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Bird That Became Extinct 136,000 Years Ago Has Come Back From Dead

The bird species went through a process called 'iterative evolution' to re-evolve back to life.

Scientists studying wildlife on the Aldabra Atoll island in the Indian Ocean say they have discovered a small bird species that re-evolved after going extinct 136,000 years ago, according to the Independent. The white-throated rail, which is a flightless bird, has gone through an extremely rare process called “iterative evolution” in which it repeats evolution. The rail had previously evolved to become flightless before going extinct the first time. The bird species once again evolved, scientists said after comparing fossils from the extinct species to those recently discovered on the island. The white-throated rail is about the size of a chicken, and originally migrated from Madagascar when the species could fly.