Tiny bird long thought to be extinct rediscovered in Myanmar

A tiny, brown bird long thought to be extinct has been rediscovered in Myanmar's grasslands, scientists report, but its fragmented habitat is threatened by human encroachment.

The Jerdon's babbler, a bird about the size of a house sparrow, was first discovered in 1862 by British naturalist T. C. Jerdon in grassy plains near Thayetmyo, a city in central Myanmar. There have been no recorded spottings of the bird in 74 years.

A team of scientists from the Wildlife Conservation Society (WCS), Myanmar's Nature and Wildlife Conservation Division and the National University of Singapore said Friday they found the sparrow-sized bird last May. They were surveying an abandoned agricultural station and heard the bird’s distinctive call.

In the following 48 hours they found several other babblers in the same area, confirming their presence by playing a recording of its call and getting a response. The scientists also took photographs of the bird and obtained blood samples.

The birds used to be common in the grasslands, but agriculture and urbanization had driven it from its natural habitat, the WCS said in a statement. "The degradation of these vast grasslands had led many to consider this subspecies of Jerdon's Babbler extinct," Colin Poole, director of the WCS' regional conservation hub in Singapore, said.

He said the discovery proves that the species — and its habitat — still exists. The rediscovery was described in the recently published issue of Birding Asia, the magazine of the Oriental Bird Club, according to the WCS.

The scientists said blood samples will be tested to see if the babbler should be considered a full species. If the tests come back positive, they said, the species will be exclusive to Myanmar, a country known for its bird diversity.

The Associated Press