Conservationists in Samoa are calling for stringent monitoring of hunting bans on the endangered manumea or tooth-billed pigeon to save the remaining population.
There have been recent sightings of the native manumea in the rainforest at Uafato village on Upolu by teams of conservationists from the Samoa Conservation Society and the Biodiversity and Protected Areas Management programme.
The Samoa Observer reports manumea bird calls and sightings were recorded around the same time of day suggesting there could be two or more manumea in the forest.
An adult manumea was also spotted in the Uafato forest by a second-team during a research visit.
Photo: Autagavaia Tipi Autagavaia Caption: Samoa national manumea bird mural on the eastern wall of the New Zealand High Commission office in Apia