Scientists Record First-Ever Video Of Colorful Bird Missing For 13 Years
01 November, 2026
This article was originally published by the dodo
High in the canopies of West Africa’s lowland forests, colorful, rare birds called Ghana cuckooshrikes make their homes inside the dense foliage.
For 13 years, these birds eluded scientists and enthusiasts, seeming to disappear completely. That is, until just recently, when International Bird Conservation Partnership (IBCP) field researchers Stephanie Bartlett and Paulo Ditzel caught one on camera.
According to IFL Science, the pair were in Taï National Park, on a months-long research expedition, when they noticed movement in the trees, along with a familiar set of bright feathers.
The bird experts reached for their cameras and began snapping photos and videos. They pored over the footage and confirmed they’d seen the elusive bird. They’d also captured one on video for the first time ever.
Ghana cuckooshrikes, once more common, have declined dramatically as years of deforestation and agricultural changes destroyed their homes.
In 2024, Search for Lost Birds, an initiative led by The American Bird Conservancy, Re:wild and BirdLife International, published a list of 126 birds “lost” to science, going undetected for over a decade. The cuckooshrike was on the list, as were the Jamaican pauraque and the New Caledonian lorikeet — birds unseen for over a century.
But now, with this new, confirmed sighting, researchers hope Ghana cuckooshrikes might be making a comeback, thanks to local conservation efforts to restore their population.
“This rediscovery proves that the bird is not extinct,” IBCP West Africa project manager Yendoubouam Kourdjouak told Mongabay. “[I]t’s also a positive sign for local biodiversity and offers hope for conservation efforts within Taï National Park.”
Hopefully, it won’t be another 13 years before researchers spot a Ghana cuckooshrike again.
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