The Sihek Takes Flight Again at Palmyra Atoll

Project Details:

For nearly four decades, the Sihek (Todiramphus cinnamominus), also known as the Guam kingfisher, survived only in human care, classified as Extinct in the Wild. Brightly colored with cinnamon-orange feathers and an iridescent blue back, the Sihek is treasured by the CHamoru, the indigenous people of the Mariana islands. Now, with the support of the Colossal Species Reintroduction Fund, The Nature Conservancy (TNC) and the Sihek Recovery Program are opening a new chapter in the bird’s return to the wild.

In Partnership With

TNC is a global conservation organization that manages the Palmyra Atoll Preserve, a small island in the central Pacific Ocean, in close partnership with the U.S. Fish & Wildlife Service. This effort is part of the Sihek Recovery Program, a collaboration that brings together TNC, the Zoological Society of London, the Guam Department of Agriculture, USFWS, the IUCN SSC Conservation Translocation Specialist Group, and the Association of Zoos & Aquariums, whose member zoos house Sihek and contribute chicks, staff, and expertise.

Why the Sihek Matters

Unlike most kingfishers, the Sihek doesn’t actually fish. It perches on tree branches, then drops to seize skinks, geckos, insects, and small crustaceans off the forest floor.

Photo Credit: Jonny Shepherd

Its disappearance from Guam was swift. After brown treesnakes arrived aboard military vessels in the 1940s, the invasive predator devastated the island’s native forest birds, wiping out 9 of Guam’s 11 forest bird species. Between 1984 and 1986, biologists brought 29 of the last wild birds into a conservation breeding program that has sustained the species ever since. The Sihek was last spotted in the wild in 1988.

Because the brown treesnake still persists on Guam, conservationists chose a new home for the Sihek: Palmyra Atoll, a snake-free U.S. National Wildlife Refuge in the central Pacific. The atoll lies roughly 3,700 miles east of Guam.

Progress So Far

A group of nine Sihek were released in Palmyra Atoll in September 2024. And 18 months later, all nine were confirmed alive and thriving, some having even laid their first eggs.

Today, about 100 adult Sihek are housed across 25 AZA zoos and the Guam Department of Agriculture.

How the Species Reintroduction Fund is Helping

With the Colossal Foundation’s support, the Sihek Recovery Program will strengthen this young wild population:

A Second Cohort – Releasing an additional nine birds in late 2026 to build on the founding population.

Genetic Diversity – Adding demographic and genetic diversity to give the wild population a stronger footing.

A Path Home – Advancing a recovery effort that could eventually move the Sihek from Extinct in the Wild to Critically Endangered on the IUCN Red List.