Posts Tagged ‘Chicks’

Sep
09

More Chicks at the Houston Zoo: Red Crowned Cranes

Posted by Rochelle Joseph in Birds

On the 23rd and 24th of April, 2010, the Houston Zoo was proud to greet two new Red Crowned Cranes that hatched to our pair in the Houston Bird Department-Birds of the World!

Red Crowned Cranes (Grus japonensis) is found in Eastern Asia in the countries of Russia, Mongolia, Japan, China as well as North and South Korea.  There are only about 1500 left in the wild making it the second rarest crane species.  These low numbers are due to the destruction of their marsh lands for rice paddies and the expansion of cities.

The cranes use these wetlands and swamps for finding food for their young.  Red Crowned Cranes will eat mostly small amphibians, mammals, invertebrates and insects as well as plants that grow in these marshes.  Red Crowned Cranes typically lay two eggs per clutch.  The incubation period is between 29-34 days and is done by both sexes.  The chicks will fledge after ninety-five days.

Our adult red crowned crane and it's chick

With Red Crowned Cranes it is very common to have early sibling rivalry where the siblings will try to exert their dominance over each other.  In captivity we try to make sure this does not escalate into injury by feeding the chick in two separate sides of their exhibit.  Red Crowned Crane parents are very good at separating their chicks during feedings where one chick will follow each parent.

Our chicks received soaked and chopped Mazuri Crane Diet (which consists of various grains and fish meal) as well as greens, pinkie mice and insects.  We fed them in a shallow pan while tossing crickets and meal worms to opposite sides of their exhibit. 

Lunch!

The parents will catch the insect and hold them out to their chicks, showing them what food to eat.  As they got older we fed them dry Mazuri Crane Diet just like their parents eat.

When the chicks hatched they were a light cinnamon color and very fluffy.  At about four months old they are almost as large as their parents. 

Fuzzy little Red Crownded Crane chick

The have lost most of the fluffiness to their new feather coat and are starting to turn lighter in color.   During the chicks second year they will get their adult plumage turning snow white with a jet-black tail.  At three to four years old they will be sexually mature to start the process over again.

Written by Josh Vandenberg

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Aug
19

Flamingo Chicks: Sometimes Baby Gets Sick!

Posted by Rochelle Joseph in Birds

Not everything about hand raising birds is fun and games.  Sometimes the chicks can get sick – but thankfully we have 4 vets on staff that we can count on to help us out when it happens.

Chick 6 (or “Green Head” as we marked him) is a little bit of a bully.  It was one that had to be kept in a brooder alone (but still next to all the other chicks) because every time we would put them all together, 6 would chase around and bite the other ones.  Until one day about 2 weeks ago….

We weigh the chicks every morning and every evening to make sure they are growing well.  Also, we carefully monitor their hydration and food intake.  About 2 weeks ago, Chick 6 was not gaining as much weight as everyone else and the chick’s appetite seemed to decrease.  About a day after we started really watching 6, we noticed that he (or she) sneezed a lot — but was otherwise active and lively.

The next morning was a completely different story!  When the keepers came in, Chick 6 was coughing and sneezing constantly, and having a really, really hard time breathing.  We called the vets immediately.

Without delay,  Chick 6 was moved to our vet clinic.  It seemed it was pneumonia.  The vet staff placed  it in a special holding area where it could receive oxygen constantly and be nebulized 4 times a day.

The little guy in a nebulizing chamber

The chick was still having trouble breathing, so the vets put in a “air sac canula.” This is basically a tube that is put into the air sac (on the side of the body) that allows the chick to breathe easier — a little like a person getting a tracheotomy.  This helped Chick 6 a lot! He was able to breathe a lot more and not be so stressed.

After a week of treatment (both oral antibiotics, anti-fungal medication and aerosolized medication for the chick’s lung), Chick 6 was able to be move to a holding area with out the oxygen.

The chick in it's holding cage

Just like the other chicks, Chick 6 got it’s exercise by running around to keep it’s strength up.

As it got better, Chick 6 got more strength and was able to play for longer periods at a time.

On Friday, August 13, Chick 6 was returned to the department to live with the 7 other flamingo chicks.  Yay!  He still has to be kept separated from the other chicks – but now it’s just because he’s still a little bit of a bully!!

The now-healthy chick, with Dr. Lauren Howard and Dr. Maryanne Tocidlowski

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Jul
23

A Flamingo Chick’s First Day at the Houston Zoo

Posted by Rochelle Joseph in Birds

5 AM on July 2: The first keeper to arrive in the department checked the hatcher. It was a special day, because they found our first hatched flamingo!!

July 2, 5 AM: The first flamingo chick hatches

Flamingo chicks hatch out covered with very thick white or grey down (they are the softest chicks we have ever had).  Their legs are pinkish and they have completely straight beaks.  They look so very unlike adult flamingos that the first time you see one in person it is a little shocking.

The first two flamingo chicks. As you can see, they don't look like you'd expect.

After the chick dry off from hatching, we check their umbilicus site (basically a bird’s belly button) and make sure it is clean.  We also weigh the chicks.  The first chick weighed about 85 grams or 3 ounces – this is about half the weight of an I-phone.

The chick's belly button. Look at those little feet!!

For the first 24 hours of a baby flamingo’s life, it gets nutrition from its yolk sac (the yolk part of the egg is absorbed into the digestive system).  Just to make sure the chick stays well hydrated while it continues to absorb its yolk, we provide the chick some warm fluids about 8-10 hours after it hatches.  Then it goes back into the brooder box until its first feeding the following morning.

The chick getting warm fluids about 8-10 hours after hatching

When the chick has absorbed its yolk fully, we begin to feed it a diluted formula.  This formula is specially made for flamingos out of shrimp, fish, baby cereal, egg yolks and vitamins.  The formula smells awful, but is very good for the growing chicks. So finally, about 12 – 24 hours after the chick hatches, we give them their first taste of that food.

The little one after it's first feeding.

Please come back to read and see what’s next in the life of our flamingo chicks!

Editors note: Please let us know what you think of these little beauties in the comment section. And please share their story on your Facebook and Twitter accounts. We’ve made it easy for you to do; simply click their links just below!

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