A rare bird that has been considered extinct in the wild was born in a Brazilian zoo on Monday breathing new life into hopes to keep the rare species from being wiped from the earth.

This baby Alagoas Curassow was born in the Parque Das Aves (Avian Park) in the Brazilian city of Foz do Iguacu, near the Iguazu Falls on Brazil's border with Argentina and Paraguay.

The Parque Das Aves says there are currently just 230 specimens of the exotic bird left on the planet, all of which are in captivity. They said the birth of their little chick marked the first time an Alagoas Curassow has hatched in a zoo.

Alagoas curassows were once native to the Atlantic forests of Brazil's northeast coast including the state of Alagoas, from where it gets its name.

The pheasant-like fowl was driven from its natural habitat by deforestation in Brazil's northeast to make way for agriculture, mostly sugarcane fields.

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