Socorro Dove - Meet The Endangered
Socorro Dove (Zenaida graysoni)
The homeland of the Socorro Dove is Socorro Island, a resplendent volcanic isle 600 km (370 mi) off the coast of Mexico. The bird spent 1.5 million years there, but has not been seen since the 1970s.
The Socorro Dove is extinct in the wild. It is thanks only to the subsequent discovery of a few dozen held by private aviaries in California that it still exists at all. In the past few decades, conservationists have bred the animal in hopes of eventually returning it to its Edenic paradise.
The island has been cleared of predators. Conservation plans are currently in a waiting period where the island is monitored for the reemergence of predators and the birds are flown to mainland Mexico to acclimatize. After nearly a half-century’s absence, the Socorro Dove is finally scheduled to be re-released on the island this year.
IUCN: Extinct in the Wild (EW)
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