An expedition to Alto Sinú in the Department of Córdoba, Colombia, led by Sociedad Ornitológica de Córdoba, Asociación Calidris (BirdLife in Colombia) and the National Natural Parks found approximately 30 species of birds that had never before been documented in the department. The expedition team, which included researchers, local naturalists and biologists, was looking for the Sinú parakeet, one of the species on Global Wildlife Conservation’s top 25 most wanted lost species list. The parakeet hasn’t had a confirmed sighting since 1949.

The expedition was the first comprehensive ornithological survey for the Alto Sinú. The Sinú parakeet was not one of the species of birds that the expedition team found, but the number of other rare and endangered birds they saw has given them hope that the bird may be living in the northern sector of the Western Andes.