Red-billed tropicbird spotted for the first time on Seychelles’ Desroches Island
The Red-billed tropic bird in flight on Desroches Island. (Elizabeth Hein and James Wareing)
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(Seychelles News Agency) - Seychelles’ Desroches Island has recorded its first sighting of a red-billed tropicbird or “payanke labek rouz” in Creole by two assistant conservation officers of the Island Conservation Society (ICS).
In a press release on Thursday, ICS said the rare sighting, which is the 19th ever recorded in Seychelles, occurred recently when James Wareing was out bird-watching during the early morning hours.
“I had promised Lisa, the conservation officer of ICS here on Desroches, that I would not spot a new species without her, but nature had other plans,” said joked Wareing. He had to rush back to find Elizabeth Hein (known as Lisa) so they could see the bird together. The duo was ecstatic as they together observed and photographed the distinctive bird with its striking red bill.
Tropicbirds are common in Seychelles but the red-billed tropicbird, with its elegant white plumage and long tail feathers and its distinctly bright red bill, is rare. It is typically found in tropical and subtropical regions across the globe, making this sighting a significant event for bird enthusiasts. They usually nest on cliff faces, so this bird would unfortunately not have found the flat island of Desroches very appealing to stay at.
Greg Berke, director for conservation and science at ICS, emphasized the importance of such sightings.
“Each new species we document adds to our understanding of the island’s biodiversity. The presence of the red-billed tropicbird on Desroches highlights the ecological richness and the success of our ongoing conservation efforts,” he said.
The Island Conservation Society (ICS) set up a conservation Centre on Desroches in 2009 and have since then been working diligently on several projects to maintain, monitor and raise awareness about the biodiversity of the island.
Hein who was equally thrilled about the sighting, said, “It is moments like these that remind us why conservation work is so crucial. Every species plays a unique role in our ecosystem, and it is our duty to protect them.”
All sightings of birds in the Seychelles that are seen rarely or appear out of their range are reported to the Seychelles Bird Records Committee (SBRC) that collects and assesses all records of species.
