Cincinnati Zoo Chick Arrives at Disney’s Animal Kingdom
A new group of rare sihek chicks are in quarantine ahead of wild release, including one from the Cincinnati Zoo & Botanical Garden.
One sihek chick, named Ava, from the Cincinnati Zoo & Botanical Garden left for Disney’s Animal Kingdom in early September, joining nine others from facilities across the United States. The birds, also known as Guam kingfishers, are in a quarantine facility as they prepare for release into the wild. The last wild sighting of sihek was in 1988, with only 143 left in the world.
As many as eight of the 10 birds currently in quarantine at Disney are expected to head to Palmyra Atoll, a predator-free island in the Pacific Ocean. They will join nine other sihek birds that were released on the island in 2024 as part of an attempt to reestablish the species in the wild. Three of those birds are also from the Cincinnati Zoo.
“We can’t wait to see how this new crew of birds adapts to the island and how two seasons of youngsters develop this habitat and their territories together,” said Aimee Owen, senior aviculturist at the Cincinnati Zoo, in a Sept. 23 press release.
The initiative is part of the Sihek Recovery Program, an international project dedicated to recovering the species. They are considered extinct in the wild, meaning they no longer exist in their natural habitat but still survive under human care. The ultimate goal is for sihek to fly again in their native home of Guam, where they had flourished until the brown tree snake wiped them out in the 1940s.
The transfer to Palmyra Atoll will mark only the second time in 40 years that new members of this species will live in the wild. The previous nine birds sent to the island have successfully created nests and laid eggs.
For more information, visit cincinnatizoo.org.
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