Bmda: Cahows coming back

Ten of Bermuda’s Cahows – an endangered species of bird endemic to the Island – are making a new home on Nonsuch Island after being exiled for almost 350 years.
The species has been delicately brought back from the brink of extinction over the past 40 years but they took a hard hit last September when Hurricane Fabian damaged many of the small islets off Castle Island.

The rocky outcrops, just west of Nonsuch Island, were home to their nests. Like most homes in Bermuda, they did not fare well in the category three hurricane.

“We had to either rebuild or replace the Cahow nests after massive chunks of the islands were lost during the storm,” Conservation Officer Jeremy Madeiros said yesterday.

The Cahows were at sea when Fabian hit and luckily none were lost in the storm. In order to help the Cahows survive long into the future, however, Mr. Madeiros is working with Nicholas Carlile, a senior project officer from the Department of Environment and Conservation New South Wales in Australia.