article thumbnail

Filling the Gap Left By DeBooy’s Rail

10,000 Birds

By far the most commonly seen bird on most of the islands in the region – and the only one every islander can identify on call – is Gallus gallus (the feral chicken). Guam Rail Gallirallus owstoni. Photo copyright The Smithsonian’s National Zoo, taken from the Guam Rail page. . So wither the Guam Rail now?

article thumbnail

The Gap Between Wildlife and the Animal Rights Movement

10,000 Birds

A classic example of what an invasive species is capable of resides on the island of Guam…when one species of snake made its way onto to the island via airplane, practically all of the island’s birds went extinct in a matter of a few decades. Obviously its perfectly fine to concentrate on one particular problem (i.e.