Yangon, Myanmar - Scientists say a tiny, brown bird long thought to be extinct has been rediscovered in Myanmar's grasslands, but its fragmented habitat is threatened by human encroachment.
The Jerdon's babbler was first discovered in the 1860s but had not been reported in 74 years.
A team of scientists from the Wildlife Conservation Society, Myanmar's Nature and Wildlife Conservation Division and the National University of Singapore said Friday they found the sparrow-sized bird last May after playing a recording of its unique song and getting an answer.
In the following 48 hours they found several other babblers in the same area.
“The degradation of these vast grasslands had led many to consider this subspecies of Jerdon's Babbler extinct,” Colin Poole, director of the Wildlife Conservation Society's regional conservation hub in Singapore, said in a statement.
He said the discovery proves that the species - and its habitat - still exists.
The scientists said blood samples will be tested to see if the babbler should be considered a full species. If the tests come back positive, they said, the species will be exclusive to Myanmar.
Sapa-AP