Captive Breeding Program
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The Guam Native Forest Bird Captive Breeding Program began in 1983 as a
cooperative effort between the DAWR, member zoos of the American
Association of Zoological Parks and Aquariums (now known as the American
Zoo and Aquarium Association, or AZA), and the U.S. Fish and Wildlife
Service. Predation by the Brown tree snake, Boiga irregularis, now believed
to be the single most important factor in the recent drastic decline of
Guam's native forest birds, precipitated the need for a captive breeding
program when by 1982 at least 5 species of Guam endemic species or
subspecies were nearing extinction in the wild. Unfortunately, by 1984,
attempts at captive breeding 3 of these species, the bridled white-eye,
Zosterops c. conspicillata, rufous fantail, Rhipidura rufifrons uraniae,
and the Guam flycatcher, Miagra freycineti, were abandoned due to their
virtual disappearance from the wild.
The Guam rail and Guam subspecies of the Micronesian kingfisher, Halcyon c. cinnamomina, were successfully brought into captivity, with the capture of 19 and 31 wild birds respectively. Rails first bred at the DAWR facility on Guam and at the Conservation and Research Center of the National Zoological Park in 1984. Anita Cramm, Curator of Birds, Phoenix Zoo, was elected as the Species Survival Plan (SSP) coordinator for the AZA’s Guam rail program in August 2000. In FY00, 16 rails hatched and successfully fledged in mainland zoos.
There are currently, June 2005, 116 ko'ko' in DAWR's captive breeding facility on Guam. 73 ko'ko' are in 12 US zoological facilities.
The number of Guam rails, Gallirallus owstoni, at the DAWR captive breeding facility increased from 120 on 1 October 1999, to 133 on 30 September 2000. Twenty-one breeding pairs produced 353 eggs, 266 (75%) of which hatched. One hundred and thirty-nine chicks lived for at least 30 days of age, were banded and added to the captive flock by 30 September 2000. One hundred and seventeen rails were transferred to Rota and released into the wild. Two female and male rails were transferred to Guam from mainland zoos. At the DAWR captive breeding facility, 1 young bird escaped and 16 birds died.
The SSP management committee consists of Dr. Fontenot, the veterinarian, a species coordinator (Megan Ross, Chicago Lincoln park Zoo), veterinary pathologist (Dr. Don Nichols, National Zoo), a nutritionist (Barbara Toddes, Philadelphia Zoo) and a studbook keeper (David Orndoff, San Diego Zoo).
Zoos participating in the Guam Rail SSP: (Details FY 2000)
San Diego Zoo
San Diego Wild Animal Park
San Diego Zoo's video report on Guam Rail
Audubon Nature Institute, New Orleans
Baton Rouge Zoo
Louisville Zoo
Cincinnati Zoological Gardens
The National Aviary, Pittsburgh
National Aviary page about Guam Rail
Philadelphia Zoo
Philadelphia Zoo page about Rail and Kingfisher
Sedgwick County Zoo Wichita, KS
San Antonio Zoo
Milwaukee Zoo
National Zoological Park, Washington, D.C.
Conservation and Research Center, Virginina
Zoos participating in the Kingfisher SSP:
San Diego Zoo
Guam Comprehensive Wildlife Conservation Strategy, 9/27/2005
