Wildlife’s top 25 most wanted list, with no confirmed sighting since 1949, over 72 years ago.
After a long expedition through the northern slops of the Murrucucú mountains, the team didn’t find the exact bird they were looking for. However, despite not locating the Sinú parakeet, the team strongly suspect it could be located somewhere in the northern sector of the Western Andes, due to the amount of other rare and endangered species they discovered.
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“For me, as an avid amateur birder and nature-lover, this has been no doubt one of the most amazing experiences of my life. It gives me faith that we still have time to save these amazing places and habitats.” said Hugo Alejandro Herrera Gomez, president of Sociedad Ornitológica de Córdoba.
Much to their amazement, the team found and documented over 238 species of new birds over the course of 11 successful days. Here is a summarized list of their most interesting discoveries during the trip:
- Sharpbill - A very rare, small white and olive bird with dark spots. This particular bird has only been documented a handful of times in Columbia.
- Six other bird species were found, including the Sapayoa, a small olive and yellowish bird that had only been documented once before 1949 in Córdoba.
- An owl called the Chocó screech-owl and the slate-throated gnatcatcher, were two other species that were documented decades after their last confirmed sightings.
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- Chocoan Lancehead - a golden and brown snake that has never been documented in the department before now.
- A rare plant species was also found - a cocoa tree with tiny yellow flowers growing directly out of it’s trunk. This is only the third time it has been documented in the country.
Below are some more images of the new and exciting species they discovered:
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