No-one has seen the Yellow-crested Helmetshrike for about 20 years. That changed when researchers embarked on a six-week expedition in the Democratic Republic of the Congo and captured the dramatic-looking yellow-topped bird in its first-known photo.
With nearly 70% of the planet's wildlife populations having declined since the 1970s, there are not often stories worth cheering for when it comes to global animal welfare. But a new find in the remote Itombwe Massif in the Congo is certainly good news for bird enthusiasts and other wildlife conservationists.
An expedition made to that region by a combination of University of Texas at El Paso (UTEP) and Congolese researchers from the Centre de Recherche en Sciences Naturelles stumbled upon the bird after hiking along a 75-mile course through the mountain where they were studying amphibians, reptiles, and birds. Even though the bird hasn't been seen in nearly two decades and has never been photographed, the team actually came upon a noisy group of them living in the midstory of the forest. They clocked a total of 18 birds at three sites during their expedition.
"It was a mind-blowing experience to come across these birds," said Michael Harvey, an ornithologist and UTEP assistant professor in the Department of Biological Sciences. "We knew they might be possible here, but I was not prepared for how spectacular and unique they would appear in life."
The bird's natural habitat on the slopes of the Albertine Rift of Central Africa has been fairly inaccessible for years due to war and other security issues, but has recently become safer for exploration.
The Yellow-crested Helmetshrike (Prionops alberti) was listed as a "lost" bird by the American Bird Conservancy, who says that more than 130 birds, which equals about one percent of all species, are included in this category. The organization now runs a program called Search for Lost Birds, which seeks to find some of the species believed to no longer exist. Recent discoveries include the Black-naped Pheasant-Pigeon in Papau New Guinea, which hadn't been seen for 126 years, and the Black-browed Babbler, of which only one bird was ever known until its rediscovery in Borneo in 2020.
The photo of the helmetshrike was reviewed and confirmed by Cameron Rutt, Ph.D, who leads the Lost Birds project.
Bird lovers aren't the only ones to be rewarded by the expedition's efforts. The team also found a Red-bellied Squeaker Frog, a species that hasn't been spotted since the 1950s, so amphibian fans can rejoice as well.
"This inspires hope that perhaps the species still has a reasonably healthy population in the remote forests of the region," Harvey summarized about the Helmetshrike find. "But mining and logging, as well as the clearing of forests for agriculture, are making inroads deep into the forests of the Itombwe range. We are in discussions with other researchers and conservation organizations to further efforts to protect the region's forests and the Helmetshrike."
Source: University of Texas at El Paso
