The Christmas Island Tourism Association is appealing for help to save the island’s endangered Abbott’s Booby birds.
A cyclone which passed close to Christmas Island in March this year dealt the world’s last population of the Abbott’s Booby (Papasula abbotti) a severe blow.
While most of the adult seabirds flew to shelter, the storm hit at the wrong time for many helpless chicks, which were blown onto the ground.
Although many chicks didn’t survive, staff from the Christmas Island National Park and volunteers from Island Care, (a small not-for-profit, community based conservation group) retrieved 35 live chicks from the forest floor which they have been attempting to raise to adulthood.
The biggest challenge facing the volunteers is feeding the hungry chicks — each bird eats up to eight small fish and squid a day, which has to be freighted in.
The chicks will not be fully fledged for around nine months.
Despite the generous support of locals, Island Care has launched an appeal to raise $12 000 which is required to pay for the food, medicine and vitamins to raise the chicks.
You can follow progress of the boobies here: www.facebook.com/IslandCareChristmasIsland
Donate here: www.chuffed.org/project/save-the-abbotts-booby
