Today, Bermuda's pioneering Cahow Recovery Program is excited to announce that on February 27th, at 1.57 am, CahowCam 1 captured the successful hatching of the first of this year's Cahow chicks. Seen attended to by the male parent, this milestone moment in the recovery of Bermuda's unique and critically endangered National Bird, the Cahow strengthens the program's reputation as one of the most successful conservation recovery programs for a critically endangered species in the world.
(Watch its first health check along with a preview of other chicks from Nonsuch Colony A in the video at the bottom of this post)
The Cahow played a role in Bermuda's early history, helping to prevent the Spanish colonization of Bermuda and giving rise to the earlier naming of the island as the "Isle of Devils".
Further expanding on the history, the Minister of Home Affairs, the Hon. Walter Roban explained, "The Cahow was catastrophically affected by the arrival of man on Bermuda, the introduction of mammal predators, and thought to be extinct for over three hundred years. Miraculously re-discovered in 1951, it became known as a "Lazarus Species", but with only 18 nesting pairs, the entire Cahow population was on the brink of extinction."
"However, since its rediscovery, the Bermuda Government's Cahow Recovery Program addressed threats to the species, enabling its increase to a record number of 155 nesting pairs in 2022."
At the same time, a partnership with program partner J-P Rouja of Nonsuch Expeditions has been responsible for the installation of infrared LIVEstream CahowCams in Cahow burrows on Nonsuch Island, enabling the public and researchers in over 100 countries to observe the nesting activity of this iconic species unobtrusively and enabling new discoveries to be made. The CahowCams have enabled the Recovery Program to achieve one of its most important objectives: public outreach and education, informing the public about the importance of our National Bird to Bermuda's history and natural heritage.
We invite everyone to follow the growth and development of this chick, (and if all goes well the hatching of the CahowCam 2 chick which is expected in the next few days) and feeding visits by their respective parents, for the next three months.
2022 marks the 10th anniversary of the CahowCam service, which has helped to raise Bermuda's profile in the international arena concerning innovative conservation management.”