'Extinct' dove breeds at London Zoo.

London Zoo keepers have bred a dove that died out in the wild thirty years ago. It’s a first for the zoo and keepers hope it will mark a change in fortunes for the beleaguered bird.

The Socorro dove has been extinct in the wild for more than 30 years, having been last sighted in its natural habitat in 1972. Endemic to the island of Socorro, 600 miles off the western coast of Mexico, there are now thought to be less than 100 in captivity and successful breeding is vital to a plan to reintroduce them to the wild.

It is hoped that, as part of the European Association of Zoos and Aquaria (EAZA) breeding programme working towards reintroduction, this dove’s descendants will be returned to the forests of Socorro.

Socorro doves died out after falling prey to a rising number of feral cats in the area, populations of which have now begun to be brought under control. Overgrazing sheep also destroyed much of their forest floor habitat and the birds were also hunted by humans for food. Work is already underway to eradicate both sheep and cats from the island completely before reintroduction.