25th anniversary
of saving the woodhen

It’s never too late

The rescue of the Lord Howe Island Woodhen is one of the most astonishing rescue missions ever undertaken to save an endangered species from certain extinction.

The Lord Howe Island Woodhen. Photo: Ian Hutton

In 2005, on its 25th anniversary, this success story reminds us that it is never too late to save a species. Extinction is not inevitable.

The story of the woodhen began some thousands of years ago when the birds arrived on the island and “found a safe environment without predators, and abundant food in the leaf litter. The woodhen did not need to fly away from danger, or into the trees for food, and subsequently lost the ability to fly,” says Ian Hutton, a local expert on the Woodhens.

“This all changed when humans discovered the Island in 1788. The diaries of early sailors who landed on the Island’s shores in search of food and water give graphic accounts of how easy it was to catch the Woodhens. Pigs released onto the island dug up worms, the major food of the woodhen. Settlers brought cats which preyed on the Woodhens. By the 1880s the Woodhens were pretty much confined to the mountain summits,” says Ian.

When surveys in the late 1970s discovered that only 22 woodhens were left on Lord Howe, a dramatic rescue and captive breeding program began.

Turning a humble 22 survivors into a viable population of about 250 birds is a costly matter. Woodhens needed to be round up, airlifted into safe enclosures and encouraged by scientists to breed in captivity before the first chick could hatch.

In 1978 the Foundation for National Parks & Wildlife answered the call for help to kick-start the rescue mission.

It funded scientist Ben Miller to research the key threats to the species. His work found that feral pigs were to blame for the decline of the woodhens. After a thorough eradication program and with a further $260,000, a captive breeding program started at the on-site laboratory.

On 19th August 1980 the first captive bred Woodhen hatched at the island’s breeding centre. Today, we find this chick’s descendants populate the island’s forests in healthy numbers.

Until 1984 the woodhens were the premier project for the Foundation. Corporate and public appeals including Operation Noah found overwhelming support in the community and raised more than $260,000 for the birds, helping to save a species from extinction.

The woodhen became the first of an array of species that Foundation supporters helped save. Along with the woodhen, your funds helped save the Malleefowl, the Yellow-footed Rock-wallaby and the Gould’s Petrel from almost certain extinction.

Financial help for Lord Howe’s wildlife continues today. The Foundation recently funded a cost-benefit analysis for a rat eradication program as a first step to remove this feral predator from the island and return it to its endemic species. The Phasmid, the Lord Howe Island Land Snail and the woodhen are just a few that will have a better chance to survive in the future.

The moral of the woodhen story is simple – as long as a species is surviving, no matter how few animals are left, we must not give up.

The Foundation will continue to respond to the call for help and invest in the “near lost causes”. Rescue is possible and you can help proof it by becoming a supporter.

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