Florida's grasshopper sparrow will likely go extinct in the next three to five years if left to its own devices, scientists warn. For this reason the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service announced Thursday that it is launching a captive breeding program for the bird.
"Captive breeding is labor intensive and challenging," Larry Williams, a Fish and Wildlife official, told the Tampa Bay Times. "It is generally done as a last resort and there are no guarantees. But we have to try."
Biologists estimate there are fewer than 200 of the birds remaining and hope that by collecting approximately 20 eggs they may have a chance at bringing those numbers up.
"We know it's going to be hard," Fish and Wildlife Service Spokesman Ken Warren told the news outlet. "They're small birds living in dense vegetation and they're secretive by nature."
Scientists estimate the baby birds will hatch within two weeks of capture and will receive round-the-clock care in order to grow to a point where they are capable of breeding. Ultimately, biologists hope to release them back into the wild after two to three years.
The cost of all of this, Warren said, is $68,000, which he says is being provided in the form of grants.
First listed on the federal endangered species list in 1986, previous efforts to the save the grasshopper sparrow have included restoring lost habitat and guarding against preventable deaths. Nonetheless, numbers have continued to plummet and while no one is sure why, Williams believes it may be the result of a gender imbalance.
Other possibilities include fire ants, which eat the sparrow's eggs, disease and a loss of genetic diversity.
Ultimately, Williams said, the team behind the effort is determined to "prevent a unique part of Florida's landscape from vanishing."
© 2024 NatureWorldNews.com All rights reserved. Do not reproduce without permission.
