Qatar’s Al Wabra Wildlife Preservation has successfully bred one of the world’s most elusive and vulnerable bird species, the Bulwher’s pheasant.

Speaking to Gulf Times, Al Wabra’s director Dr. Tim Bouts said:

“Naturally occurring in the lower montane forests of Borneo, Indonesia, the Bulwer’s pheasants are extremely difficult to breed and have not successfully bred in several decades in captivity.”

After four eggs were laid, two were found to be fertile, and a pair of male chicks hatched earlier this year. The center is now waiting for the arrival of a donated female bird from the UAE to form a second breeding pair.

The AWWP, which is located near Al Shahaniyah, works to protect and breed threatened species, including the Spix’s macaw and Birds of Paradise, and is home to some 2,500 animals from more than a 100 species.

According to AWWP’s website, it is not open to the public:

The Al Wabra Wildlife Preservation is not a zoo and many areas are closed and marked with “no access” signs for visitors not to disturb sensitive animals and even the remaining enclosures are made mostly for the animals and not for visitors. This makes the Preservation to a unique place with a high success rate in breeding difficult and sensitive animals.

The AWWP did, however, recently run a Facebook contest in which a group of people were given “their one and only chance” to visit the center.

Thoughts?

Credit: Photos courtesy of AWWP on Facebook