Rare ibis China gave Japan last year lays first egg, expected to hatch in April
- The egg was laid by Guan Guan, one of two birds Beijing gave Tokyo to commemorate the 40th anniversary of their peace and friendship treaty
A rare ibis given by China to Japan as a symbol of friendship last year has laid an egg for the first time, a local government said Sunday.
The egg laid by Guan Guan, one of a pair given by Beijing in October 2018, at the Sado Japanese Crested Ibis Conservation Centre is expected to hatch in mid-April if all goes smoothly.
The female ibis arrived at the facility in Niigata Prefecture with the male Lou Lou on the 40th anniversary of the two countries’ peace and friendship treaty.
The offering by China of the internationally protected species to Japan was the first since 2007, after years of sour ties between the two countries over territorial and wartime issues.
A worker at the conservation centre noticed the egg on a video monitor on Saturday and later confirmed it was laid before 5pm the same day, according to the facility.
The conservation centre is planning to artificially incubate it to maximise the chance of success.
Guan Guan and her three-year-old mate had been carrying out the mating ritual of exchanging small branches since mid-February, according to the centre.
Japan-born ibises became extinct in 2003. Since then, Japan has been artificially breeding ibises by relying on Chinese donations, the first of which was in 1999, and preparing them for reintroduction into the wild.
Those that have been released in the wild in the city of Sado are all descendants of the five given earlier by China.
The centre believes that with the addition of Lou Lou and Guan Guan, the genetic diversity of its artificially bred ibises will increase.
