It’s hard to pinpoint any one bird species as the rarest bird in the world as there are a number of contenders. The list would certainly have to include species that are officially listed as extinct in the wild and hang on only in captivity: the Guam kingfisher, Alagoas curassow, Hawaiian crow, Socorro dove and Spix’s macaw.
Then there are those known to persist in vanishingly small numbers in the wild: the cherry- throated tanager (which was believed to have been extinct until the discovery of a small population in the Brazilian Atlantic Rainforest in 1988) and Fatu Hiva monarch which is endemic to one tiny island in in French Polynesia.
Other candidates include the so-called “lost birds” such as the Himalayan quail, not seen since 1876.
Although the medium-sized Himalayan quail hasn't been seen in nearly 150 years there are still hopes some survive in the lower or middle Himalayan range.
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Main image: Socorro dove © Getty Images
