Footage of elusive Negros bleeding-heart dove captured in the wild

New footage of one of one of the most elusive birds in the world — the critically endangered Negros bleeding heart dove — has been released.

A team with the Bristol Zoological Society, a UK-based conservation and education NGO, spent five days searching for the bird in the forests of the Philippines’ Panay Island in order to capture a video of the rarely seen species in the wild.

You can see the footage here:

 

 

The Negros bleeding-heart (Gallicolumba keayi) is a medium-sized, ground-dwelling species of pigeon endemic to the Philippine islands of Negros and Panay. There are perhaps as few as 70 and no more than 400 individuals of the species left on the two islands it calls home, according to the International Union for the Conservation of Nature (IUCN). The bird gets its colorful name from the blood-red patch of plumage adorning its white chest.

“This species has an extremely small, severely fragmented population that is likely to be undergoing a continuing decline owing to forest loss on the two islands where it occurs. For these reasons, it is listed as Critically Endangered,” the IUCN notes in its assessment of the species’ conservation status.

Habitat degradation is the primary threat to the species, as agriculture, timber, and charcoal-burning continue to imperil the remaining forest fragments on both islands. The primary forests of Negros Island have been almost completely destroyed, with just 4 percent of any type of forest cover remaining as of the late 1980s, the IUCN reports. Just 8 percent of forests on Panay remain. Trapping and hunting for food and for the pet trade are also considered ongoing threats to the species.

The Negros bleeding-heart has only been filmed in the wild “a handful of times,” according to a statement by the Bristol Zoological Society, which added that “This is the first time it has been seen and filmed in recent years.”

Dr. Daphne Kerhoas, a lecturer in conservation science at the Bristol Zoo, filmed the bird, calling it a “career highlight.” She added: “Not only are there very few of these birds left in existence, but they are also very shy, meaning they are rarely seen. We have spent many years searching for this bird but have never before seen one outside of captivity. To finally have seen and videoed one first-hand is fantastic.”

Kerhoas and team encountered the Negros bleeding-heart in Northwest Panay Peninsula Natural Park, where the Bristol Zoological Society is establishing a new research station in order to continue monitoring and studying the species.

“With so little information existing about these birds in the wild, this sighting gives us greater hope than ever before that there is a population worth protecting and that our efforts will be channelled in the right place at the right time,” Kerhoas said. “We are feeling extremely optimistic for the future of the conservation project of this striking bird.”

CITATION

• BirdLife International. 2017. Gallicolumba keayi (amended version of 2016 assessment). The IUCN Red List of Threatened Species 2017: e.T22690988A117331949. doi:10.2305/IUCN.UK.2017-3.RLTS.T22690988A117331949.en. Downloaded on 15 June 2018.