We continue our look at the worlds rarest animals with a look at ten of the worlds rarest birds and where they are from. You should expect to see any of these at your bird feeder any time soon and some of them are so rare that no-human has seen them for several years. Hopefully, none of the birds on this list are extinct at the time of writing this and at least a few of them survive and grow in numbers…
The kakapo (Strigops habroptilus)
The kakapo (Strigops habroptilus)
This bird is often called the ‘owl parrot’ because of the way it looks, but also noticeable about the way it looks is the colour of the bird that perfectly matches its environment. The good news is there is a ‘Kakapo Recovery Programme’ that is trying to protect their species.
The Superb Bird-of-Paradise (Lophorina superba)
The Superb Bird-of-Paradise (Lophorina superba)
This odd-looking bird is one of the more amazing bird species our planet has to offer and is also one of the rarest. This photo was taken during its mating ritual that is considered one of the most vibrant and technical of all the bird-of-paradise species.
The Spix’s macaw (Cyanopsitta spixii)
The Spix’s macaw (Cyanopsitta spixii)
There are several species of macaw that are on the endangered list, but none are more endangered, nor as rare as this one. It got its name after it was discovered by German naturalist Johann Baptist von Spix for first found them in 1819, but sadly human destruction of its environment has caused numbers to fall massively.
The Pink Pigeon (Nesoenas mayeri)
The Pink Pigeon (Nesoenas mayeri)
I bet you didn’t think you would see a pigeon on this list! But this is the pink pigeon and is, of course, most noticeable due to the pink plumage on its head. Sadly once again it is down to human-influenced habitat destruction that has caused its species numbers to drop, but the good news is there are lots of pigeon conservationists trying to breed the species in captivity.
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The Northern Bald Ibis (Geronticus eremita)
The Northern Bald Ibis (Geronticus eremita)
This mean-looking bird completely vanished from Europe, with only a few breeding pairs left across the Middle East, but the good news is conservation efforts have reintroduced this bird to several locations in Europe and all over the world the species is heavily protected.
The Spoon-billed Sandpiper (Calidris pygmaea)
The Spoon-billed Sandpiper (Calidris pygmaea)
It is thought there might be as little as 100 breeding pairs of this species in the world, but the good news here is that a massive fund has been created to save this species by protecting its environment and safeguarding each nest.
The Madagascan Pochard (Aythya innotata)
The Madagascan Pochard (Aythya innotata)
Another bird you might not have expected on this list is a duck, but this is no normal pond loving duck, this is the Madagascan Pochard duck and it is so rare there is thought to be less than 100 breeding pairs in the wild. It is most noticeable thanks to the males making a “wee-oow” sound much like a cat.
The Marquesan Imperial Pigeon (Ducula galeata)
The Marquesan Imperial Pigeon (Ducula galeata)
Yes, this is yet another pigeon that you won’t be seeing down the local park eating bread any time soon. This pigeon is only found in small pockets of the Marquesas Islands and is sadly declining in species due to invading species (not us humans for a change).
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The Bali Myna (Leucopsar Rothschildi)
The Bali Myna (Leucopsar Rothschildi)
When you are just 25 centimetres tall you are pretty hard to spot, but it is thought that numbers of this species could be as low as 100 and no that isn’t pairing species, just numbers as a whole so as you might imagine there are massive efforts underway to save this species from the brink of extinction.
The Long-whiskered Owlet (Xenoglaux loweryi)
The Long-whiskered Owlet (Xenoglaux loweryi)
For those who don’t know an Owlet is basically small species of owl and this one which is obviously most notable due to its long long eye whiskers is one of the rarest of them all. The main problem is the location of the species which is often the dense undergrowth in the Andean mountains making counting numbers pretty hard. But the good news is that hard to reach location is also safe from most human intervention.
Sources Used…
- https://www.birdlife.org/pacific/news/winners-worlds-rarest-birds-announced
- https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=nPhVOZiPokA
- https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Pink_pigeon
- https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Spix’s_macaw
- https://observers.france24.com/en/20181130-debunked-viral-photo-hummingbird-fake
- https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=H26Tl7e3KeU
- https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Madagascan_pochard
- https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Marquesan_imperial_pigeon
- https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Bali_myna
- https://www.birdwatchingdaily.com/news/conservation/eye-on-conservation-protection-added-for-long-whiskered-owlet-one-of-the-worlds-rarest-birds/