AVICULTURAL

MAGAZINE

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VOLUME 110
No. 2
2004

THE AVICULTURAL SOCIETY

The Avicultural Society was founded in 1894 for the study of British and
foreign birds in the wild and in captivity. The Society is international in
character, having members throughout the world.

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later in the year will receive back numbers of the current volume of the
AVICULTURAL MAGAZINE..

THE HON. SECRETARY AND TREASURER, THE AVICULTURAL
SOCIETY, ARCADIA, THE MOUNTS , TOTNES , DEVON TQ9 7QJ, UK.

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THE AVICULTURAL MAGAZINE welcomes original articles that have
not been published elsewhere and that essentially concern the aviculture of
a particular bird or group of birds, or that describe their natural history.
Articles should be preferably typewritten, with double spacing, and the
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ADDRESS OF THE EDITOR

Malcolm Ellis, Hon. Editor, The Avicultural Magazine, The Chalet, Hay
Farm, St. Breock, Wadebridge, Cornwall PL27 7LL, England.

E-mail: editor@avisoc.co.uk

Avicultural Magazine

THE JOURNAL OF THE AVICULTURAL SOCIETY

Vol. 1 10 - No. 2 All rights reserved ISSN 0005 2256 2004

THE SUCCESSFUL BREEDING OF THE AMERICAN
BALD EAGLE Hqliaeetus leucocephalus AT FLAMINGO
GARDENS AND ZOOLOGICAL PARK

by Christopher Marler

Large birds of prey have always featured prominently in our collection
here at Weston Underwood, Olney, Buckinghamshire, UK, and in the 1970s
included Andean Condors Vultur gryphus and 10 other species of vulture
and eight species of eagle. However breeding successes were minimal. Then
in the late 1970s we arranged to receive two immature Bald Eagles from
Ken Chisholm, the animal dealer in Montreal, Canada. These birds were
injured and were imported on a salvage permit and they arrived at our
quarantine area in 1980.

Subsequently when visiting Frankfurt Zoo, Germany, in 1982 during a
Zoo Walk programme for the BBC World Service, I did a small piece on the
zoo’s successful breeding pair of Bald Eagles, which at the time of my visit
were rearing two small chicks. It turned out that the latter were surplus to
the zoo’s requirements and the then Director, Richard Strauss, agreed to
release them to me to join the two from Canada. The two young males, as
they turned out, arrived here in 1983.

The Canadian and German birds were kept apart for observations until
October 1985, when it was thought to be opportune to put the birds - two
males and two females - with their respective partners. It was obvious that
one of the females and one of the males were much better physical specimens
and these two were put together. There was no aggression and after a few
days they were seen sitting in close proximity to each other on the same
perch. They continued to be agreeable to each other and in early March
both were seen carrying nesting material to a nest site on a wooden platform
about 2m (approx. 6ft 6in) from the ground in a covered comer of the aviary.

On March 20th 1986 a single egg was laid in the well-lined nest. It was
not expected to hatch as the male was under four years of age and had more
brown than white feathers on its head. Imagine my surprise therefore then
when 34-35 days later I looked in the nest and saw a fluffy white chick

50

MARLER - AMERICAN BALD EAGLE

American Bald Eagle.

under its very attentive mother. Both the male and the female shared the
incubation and also the feeding of the chick.

The chick grew well with such good parenting without any interference
from us. The diet consisted of rabbits, day-old chicks, fish and any meat,
such as stillborn calves, from the beef herds maintained on our farm. The
young eagle flew the nest at about 60 days and was often seen on the floor

MARLER - AMERICAN BALD EAGLE

51

Adult and young chick.

Christopher Marler

Feeding chick.

Christopher Marler

of the aviary. At 70 days it could fly from one perch to the other in the
aviary which measures 60ft long x 20ft wide x 12ft high (approx. 18.2m
long x 6m wide x 3.6m high).

My diary (see below) records the hatching dates for the 28 chicks all of
which were reared successfully. As I write this in early March 2004 the
Bald Eagles are nest building yet again and we are full of hope for this
season. The total of 28 young reared (to date) is believed to be a record for
a pair of Bald Eagles in captivity.

52

MARLER - AMERICAN BALD EAGLE

Breeding record of pair of American Bald Eagles

Year

Date hatched

Number hatched
and reared

1986

May 23

| 1

1987

April 30

May 2

2

1988

April 29

1

1989

Two eggs laid

both infertile

■

1990

April 23

April 27

2

1991

May 24

1

1992

May 2

May 4

2

1993

April 28

1

1994

April 30

May 2

May 4

3 1

1995

May 1

May 3

2

1996

May 2

May 6

2

1997

May 1

May 4

2

1998

May 9

1

1999

Two eggs laid

neither hatched

-

2000

May 1

May 3

May 6

3

2001

May 4

May 8

2

2002

No eggs laid

-

2003

May 10

May 12

May 14

3

MARLER - AMERICAN BALD EAGLE

53

Christopher Marler

Offering food to chick.

As described above , the American Bald Eagle Haliaeetus leucocephalus ,
has been bred by Christopher Marler. This is probably the first successful
breeding of this species in Great Britain or Ireland. Anyone who knows of a
previous breeding is asked to inform the Hon. Secretary.

54

THE 2003 BREEDING SEASON - SOME
DISAPPOINTMENTS

by Chris Bralsford

Wanting to have a go at breeding finches in cages and in the flights
housing my Asian softbills, early in 2003 I purchased from a friend of mine
two pairs of Carduelis sinica , which here in the UK are commonly known
as Chinese Greenfinches. This species is also known as the Oriental
Greenfinch and as the Grew capped Greenfinch in the latest field guide to
the region. The friend of mine had brought them the previous year at the
National Exhibition of Cage & Aviary Birds. He had them paired -up in
double breeding cages and they were very steady. In the past I had kept
Black-headed Greenfinches C. ambigua and found them very nervous.

My present birds look very like our native European Greenfinch C,
chloris , but are smaller, measuring about 5 Ain (14cm) in length. The male
has a dull grey green head with a dark face mask, a warm brown back, a
yellow to green rump and grey upper tail-coverts. The wings and tail are
mainly black, with yellow ‘flashes’ on the wings and on the sides of the
base of the tail. The female is a lot duller and browner on the head and face,
also the sides of the base of the tail are not as yellow. The yellow on the
wings is very distinctive when this bird flies. My juveniles were like the
female except that the chest and belly were very streaked. The calls and
song of this species are very similar to those of the European Greenfinch. It
is described as common in the wild and can be found at high altitudes, so is
ideal for keeping in outside aviaries here in the UK. In the winter flocks are
found in paddy and grain fields, which is probably why they are trapped
easily and large numbers have been imported over the last four to five years.
In the wild they breed in April -May, so putting them down to breed in the
last week of March 2003 seemed ideal.

In the treble breeding cage I placed a bracket at the front attached to the
wire. On this I fitted a cup-shaped wicker basket and wired it tightly to the
platform. In the front part of the bracket I drilled holes to secure conifer
cuttings to provide seclusion. I also put cardboard on the cage front to
provide additional security. In the treble breeding cage I put a wire dividing
slide and kept the female in the double side and the male in the single side.
I put coconut fibre, moss, sisal and animal hair in salad racks fitted at the
front on the female’s side. She started carrying nest material by mid- April
and I watched the male start to feed her with regurgitated seed through the
wire dividing slide. By the third week of April he was also singing and
displaying to her, so I removed the wire divider. There was a lot of frantic
chasing and the male mated with the female. A couple of hours later things

BRALSFORD - 2003 BREEDING SEASON

55

had settled down and within days a beautiful nest had been completed in the
basket. A week later three eggs were laid, these were blue with brown
speckles at the blunt end. The incubation period was 13-14 days, with the
female doing the most of the sitting. I provided Orlux eggfood, lots of
dandelion heads and leaves, also groundsel and any other weeds I could
find. These were thoroughly washed and dried before being given to the
birds. The chicks, which were constantly being fed by both parents, fledged
at 13 days.

I used the same breeding method for the second pair which was also
housed in a treble breeding cage. The two pairs produced a total of seven
young. Sadly though, I lost six of them through ‘going light’, when they
were six to seven weeks of age. ‘Going light’ is a dreaded problem with
some finches and I wished I had used a sulphur drug when the chicks were
being weaned. A friend gave me some sulphur and Baytril antibiotic but by
then the problem had gone too far. To prevent this problem arising again,
this year when the chicks are a few days old, I will start to put a sulphur drug
in the water.

I also had disappointments with my two pairs of Japanese Robins
Erithacus akahige. I placed one pair in a cage 7ft long x 3ft 6in x 3ft 6in
(approx. 2.1m long x 1m x lm) and the other pair in a flight 10ft x 4ft x 6ft
high (approx. 3m x 1 .2m x 1 .8m high). I had put a half-open box at one end
of the cage and used a pot plant to conceal it. Things started to happen in
March, when the female started to flick her tail and solicit the male. After a
couple of days she started to build a nest in the box. She used coconut fibre
and grass, along with moss and animal hair. About a week later she started
laying eggs, not in the box though but on the floor of the cage. She laid a
total of four clutches of three eggs, all on the floor of the cage. I tried
moving the box onto the floor and a box with a hole in it, but with no success.
I phoned a lot of my birdkeeping friends for advice, most of whom thought
it might be because the female was a young inexperienced bird or there had
been a disturbance of some kind. Things came to a halt when they went into
a moult in mid-May.

This left the other pair which had been outside all winter and had moulted
into lovely birds. At the end of May the male was very vocal and chased the
female around. At the beginning of June she started to build a nest in a half
box. The male was seen several times treading the female but no eggs were
laid and by the end of July both birds went into a heavy moult. The eggs
laid by the female in the cage were blue in colour, a bit like those of the
Common Starling Sturnus vulgaris , and seemed large for the size of the
bird. This year I will try again to breed this lovely softbill. It is similar to
the European Robin E. rubecula but the red on the breast is not as vivid.
The male has a black gorget, which the duller coloured female lacks.

56

BRALSFORD - 2003 BREEDING SEASON

My Yellow-throated Buntings Emberiza elegans built two nests, one in
a wicker basket low down in a Hydrangea and the other beneath a bush.
The beautifully constructed nests were typical bunting nests a lot like those
of the Yellowhammer E. citrinella. The male, which has a lovely song a bit
like that of the Dunnock Prunella modularis, sang all day but I did not see
any eggs in either of the nests. This year I will house the pair on its own.

The other near miss was with my Red-headed Tits Aegithalos concinnus.
I kept four birds - 1 was unsure whether or not they were pairs - in a treble
breeding cage. They were fed a nectar mix, which is I think very important
to help keep them fit and healthy, buffalo worms and universal food. I also
tried various fruits and salad items. In the cage I placed a waxbill wicker
nest basket and covered it with plastic ivy. The birds settled down well,
were very agile and seemed to love the set-up. In May I noticed that one of
the birds was carrying coconut fibre and I also saw it dancing around one of
the others on a twiggy perch. A little later in the week I was amazed to see
two birds going into the basket with all sorts of nest materials I had provided.
After a week the nest was completed. It was a beautiful nest, like that of the
Long-tailed Tit A. caudatus in construction, and filled the whole of the basket.
A week later I shone a small light into the nest and saw two very tiny eggs,
which were white with very small speckles at the blunt end. Unfortunately
though, the birds did not sit on them and this nesting attempt failed to progress
any further.

Accounts of Gary Bralsford’s 2003 breeding successes with the Chestnut-
backed Thrush Zoothera dohertyi and the White-eared Bulbul Pycnonotus
leucogenys leucotis or P. leucotis have already been published in the
magazine ( Vol.109 , No A, pp. 150-153 (2003) & Vol.110 , No.l, pp.17-19
( 2004 ) ) . His account of breeding the Red-crested Cardinal Paroaria coronata
has yet to be published.

BREEDING THE GREY-CAPPED GREENFINCH

Carduelis sinica

57

by Brian Massey

At a local bird auction in August 2001 I purchased three birds in juvenile
plumage, which were described as Chinese Greenfinches. After consulting
A Field Guide to the Birds of South-East Asia by Craig Robson (2000), I
determined that the birds were Grey-capped Greenfinches Carduelis sinica.
I housed them in a fully enclosed flight measuring 6ft x 6ft x 7ft high (approx.
1.8m x 1.8m x 2.1m high), with access to a shelter, and fed them a foreign
finch mixture and mixed canary seed. When they had completed their moult
it was clear that I had two males and one female. By early March 2003 the
two males were bickering and competing with each other. In mid-March all
three were moved to a planted flight. It measures 15ft x 10ft x 7ft high
(approx. 4.5m x 3m x 2.1m high) and is open at the front, with plastic sheets
covering half of the roof area. The previous autumn the flight had been
constructed round an established cherry tree and was heavily planted, mainly
with a species of honeysuckle Lonicera nitida , variety ‘Baggesen’s Gold’.
Although honeysuckles are usually considered to be climbing plants, there
are shrubby ones such as L. nitida which provide ideal nesting sites. I also
provided some specimen conifers planted in tubs. Also introduced into the
flight were a pair each of Pekin Robins Leiothrix lutea and Orange-headed
Ground Thrushes Zoothera citrina.

Within days of being released into the flight, a nest made of dried grasses
and lined with coconut fibres had been constructed in a L. nitida by the
Grey-capped Greenfinches. Four eggs were laid and four chicks were seen
in the nest on April 16th and had fledged by May 1st.

A second nest was quickly built, about 3ft (lm) above the ground, in a
conifer. By May 7th, five eggs had been laid in it, with the female
commencing to sit after the third egg had been laid. Chicks were seen in the
nest on May 18th and all five had fledged by June 3rd. While the female
was incubating the second clutch, both males were feeding the chicks from
the first nest and although there was some conflict between the two males
and one appeared dominant, both nevertheless contributed to the raising of
the chicks.

In addition to the seed mixture described earlier, soaked seed was
provided daily, mixed 50/50 with a proprietary eggfood. Because softbills
also occupied the flight, a mixture of diced fruit and softbill pellets, plus
Prosecto and livefood, were available.

The birds reverted to a L. nitida to build a third nest which was completed
before the chicks in the second nest had fledged. In fact the fourth egg of

58

MASSEY - GREY-CAPPED GREENFINCH

the third clutch was laid on June 4th which was the day after the fifth chick
of the second brood left the nest. All four eggs of the third clutch were
fertile and the first chick was out of the nest by July 4th.

A fourth nest was constructed in a conifer, however, it was a flimsy
affair. The female laid the first egg on July 8th and I supported the nest with
a wicker basket. The female laid a further two eggs, the first of which
hatched on July 22nd, followed on successive days by the other two.
However, the chicks progressively disappeared from the nest within six
days of hatching.

About the third week in July, the fledglings from the third nest started to
look off colour and lethargic. I introduced Intradine (sulphadimidine sodium)
into the water at the rate of 2ml per litre, but despite this, three of the fourth
round of chicks died. They died, I believe, either because their parents lost
interest in feeding them before they had become independent, or as a result
of ‘going light’.

By the end of the breeding season, the female had laid 1 6 eggs and hatched
16 chicks. Three of these disappeared before leaving the nest and three died
after fledging, possibly as a result of ‘going light’; the remaining 10 were
reared.

During the autumn, two birds, at different times, were found dead on the
ground close to the wire. Both had puncture marks on the abdomen, which
I suspect were caused by a cat or Sparrowhawk Accipiter nisus.

Before the onset of winter, all the remaining birds were transferred to a
fully covered flight with access to a heated shelter. All survived apart from
the original female, which died in January 2004.

The lessons I learnt from my 2003 experience with this species are:

1 . The need to have double wire covering the aviary to prevent losses due
to cats and/or Sparrowhawks. This I have now done.

2. Once first-round youngsters have became independent, the need to
remove them from the aviary so that they are not a burden on their parents,
which can then concentrate on rearing the second-round of chicks.

3. The need to introduce a sulphur drug into the water as a preventative,
rather than waiting until problems occur.

I will start the 2004 breeding season with the two original males purchased
in 2002, five males and three females bred in 2003 and one male and three
females purchased during last winter. This will hopefully give me the
opportunity to attempt to breed with six pairs.

Brian Massey is a member of the society living in Yorkshire. In 1991 he
was the first person in the UK to breed the Yellow -throated Laughingthrush
Garrulax galbanus.

NOTES ON THE RED-LEGGED HONEYCREEPER/
YELLOW-WINGED SUGARBIRD Cyanerpes cyaneus

59

by F. Barnicoat

Early in 1989 a dealer offered me a trio of these birds at a special price
for a male and two females, few of the former having arrived here in South
Africa. One of the females was in immature plumage, which I hoped might
colour up into a male, but I lost this bird during the first winter through
accidentally skipping the early morning nectar supply to its aviary. The
adult female is with me still, so has by now notched up the creditable age of
at least 16 years, during the last two of which she has developed an increasing
number of cream coloured streaks in her plumage. Her eyesight seems not
quite what it was, but she is still able to fly about and take an intelligent
interest in life.

During her long lifetime she has raised five young, all of them
inconveniently proving to be males. My experience with this species echoes
that which has from time to time been recorded in the pages of the Avicultural
Magazine and elsewhere, that given reasonable aviary conditions there is a
fair chance of it breeding successfully and of living to a ripe old age. I think
it is a pity that a concerted effort by enough breeders simultaneously to
firmly establish a viable captive breeding stock has not been made on the
lines that has achieved such success with, for example, many species of the
Psittacidae and some of the Australian seedeaters. I suppose that a parallel
situation exists in Australia with the exquisite fairy wrens Malurus spp.
When I was there I was told that these birds have been found to be quite
ready breeders in aviaries, but there is not much market for the offspring
because of insufficient numbers of private aviculturists keen to take on the
extra commitment required to keep and breed softbills. How sad.

When showing these birds to visitors, I have always felt rather
uncomfortable using either of the English names attributed to this species.
The red legs have never stood out with any male I have possessed, and the
females (mine anyway) have had grey legs. Their under wing-coverts are
pale yellow, but this shows only when they fly. What does stand out is the
marvellous turquoise crown of the male, the feathers of which he can raise,
and the colour of which so exquisitely contrasts with his brilliant cobalt
blue body. The scientific name, generally overlooked by the layman, is
however, appropriate, as both parts of the name are derived from the Greek
word kyaneos (glossy blue), and somehow convey the idea of the scintillating
dream of a bird in shades of glittering blue.

Because the feeding of this type of bird has been made so much easier in
more recent years through the marketing of artificial nectar products in

60

BARNICOAT - RED-LEGGED HONEYCREEPER

Europe and the USA, I am hesitant to state my amateurish feeding methods;
but I do so here because they have proved quite successful, and the cost of
importing the excellent overseas products is prohibitive to all but the
wealthiest of private aviculturists in my own, and possibly some other
countries. My basic diet has always been a nectar mixture, prepared freshly
each morning by adding to 300ml of warm water, a tablespoon of honey, a
teaspoon of condensed milk and a tablespoon of one of the balanced
nutritional foods marketed for human consumption under different names
such as Complan, Sustagen, Ensure, Shape, etc. I have found that the birds
like vanilla and strawberry flavoured ones, and try to alternate different
makes.

To the above basic mixture I have always added one or more further
additives (just a little on the edge of a knife), hoping that the taste of the
mixture might be slightly changed, because I appreciate variety in my own
food. I have used Bovril or Marmite very regularly, Spirulina and
Barley green, which are both natural products sold in health food stores, and
more recently one of the probiotics marketed for avian use. Barleygreen is
a very expensive product, but did seem to make a positive difference as the
successful breeding began shortly after the commencement of its use.

Honey creepers are also fond of fruit. They are supplied with at least one
piece, fresh every morning, placed well above ground level, snagged on a
branch or a nail in a feeding table. Pawpaw (papaya), banana and pear are
soft enough for them to tackle and are available most of the year. Their
favourites, however, are mango and prickly (cactus) pear, and the raising of
the young coincided with the relatively short season at the height of the
summer of these two fruits, which would be scooped out to the skin.

The insect component of their diet has always worried me. For years
mine refused to eat mealworms or termites to the point when I gave up
supplying them. It seems they will live well enough without livefood, but
will not breed successfully. When my pair first hatched two chicks I tried
everything. Mealworms previously refused for years, were then taken with
enthusiasm, provided they were alive and wriggling. Cut-up mealworms as
recommended in one breeding account I had read were steadfastly refused.
The honeycreepers seemed quite adept at sucking out the contents of the
skin of even the largest mealworms. Initially I tried to supply only the
tiniest mealworms and the softer white-skinned ones, but soon any
mealworms had to be used as the birds consumed them at the rate of at least
20 twice per day, fed to them in a drinking vessel hung at perch level.

Years later, when I came to possess a pair of the delightful Purple species
C. caeruleus I learnt to my cost of the dangers of overfeeding mealworms to
honeycreepers. I attribute the loss of both these birds, which appeared to
swallow the mealworms skin and all, to feeding mealworms excessively to

BARNICOAT - RED-LEGGED HONEYCREEPER

61

them in a misguided attempt to stimulate them to breed.

Fruit flies are probably a safer form of livefood for honeycreepers. These
are easily provided by establishing cultures in plastic ice cream containers
covered with wire netting to prevent access by the birds to the rotting fruit.
The flesh rather than the skins of bananas was recommended to me for the
production of fruit flies, and I certainly had clouds of them emanating from
the cultures in almost no time in the hot weather that fortunately prevailed
at the time my pair bred. I also found that as soon as chicks hatched my pair
eagerly took the termites that were provided by putting into the aviary broken
lumps of the mound and turning these twice daily.

Almost six years passed before my pair showed the slightest inclination
to breed. In the course of this time the pair was moved to several different
aviaries, the one the pair bred in measured 3.5m x 3m x 2m high (approx.
1 1ft 6in x 9ft 9in x 6ft 6in high), nearly half of which was taken up by the
well-lit shelter containing a thermostatically controlled heater. The shelter
door was shut at night only during the severest winter weather. The
honeycreepers shared this aviary with a pair of Golden-shouldered Parakeets
Psephotus chrysopterygius, and the two vastly different species never
interfered with each other, and got along extraordinarily well together.

In the summer of 1993-1994 1 decided to move the honeycreepers into a
larger aviary with some growing vegetation in the hope of stimulating them
into nesting. This was to no avail, although they had the aviary entirely to
themselves. It had no heating, so as winter came on again they were moved
back with the Golden-shouldered Parakeets. By then I felt they were unlikely
ever to breed, but in addition to the dry branches put up for perching I fixed
on one side of the shelter doorway a dry branch with a convenient fork
about 1 .5m (approx. 5ft) above ground level. In the fork I jammed a clump
of dry bracken and jn this during the hot summer of 1995 they started making
a half-hearted attempt to build a cup-shaped nest, using only rather coarse
dry grass. In response I supplied every sort of nest building material I could
think of - unravelled sisal string, coconut fibre, cotton wool, kapok, soft
green grass - but all were ignored. By the time the first egg appeared the
nest had, however, been reasonably well rounded with dry grass.

I think the second egg was laid the day after the first, but as the female
was sitting tightly I did not disturb her to verify this. The two eggs which
were surprisingly large and round for such small birds, were pale greenish
blue and so heavily spotted with medium to dark brown blotches as to appear
predominantly brown. In the hot mid-summer days that followed, the female
was frequently off the nest to an extent that caused me to wonder whether
she was losing interest in incubating the eggs, but she always slipped quietly
onto the nest just as darkness set in. The male never sat, but became very
excited and bold whenever I approached the nest. I could see that the eggs

62

BARNICOAT - RED-LEGGED HONEYCREEPER

had darkened as if they were fertile, and they hatched on consecutive days,
after an incubation period of exactly 12 days.

The chicks were very dark skinned with large heads and big gaping
mouths, their beaks being almost as short as those of finches. They were
very lively and grew rapidly. I was advised to use a product called Ringer’s
lactate (a clear liquid administered intravenously in human and veterinary
critical care medicine) in the nectar, which I did roughly to the proportion of
one part lactate to four parts of the usual nectar. I cannot say to what extent
the addition of this contributed to the successful rearing of the chicks, but I
have a strong feeling that it made a positive contribution.

I looked up two classic accounts of the breeding of this species published
in the Avicultural Magazine, those by Yashmori Matsunaga of Japan in
February 1929, and by Mrs Drake of Mylor, Cornwall in August 1934, and
in both cases there were two chicks which fledged on the 13th day. As I
watched my two chicks progressing quite slowly at first, I felt it would be
impossible for them to fledge at so young an age. The pin-feathers of the
wings began to develop from about day six, their beaks began to elongate
and they seemed to feather almost overnight. They provided a beautiful
sight with their large round black eyes as they crouched patiently in their
tiny cup- shaped nest, which made it an easy matter to close band them with
aluminium rings of the size used for Zebra Finches Taeniopygia guttata.

To my amazement they left the nest on the 13th day. Their beaks were
not quite as long as those of their parents and they had short stumpy tails.
They could fly well and both parents solicitously hovered about them,
managing to get them to roost on the branches in the shelter from their first
day out of the nest. Their plumage resembled that of their sage green mother,
only somewhat duller and darker in tone. Initially their mother continued to
feed them, but they very soon learnt to drink the nectar themselves and then
to eat the fruit and mealworms. As there seemed to be slight differences in
the plumage of the two young, I hoped they were a male and a female, but
about six months later, as the days warmed up during the spring, both coloured
up into gorgeous males.

Shortly after the two young fledged, a second clutch of two eggs was
laid in the same nest with little reconstruction having having been carried
out on it. Both were fertile, but they sank through the dry grass base of the
flimsy nest and were chilled. No further breeding attempt was made in
1995, and through the winter, of course, the breeding male was in eclipse
plumage.

In the high summer of the following year the pair commenced nesting
on almost exactly the same date as previously. I had by then taken the
precaution of firmly fixing a wicker cup-nest into the fork of the dry branch.
A felt lining was sewn inside it. The honeycreepers took to these quite

BARNICOAT - RED-LEGGED HONEYCREEPER

63

readily and merely added a few more pieces of dry grass to round out the
nest. In it during 1996 they raised first a single offspring and subsequently
two more, under exactly the same husbandry that had proved successful in
1995.

Then the run of luck came to an abrupt end. The winter was a severe
one, and arriving home very late one evening I accidentally shut the male
outside the heated shelter. Such a fragile creature could not survive such a
trauma.

All five offspring proved to be males, and I tried unsuccessfully to get
the female to breed successfully with one or other of her sons. She repeatedly
laid two eggs, usually twice per year, about the same dates each summer,
and incubated so hopefully, but the eggs were always clear. I tried different
mates with the same disappointing result. She laid her last clutch in 2002,
and on that occasion the eggs were abnormally small.

About three years ago I was able to obtain a further imported female,
and have tried since then to get another compatible pair to breed, but so far
they have shown no inclination to nest. The longer I try to breed birds, the
more is the importance and role of the compatible pair brought home to me,
even with such a simply and readily propagated species as the Zebra Finch.

F. Barnicoat, who served as a Vice President of the society 1980- 1990,
lives in Johannesburg, South Africa.

D. H. S. RISDON AWARD

After much discussion the 2003 award went to Andrew Owen for his
account of the capture of eight Montserrat Orioles and their subsequent
establishment and breeding at Jersey Zoo (see Avicultural Magazine Vol.
109, No.3, pp. 116-124 (2003)).

DULCIE COOKE AWARD

The award for 2003 went to Martin Vince for his splendid colour
photographs which illustrated the account of breeding and hand-rearing the
Blue-winged Leafbird Chloropsis cochinchinensis at the Riverbanks Zoo
and Garden by Angela Hardy (. Avicultural Magazine Vol. 109, No.l , pp.14-
21 (2003)).

64

REPORT ON THE IMPLEMENTATION OF THE WUYUAN

PROJECT

by He Fen-qi

Introduction

In April 200 1 , Dr Roland Wirth, Chairman of ZGAP in Germany, visited
Wuyuan, China, and signed on behalf of ZGAP and other overseas partners
in France and the UK, a Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) with the
Forestry Bureau of Wuyuan County (FBWC) on undertaking a three year
collaborative project for the conservation of Courtois’ Laughingthrush
Garrulax galbanus courtoisi at Wuyuan. Accordingly, ZGAP together with
other overseas partners, granted funds to the FBWC and the FBWC carried
out field surveys as well as conservation management of Courtois’
Laughingthrush in 200 1 -2003 .

Activities in 2003

The 2003 breeding season came some 10 days later than usual, resulting
in the birds returning to their breeding sites around April 16th- 17th, the
latest dates so far recorded. We soon organised some keen birdwatchers
from Beijing, Shanghai and Hong Kong to survey the villages along the
Le’an river in the hope of finding more breeding sites of this bird. However,
we did not find any more birds and it seemed that no more suitable and
preferred habitats remain in and around the villages we surveyed.

At the beginning of the breeding season, a New Zealand ornithologist
Dr Robin Moorhouse, who was working at the Institute of Zoology as a
visiting scholar, was also invited to Wuyuan to undertake field observations
on the behaviour of breeding flocks of this laughingthrush.

Unfortunately, the rapid spread of SARS dramatically interrupted the
field observations in late April and, when fieldwork was finally able to re¬
start, it was very late in June. It seemed that the Courtois’ Laughingthrushes
had a very good breeding season in 2003 - in previous years, it was found
that some pairs would have a second clutch if they failed to rear their first
clutch successfully, while in 2003, all the nestlings of the clutches we
observed developed quite well and all the birds left their breeding sites more
or less simultaneously. A TV film was made of the nestling rearing.

In late June another flock of these laughingthrushes was found in the
yard of the administration of a town named Zhongyun. There was one nest,
about 5m (16ft) above the ground, with two nestlings found in the canopy
of a young introduced tree, Platanus orientalis. In late November, the author
and others visited the area, but failed to find evidence of any more nests in
the trees there.

HE FEN-QI - WUYUAN PROJECT

65

In addition, a short survey was undertaken in late November seeking
any non-breeding season flocks in the forests south of Zhongyun, but this
proved fruitless. In late December, a further survey was undertaken in the
same area and to other areas but again no birds could be found.

Status of Courtois’ Laughingthrush in Wuyuan

Our present knowledge and understanding of Courtois’ Laughingthrush
comes mostly from observations on the breeding flocks. Results of censuses
undertaken during the breeding season in Wuyuan are summarized below.
The table lists the main breeding flocks at each site. These have remained
fairly stable over the past three to four years. The Wuyuan population now
numbers close to 200 individuals in total.

Bingyinglin Shimen & Jinpan

Majia

Taibai

Zhongyun

(village)

(villages)

(village)

(town)

(town)

2000

45-50

?

?

50-60

?

2001

about 40

50-60

4

50±

?

2002

40-45

50-60

0

50+

?

2003

30-40

60-80

0

40-50

about 20

When looking at the sites chosen by breeding flocks, it might be thought
that there are similar habitats at higher elevations in Wuyuan, however the
laughingthrushes seem to prefer low altitude habitats, usually below 100m
(approx. 300ft), to breed.

Before the flock was found at Zhongyun (site 6 on the map overleaf), it
was thought that the breeding flocks were dispersed merely along the Le’an
river (sites L5 on the map). The Zhongyun flock shows that Courtois’
Laughingthrush has a much wider range in Wuyuan in the breeding season
at least, though at present we are not quite sure if the birds in the Zhongyun
flock are mostly breeding birds, or not. Furthermore, may the wider range
in the breeding season increase slightly the possibility that the bird resides
in Wuyuan throughout the year?

With the finding of the new flock at Zhongyun, it might be considered
that due to the size of its range (c. 800sq km (approx. 310sq miles)) and the
size of the population, that the Wuyuan population is somewhat independent
and may be self-sustainable, if the current habitat can be well protected and
preserved.

Conservation management enforcement

The effort to establish more Small Protected Areas (SPAs), specificially
for the conservation of Courtois’ Laughingthrush, was initiated towards the
end of 2001 under a grant supported by the WWF - China Program. Three

66

HE FEN-QI - WUYUAN PROJECT

2. Shimen (29° 18.490' N 117° 52.765' E) 5. Taibai Town

3 . Jinpan (29° 1 8 .282’ N 1 1 7° 52 .97 1 1 E) 6 . Zhongyun Town

SPAs were provisionally established in August 2002, around the villages of
Shimen, Jinpan and Majia.

The FBWC signed MoUs with the committee of each village concerned
and, based upon these, the local government of Wuyuan County issued papers
for the formal and official approval of the establishment of these SPAs.

Metal boards were set-up in each SPA bearing this notification and
announcement. Now all the villagers realise that the village in which they
live is not only their hometown, but also supports a very special bird.

There are plans for an SPA at Zhongyun before the 2004 breeding season
begins.

Publications

He Fen-qi, Xi Zhi-nong. The Yellow-throated Laughingthrush ( Garrulax galbanus courtoisi )
in Wuyuan. Chinese Zool. Journal 37,5:82.

Hong Yuan-hua, Zheng Pan-ji, Liu Zhi-yong, He Fen-qi. Rediscovery of the Yellow-throated
Laughingthrush in Wuyuan, SE China. Zool. Research 23,5:383-404.

He Fen-qi, Roland Wirth, David Melville, Hong Yuan-hua, Zheng Pan-ji, Wang Xia-zhi, Wang
Gui-fu, Liu Zhi-yong. Courtois’s Laughingthrush Garrulax galbanus courtoisi : a bird showing
how an endangered species can live in close proximity with humans. Oriental Bird Club
Bulletin 38.

Please note that of the above three publications, the first two are in
Chinese.

HE FEN-QI - WUYUAN PROJECT

67

Summary

The field studies have revealed new knowledge about this bird, especially
about its bio -ecological habits during the breeding season, and have improved
our understanding of its present status.

Threats to it, mainly as the result of human disturbance, have been reduced
by conservation management, which has produced a safer environment for
the birds to inhabit and in which to breed.

Nevertheless, we quite understand that there is much we still need to
learn, especially concerning the population viability of this bird. Hence
there is the need for continuity of long-term monitoring to ensure the survival
of Courtois’ Laughingthrush.

Acknowledgements

The FBWC heartily appreciates the assistance of its overseas partners -
GZAP in Germany, GEPA in France, Chester Zoo, Leeds Castle Aviaries
and others in the UK - in providing generous support and collaboration on
this project and it would like to take this opportunity to draw attention to the
need for future support and collaboration on the conservation of Courtois’
Laughingthrush.

Funding

During 2001-2003, a total of US$9,000 (approx. £5,000) was transferred
from the overseas organisations to the FBWC. Expenses for the project in
2001 totalled roughly US$2,135 (about £1 ,180); in 2002 roughly US$4,260
(about £2,360) ; and in 2003 about US$2,605 (approx. £1,440).

The Avicultural Society contributed £250 ( approx . US$450) in 2003 and
plans to contribute the same amount in 2004. The society is in possession of
a copy of the accounts for 2001-2003 , certified by the Treasurer of the
Forestry Bureau of Wuyuan County. These can be seen by members on
request.

68

THE SOCIETY’S CONSERVATION/FUNDING
PROGRAMME

Hon. Secretary and Treasurer Paul Boulden recently had the privilege of
visiting Bristol Zoo Gardens to present to Director Dr Jo Gipps OBE, a
cheque for £250 (approx. US$450) from The Avicultural Society, towards
the zoo’s Negros project in the Philippines. All money raised is being used
to establish a captive breeding centre there and to educate local people to
appreciate the wildlife of their island.

Of special concern is the plight of the Critically Endangered Negros
Bleeding Heart Dove Gallicolumba keayi endemic to Negros and Panay
Islands. One of the aims of the project is to encourage hunters to donate
captured wildlife to the centre, which already holds one Negros Bleeding
Heart Dove. The major threats to the five Gallicolumba spp. (four of which
are classified as Endangered or Critically Endangered by the IUCN) are
hunting and deforestation. Donations to the project can be sent to: Neil
Maddison, Head of Conservation Programmes, Brisol Zoo Gardens, Guthrie
Road, Clifton, Bristol BS8 3HA UK (E-mail:nmaddison@bristolzoo .org.uk).

As well as the above sum and a further £250 (approx. US$450) towards
continuing research on Courtois’ Laughingthrush Garrulax galbanus
courtoisi in China (see pp. 64-67), the society is continuing to help fund
hornbill research in Thailand and has given £250 (approx. US$450) to the
Wetlands and Wildfowl Trust to help fund the satellite tracking of Lesser
Flaminogs Phoeniconaias minor in the Rift Valley of East Africa. In addition,
we have given financial support towards the cost of distributing The Foreign
Bird Federation (FBF) REGISTER OF BIRDS BRED IN THE UK UNDER
CONTROLLED CONDITIONS FOR THE YEARS 1999-2002 and have
agreed to give a further £100 (approx. US$180) towards the cost of
distributing the 2003 register.

* * *

AUTUMN SOCIAL MEETING

On Saturday September 1 8th the society is holding its Autumn Social
Meeting at Marwell Zoological Park, Colden Common, Winchester,
Hampshire. All members are welcome to attend and may bring guests. First
opened to the public on May 22nd 1 972, Marwell Zoological Park specialises
mainly in large mammals but also has a good collection of birds.

69

UNRECORDED HEAT STRESS POSTURE AND FEEDING
HABIT IN CAPTIVE RED-TAILED BLACK COCKATOO
Calyptorhynchus banksi

by Paolo Bertagnolio

According to Simmons (1986), when the ambient temperature rises above
the bird’s zone of thermoneutrality the net heat flow will be from the
environment to the bird, causing heat stress and the danger of enforced
hyperthermia. Under these conditions birds may react passively by avoiding
the sun and its full overheating effects, seeking a cooling microclimate such
as a shaded spot, and by restricting their activities to the cooler hours of the
day. But this may not be sufficient, and then they must perform positive
thermoregulation in order to rid themselves of excess heat or at least to
reduce the gradient of heat gain through cooling behaviours of various types
(heat dumping), depending on local conditions and the bird species involved.
In convective cooling dry heat is lost to the air either freely or through the
action of the wind (forced convection or radiation cooling).

When attempting to cool themselves birds often adopt distinctive heat
stress postures, exposing bare areas in the shade, gaping and panting. Parrots
are known to adopt very simple defence actions. Those living in tropical
countries suspend their activities during the middle of the day, resting on a
shaded branch, pressing the contour feathers down and lifting the closed
wings.

In extremely hot summers in Rome (e.g. the one of 2003), when at noon
the ambient temperature may unusually approach 40° C (104° F), Red-tailed
Black Cockatoos have been occasionally observed performing a distinctive
cooling posture. The birds revert one of their wings so that the upper surface
rests on the perch in an almost horizontal position, the tip pointing forward,
the carpal edge backward, thus exposing to the air the thinly feathered
underside of humerus and flank. The first time I noticed this strange posture
I got the unpleasant impression that the bird involved had a broken wing,
but when I approached the aviary the parrot immediately reverted to its
normal standing position.

By the way it seems quite unusual for birds like C. banksi , whose range
extends to hot inland Australia, to have developed black plumage that absorbs
(rather than reflects) the sun’s rays. As however suggested by Marder (1973)
for the all-black desert living crows, this colour may help in avoiding
excessive heat loading from solar radiation, by allowing the outer surface to
absorb heat and then loosing it by convection, thus preventing the penetration
of the heat to the body proper.

Another odd behaviour of captive C. banksi involves feeding. Differently

70

BERTAGNOLIO - RED-TAILED BLACK COCKATOO

from other parrots these cockatoos husk sunflower seeds and swallow the
content whole. During the day a resting bird can be occasionally observed
while performing anti-peristaltic movements. Soon afterwards a small
amount of food is pushed backward to the mouth and regurgitated onto the
perch. The softened seeds are then picked up one by one and carefully
‘masticated’ before being definitively swallowed in the form of mush.

The first time I had the opportunity to observe this strange behaviour,
which is reminiscent of ruminant herbivores, I thought it could be ascribed
to a digestive problem of the bird involved. Later I realised that this procedure
was regularly performed by both individuals then at the CSCP (Centro per
lo Studio e la Conservazione degli Psittaciformi), as well as by an old female
at Rome Zoo, as reported to me by the former Curator Maurizio Picone.

References

Marder, J. 1973. Body temperature regulation in the Brown-necked Raven. Comp. Biochem.
Physiol. 45:431-440.

Simmons, K. E. L. 1986. The Sunning Behaviour of Birds. Bristol Ornithological Club.

Paolo Bertagnolio, Centro per lo Studio e la Conservazione degli
Psittaciformi, Via Luigi Russo, 78, 00050 Aranova, Rome, Italy.

* * *

AVICULTURAL MAGAZINE BACK ISSUES

A large stock is available including some early issues. Further details
are available from: The Hon. Secretary and Treasurer, The Avicultural
Society, Arcadia, The Mounts, Totnes, Devon TQ9 7QJ, UK. E-mail:
Paul@pboulden.fsnet.co.uk

METABOLIC BONE DISEASE AND GENERAL LEG
DEFORMITIES IN CHICKS - CAUSES AND
PREVENTATIVE MEASURES

71

by Louise Peat

During the process of imputting historical data on to our computer system
here at the Cots wold Wildlife Park, I noticed how often metabolic bone
disease (MBD) had occurred in chicks of various species in our collection.
I am sure that the majority of members have come across MBD at some
time during the course of their bird keeping. It is a common problem with
long-legged species, e.g. cranes, storks and seriemas, and although it does
occur in naturally (parent-) reared chicks it is much more commonplace
with artificially reared chicks.

I have never come across a paper which encompasses the problem over
a broad spectrum of bird species, so here I have set out to compile as much
information as possible about the disease, noting how it can affect each
species and the measures that can be taken to prevent it.

Metabolic bone disease

Metabolic bone disease (MBD) is merely a category heading for a variety
of disorders, including rickets, osteoporosis and hypocalcaemia. It is a serious
disease that results in severe crippling or death and is caused primarily by a
diet deficient in calcium. It can affect young and old of most bird species.
Diseases of the intestine, liver, kidneys, parathyroid gland and bones can all
lead to the development of MBD, and anything that reduces the absorption
rate of calcium, a vitally important element of life, will ultimately lead to
problems.

Calcium is required in the diet in larger amounts than any other mineral
and its absorption by the body is linked to phosphorus and vitamin D, so it
is essential these nutrients are available in correct amounts to enable the
proper utilization of calcium. An excess of either calcium or phosphorus
will also lead to MBD, so there is the need to be very aware that over
supplementing diets can be equally damaging. An excess of phosphorus
will lead to low levels of calcium in the body, and equally devastating, an
excess of calcium can lead to kidney failure and gout.

It can be difficult to judge whether we are getting the balance right.
There is more than enough information available to write a book on the
subject, yet most avicultural literature offers only a passing paragraph. The
areas I am most interested in are MBD and general leg deformities in growing
chicks. After seeing the effects of MBD problems first-hand, one- of the
questions I have asked myself is why when everything goes well one year

72

PEAT - METABOLIC BONE DISEASE

with parent-rearing, do we get chicks with splayed legs in the nest the
following year, having used exactly the same husbandry methods? The
same appears to apply with hand-rearing, where having reared a species
successfully, we can use the same diet and techniques again and end up with
chicks with leg deformities. Why despite all our efforts do pheasant chicks
hatched from artificially incubated eggs have leg problems?

I hope to try to answer some of these questions and would like to invite
comments and would welcome any additional information members may
be able to provide.

Hatch deformities

In the cases of chicks hatching with deformities, we should start by
looking at the actual incubation of the eggs, as many problems can occur at
this time. Inadequate turning, rough handling, incorrect temperatures and
humidity, can all cause prolonged hatching. But is there more to it? Can we
go further and say that contributing factors could be the nutrition, age and
health of our breeding stock? As a rule we take eggs and chicks only from
birds that cannot or will not incubate their own eggs and rear their own
young. Those that exhibit such problems are often older pairs and
inexperienced young pairs. This could also be a contributory factor.

The majority of birds with problems have in my personal experience
been pheasants. It is quite common to see adult Galliformes with crooked
toes, and twisted legs and deformities of the beak are also not uncommon.
Many of these problems can with a lot of time, effort and encouragement be
corrected when the birds are young.

Generally if you feel your incubation techniques are adequate, you should
look carefully at the health and nutrition of your adult birds. If they are not
getting the correct nutrients from their diet their reproduction may be affected.
It does appear that a deficiency of manganese can result in poor bone
formation in the skeleton of the embryo and this can account for mortalities
in the last third of the incubation period.

Turacos

I have seen MBD in both parent-reared and artificially reared turacos. In
the past it was much more prevalent in hand-reared birds, but since the
demise of the pawpaw and pinkies hand-rearing diet, it is less widespread.
This diet was abandoned initially as a precaution against iron storage disease,
but can almost certainly be considered as having been a contributory factor
in the incidences of MBD in turacos. Pinkies are low in calcium and high in
protein, resulting in rapid growth without the adequate levels of calcium
needed for proper bone development. Hand-rearing diets for turacos have
come a long way since then.

There are still occasional problems with splayed legs with turaco chicks,

PEAT - METABOLIC BONE DISEASE

73

which if not caught early enough can result in fatalities. In most cases these
can be prevented by using the correct substrates to line the nests, both for
parent and artificially reared chicks. Avoid items that they can get their legs
stuck under, materials they can get their claws trapped in, and slippery
surfaces on which they cannot get a proper purchase. In the case of parent-
reared chicks I have used carpet to line the nests, as this can be thrown away
after each clutch and fresh carpet used to re-line the nest. In the case of our
hand-reared chicks we have recently begun using Astroturf. This is easy to
keep clean and offers the chicks a much better surface on which to get a
proper purchase.

Another problem can be overfeeding, turacos do not have a crop so it is
difficult to visually judge the correct food intake, and it is therefore always
wise to weigh feeds to avoid overfeeding and unnatural growth acceleration.
Exercise is also a factor, helping to strengthen muscles and aid bone
development. We positively encourage chicks to work for their food, making
them stretch for and chase after items of food. As soon as they are old
enough, chicks are taken outside, initially just for short periods, with the
length of time being increased as the chicks become stronger and more
confident. This continues until they are independent and capable of being
left in the aviary.

Sunlight is an important source of vitamin D3, which is produced
exclusively in birds’ bodies when ultraviolet rays transform vitamin D
precursors in the skin into vitamin D3. This can also be achieved by using
an artificial UV light source. There does though need to be a level of vitamin
D within the body in order to produce vitamin D3. Vitamin D3 is essential in
maintaining the absorption and excretion levels of both calcium and
phosphorus within the body.

Obviously in the case of parent-reared chicks we have much less control
over what happens to them, having said that, leg deformities are infrequent
with parent-reared turacos. It can be difficult to monitor what parent-reared
chicks are being fed, especially in a mixed aviary situation in which multiple
food items are available.

Storks

MBD is much more commonplace with long-legged bird species, with
storks being amongst the more vulnerable. They require a much more
protein-rich diet, as the result of which the chick’s growth rate is rapid and
it is vital that the birds receive the correct ratios of calcium, phosphorus and
vitamin D.

The consequences of MBD in stork chicks are horrendous, with the onset
being extremely rapid and therefore very difficult to correct. The initial
signs are leg twisting and bending, poor appetite and weak bones that fracture
very easily. This problem has been well documented with these birds. Storks

74

PEAT - METABOLIC BONE DISEASE

are not easy birds to breed, which makes it even more devastating when we
loose chicks to this formidable disease.

Attempts have been made to treat birds once the disease has presented
itself. Injectable calcium supplements are a non-aggressive form of treatment,
while a more aggressive form of treatment can involve bone-pinning. The
latter is highly risky, involving as it does already fragile bones and may well
interfere with the bird’s future development. The chances of this kind of
surgery being successful are slim, and will probably just result in prolonging
the bird’s suffering.

Once again prevention is far better than cure. The importance of research
into both hand-rearing and parent-rearing diets cannot be overstressed.
Proper research at the start of the breeding season will prepare you for most
eventualities, which will hopefully lead ultimately to an increased success
rate.

MBD is equally prevalent in parent-reared storks and may be the result
of inadequate diets or because the parents are inexperienced birds. It does
appear that certain species are more prone than others to MBD. A classic
example of this occurred here at the Cots wold Wildlife Park, where the
European White Storks Ciconia ciconia and the Black Storks C. nigra both
received the same diet, but whereas the White Storks thrived on this diet the
Black Storks one by one succumbed to various degrees of MBD. Because
of the problems we have encountered with artificially reared Black Storks,
we are looking into developing a more successful rearing diet and intend to
share our findings with others interested in keeping and breeding this species.

Cranes

Crane rearing is very different from stork rearing in that crane chicks are
precocious (remarkable for their early development) and require a much
less protein-rich diet and have a slower growth rate. I have not heard of
MBD occurring in naturally reared chicks, but have heard of a case with a
foster reared bird and have experience of it with artificially reared birds.

Perosis, also known as chondrodystrophy or slipped tendon, seems to
pose a greater risk. It can be a genetic problem but can also be caused by a
deficiency of one or more of: choline, manganese, zinc, copper, niacin, biotin,
pyridoxine, vitamin E, vitamin B12, folic acid or a calcium and phosphorus
imbalance. The symptoms are swelling of the hock joint, shortening of the
leg bone and tendon slippage from the hock joint. The bird will present
with a slight limp that will gradually worsen until the bird is eventually
unable to put weight onto the limb. Perosis is also well documented in
ratites, waterfowl and pigeons . The mineralization of the bone is not affected
and from all I have read, it appears that a deficiency in manganese and an
excess of calcium and phosphorus are the main causes.

PEAT - METABOLIC BONE DISEASE

75

Along with a balanced diet, exercise is a vital component in the successful
rearing of cranes and it is the principal preventative measure that can be
taken to avoid leg deformities with these species. It is important to start
early and get crane chicks outside running around as soon as possible.

Other species affected

I have first-hand experience of MBD in all of the three families above.
It can though also effect many other species and I have heard of it occurring
frequently with ratites, birds of prey, seriemas, and to a lesser extent with
parrots, pigeons, flamingos and even starlings.

Rearing protocols

Regardless of the species involved, I believe that common sense and
well thought out rearing protocols are the best way to combat MBD. In our
rearing room we have recently installed ultraviolet lights, and it will be
interesting to see what if any affect these have on our rearing results.

At the start of each breeding season it is always prudent to review the
previous year’s successes and failures, and look at ways of improving results,
including:

Reviewing the health of all adult breeding pairs.

Reviewing the nutrition of all breeding pairs.

Examining the condition of all incubation equipment.

Reviewing rearing diets, including looking at successful rearing diets
used in other collections and comparing their success rates with your
own.

Taking a careful look at nest baskets, nesting and rearing materials and
substrates, etc.

Planning exercise routines and ensuring you have adequate space and
facilities available.

Conclusions

I am sure that MBD will continue to be a problem for bird keepers, but
perhaps by being more open and freely discussing our successes and failures
with other interested parties we can help each other learn more about how to
keep this problem at bay.

Bibliography

Amall, L. and Keymer, I. F. 1975. Bird Disease. T. F. H. Publications, Neptune City, New
Jersey, USA .

West MRCVS, G. P. (ed.). Black’s Veterinary Dictionary 18th Edition. A & C Black, London.

Louise Peat is a bird keeper at the Cotswold Wildlife Park, Burford,
Oxon. 0X18 4JW, UK. Tel:01993 823006/Fax:01993 823807 I Web site:

cotswoldwildlifepark.co .uk

76

THE JAPANESE WAXWING Bomby cilia japonica
by Jim Jerrard

Visiting the autumn bird sales at Stafford in 2002, looking for something
different for the 2003 breeding season, other than birds of the thrush family,
I found a small dealer with six or seven Japanese Waxwings Bombycilla
japonica which took my fancy. Their plumage did not look too good, but
otherwise they seemed in pretty good condition. I asked the dealer about
sexing them and he said he thought that the males have a longer and more
pointed crest than the females, and the males are more brown than grey.
After studying the birds for a few minutes, I decided that it was impossible
to distinguish the males from the females. Because of the difficulty of sexing
them and the fact that their plumage was in poor condition, the dealer offered
to drop the price a little. I purchased four of them and on getting home with
them, put them into two cages in a spare room. I gave them food and water
and left a dim light on throughout the night.

The next morning the birds were very active, so I took them out to my
bird shed and transferred them into two 6ft (approx. 1 .8m) long flight cages.
After bathing daily for a week, their plumage started to look much better
and the missing feathers started to grow again. By the end of January their
plumage was in top condition, but I was still unable to sex them. In February
a friend phoned to find out how I was doing with them, and told me that in
Birds of Russia it states that males have reddish-brown vent feathers and
females have fawn-brown vent feathers. After our conversation I went and
examined my birds and decided that I had three males and one female. A
week later I was lucky enough to purchase another female from Armers of
B amber Bridge.

In mid-March I put two pairs out into 9ft x 3ft x 6ft (approx. 2.7m x lm
x 1 .8m) breeding flights and set about trying to bring them into breeding
condition. I provided both pairs with softbill food and fruit, with livefood
added, but to my surprise they would not touch the mealworms or anything
else that moved, though they did eat maggot chrysalis.

In May the male of one pair was seen pushing the female to one end of
the perch, then she would fly back and he would start again to push her
along the perch. This went on for a day or two, after which the pair started
to pass bits of twig to each other and then in time this changed to bits of
fruit. By the end of May they were playing leapfrog on the perch and feeding
each other, soon after which mating was seen.

On June 2nd I decided to provide the pair with an old nest that had
belonged to a pair of Blackbirds Turdus merula. I put up another in the
flight housing the second pair, even though this pair had yet to be seen

JERRARD - JAPANESE WAXWING

77

performing any courtship behaviour. On June 10th, the male of the first pair
started lining the Blackbird nest with coconut fibre and sisal, and later animal
hair was added. The female did little other than shape the nest to her liking.
The first egg was laid June 19th. The complete clutch consisted of five
eggs, which were blue-grey with brown and black spots. The first egg hatched
July 5th and two hatched July 7th- 8th. The fifth egg failed to hatch.

By July 10th two of the chicks had been lost, but the remaining two
seemed to be doing well, being fed mainly by the male with regurgitated
buffalo worms and eggfood until they were a week old, when I also provided
waxworm grubs twice a day, which were swallowed whole by both parents
and then fed to the chicks. I ringed the two chicks at eight days old with
IOA size K rings. When the chicks were ten days old the male started to re¬
line the nest and in doing so tipped out one of the chicks and as a result it
died. The remaining chick continued to thrive and left the nest aged 16 days
on July 21st. It was independent at 30 days old.

By July 26th the female had laid again and this time produced a clutch
of four eggs. The first hatched on August 10th and the other three hatched
on consecutive days. The last chick to hatch died the next day followed by
two more, each of which were removed from the nest by the parents. On
August 20th I went into the flight and immediately sensed all was not well;
the female was on the nest, but there was a nasty smell and on flushing the
female off the nest, I saw that the remaining chick was dead. The pair made
no further attempt to nest in 2003 .

The second pair did not start nesting until June 28th and the first of four
eggs was laid on July 1 1th. All four eggs hatched on July 27th. On entering
the flight on July 30th, there was a pungent smell and on flushing the female
off the nest, all four chicks were dead. This was the only breeding attempt
by the second pair in 2003 .

On leaving the nest the young waxwing was grey, which was darker on
the crest, wings and tail, which had a red tip; the breast was light grey,
fading to white on the belly, and the flanks were heavily streaked with dark
grey. After moulting it looked a little more like its parents and had a faint
wing-bar. The vent feathers were light brown, leading me to believe that it
was a female.

The only sounds I have heard from my waxwings are a very low song in
the breeding season, like that of the Blue Tit Parus caeruleus, and a “seeping”
sound in the autumn and winter.

I have found them to be good aviary birds that are easy to cater for and
are peaceful with other birds outside the breeding season. As they are hardy,
heat is of little importance to them and all they need in the winter months is
a diet of fruit, berries and a softbill food low in fat, as waxwings are prone to
obesity. My birds are not too fond of soft berries, such as raspberries and

78

JERRARD - JAPANESE WAXWING

those of elder and bramble, instead they prefer those of rowan, hawthorn,
cotoneaster and firethom. I have yet to try them on those of privet and ivy.

Last year was the first year I had kept waxwings and although only one
chick was reared from the 12 eggs that hatched, I learned a lot about my
birds. The first pair lost all but one of its chicks, mainly I think because the
female began sitting as soon as she had laid the first egg, as a result of which
the older chicks got most of the food. With the second pair, the female did
not sit until the full clutch was laid and as a result, all four chicks hatched on
the same day. Unfortunately, they were all found dead at the same time.

The only chick to be reared successfully (by the first pair) has indeed
proved to be a female and I have paired it with my spare male, so that I have
three unrelated pairs for the 2004 breeding season.

Jim Jerrard is a relatively new member of the society who lives in
Yorkshire. In 1995, he was first in the UK to breed the Black-headed
Greenfinch Cardeulis ambigua and the following year was first in the UK to
breed the Dusky Thrush Turdus naumanni eunomus.

* * *

SEEDEATER CONVENTION

The Queensland Finch Society Incorporated’s Second Triennial
International Finch and Seedeater Convention is to be held April 29th -May
1st 2005 at Riverglenn, described as a large, state of the art venue, surrounded
by rainforest and located on the banks of the beautiful Brisbane River.
Registration forms are available from: The Convention Registrar, PO. Box
911, Morayfield, Queensland, Australia 4510. Tel/Fax: +6 17 5498 99 1 4/E •
mail : indruss @bigpond .com

* * *

HORNBILL CONFERENCE

The Ground Hombill Research & Conservation Project, Three Cities
Game Lodges, South Africa, and the Hombill Research Foundation, Thailand,
November 7th 9th 2005 will host the Fourth International Hombill
Conference at Mabula Game Lodge, South Africa. The principal theme of
the conference will be The Active Management of Hornbills and their
Habitats for Conservation. There will also be a general session to report on
other aspects of hombill biology and a separate workshop by the IUCN and
BirdLife Hombill Specialist Group to identify conservation priorities. Further
details are available by e-mail:hombillconference2005@ yahoo.co.uk

79

BOOK REVIEWS

HANDBOOK OF THE BIRDS OF THE WORLD (Volume 8)

With publication of the ninth volume imminent, this monumental series
is on course to speed up the rhythm of production with the aim of publishing
one volume a year which will make it possible to complete the series within
the originally projected time frame. This latest volume is the first devoted
to passerine species and the publishers say it contains more pages, plates
and colour photographs than any of its predecessors and add that it will

involve “ . a significant step forward in terms of the quantity and quality

of published information readily available about these birds”.

Volume 8 covers nine families - Broadbills, Asities, Pittas, Ovenbirds,
Woodcreepers, Typical Antbirds, Ground-Antbirds, Gnateaters and
Tapaculos. Owners of previous volumes will be familiar with the layout
and style. Suffice to say that individual families are dealt with by specialists
who have produced concise but informative material and contributed a good
deal of hitherto unpublished information about various species.

Successive volumes have managed to keep abreast of much new
information which is included in appropriate sections. Thus I read that the
White-masked Antbird Pithy s castanea, previously known only through a
single specimen collected in Amazonia in 1937, had been rediscovered in
Peru in 2000. A splendid photograph of it accompanies the text.

As reviewers have lavished so many superlatives on the word content of
successive volumes I would like on this occasion to draw attention
particularly to the photographs which so admirably complement the text
for, Volume 8 like its companions, is not only an invaluable reference work
but also, by means of the contributions of both artists and photographers, a
work to be thoroughly enjoyed.

There are a number of excellent photographs of pittas including the Garnet
Pitta venusta, Red-bellied P. erythrogaster , Giant P. caerulea. Ivory-breasted
P. maxima. Blue-banded P. arquata and Superb P. superha. But pride of
place must go to a splendid photograph of a Gurney’s Pitta P. gurneyi at its
nest in the Khao Nor Chuchi Wildlife Sanctuary in southern Thailand.
Caption notes confirm that this Critically Endangered species was
rediscovered in Thailand in 1986 some 34 years after it had apparently
disappeared in that country.

Broadbills are well represented including a number of the rarer species
such as Hose’s Calyptomena hosii and Vissayan Wattled Sarcophanops
samarensis - the first which is classified as Near- threatened, the second
Vulnerable. I liked photographs on facing pages of the Green C. viridis and
Long-tailed Broadbills Psarisomus dalhousiae looking snug as they peer

80

BOOK REVIEWS

out of their pocket-shaped nests.

Handbook of the Birds of the World Volume 8 is available from Lynx
Edicions, Montseny, 8, E-08193, Bellaterra, Barcelona, Spain (Website:
www.hbw.com) and from good booksellers. At £1 10 it is not inexpensive,
but you get a lot for your money.

Frank Woolham

FABULOUS FEATHERS, REMARKABLE BIRDS

Fabulous Feathers, Remarkable Birds by Rosemary Low is a 370-
paperback with numerous black and white photographs throughout and an
additional section of colour photographs. Full of interesting facts and figures,
news items and the author’s personal observations and experiences this is
on one level a potpourri to dip into and on another a heartfelt plea for bird
conservation. Nigel Collar’s foreword and Rosemary’s introduction both
emphasise that an appreciation of the joy that birds can bring us fuels human
determination to fight for and assist in their conservation worldwide. It is
people that are the main threat to bird conservation but equally it is only
people who will work to ensure the survival of our threatened birds.

The book is divided into three parts. The first part entitled Beauty, Love
and Endurance includes accounts of some of the world’s most beautiful and
bizarre birds, and includes a chapter devoted to the fabulous and remarkable
birds of paradise. Other aspects of bird biology including migration feats,
acute vision and hearing, memory, instinct and learning and individual bird
behaviour are also touched on.

The second part, The Struggle for Survival, gives examples of some of
the threats to birds including pesticides, hunting, introduced predators,
intensive agriculture and habitat loss. Island birds are especially vulnerable
and one chapter devoted to Island Life includes examples from the
Seychelles, Madagascar, Hawaii, the Philippines and other islands.

The final part of the book, A Helping Hand from Man, looks at ways that
we can help the survival of birds and includes ways that people can support
bird conservation. Examples include the educational campaign on St Lucia
promoting pride in the St Lucia Amazon Parrot. In the final chapter Rosemary
quotes Paul Butler in arguing for sustainable development and for control
of human population growth.

Rosemary is an aviculturist and conservationist and here reveals an
interest in bird conservation that goes well beyond the boundaries of
aviculture. Whilst aviculture and conservation are not incompatatible the
unsustainable trade in wild caught birds and their products is a different
matter. Rosemary illustrates this through for example the case of the Red
and Blue Lory in the pet trade and the trade in nests of Edible-nest Swiftlets
for bird nest soup.

BOOK REVIEWS

81

Many of the birds and people featured in this book are familiar at least
by name to aviculturists and zoo biologists. Parrots and birrls of paradise
feature on the cover and in the book but facts and stories about many other
birds are also covered. Accounts are included of Carl Jones’ work with the
Mauritius Kestrel, Pink Pigeon and Echo Parakeet and Ron Merton’s work
with the Kakapo. Less well known are the stories of the recent extinction of
the Guatemalan Giant Grebe and the Colombian Grebe.

If you like birds you will enjoy this book. I did.

Fabulous Feathers , Remarkable Birds (ISBN 1 -903” 138-49-3) is
distributed by Rosemary Low, Dept. A, PO. Box 100, Mansfield, Notts.
NG20 9NZ, UK. Price £14.50 post paid in the UK, £15.50 (a 22) post paid
to Europe. Cheques should be made payable to Rosemary Low.

Roger Wilkinson

BIRDS OF BELIZE

Birds of Belize by H. Lee Jones, illustrated by Dana Gardner, another in
the Helm Field Guide series, was received for review shortly after the same
publisher’s Birds of the West Indies, which I reviewed in the previous issue
(. Avicultural Magazine Vol.110, No.l, p.41 (2004)).

The present guide is bigger both in page size (230mm x 155mm (approx.
9in x 6in) and thicker in that it runs to 3 17 pages. It covers 573 species and
has 56 colour plates. This is just nine more species than in Birds of the West
Indies , illustrated on fewer colour plates. The real big difference Is that
Birds of Belize provides much more information on each species than many
field guides. There are fairly detailed descriptions of each species and
descriptions of their voice, habitat, overall (world) distribution, then their
status in Belize, with in many instances the reference or references for
information cited at the end of the species account.

Belize is bordered to the north by Mexico, to the west and south by
Guatemala, and on its east coast is the Caribbean. Just some 180 miles
(approx. 290km) from north to south and 65 miles (approx. 105km) east to
west at its widest point, it is only slightly larger than El Salvador, Central
America’s smallest country. Belize is the only English-speaking country in
Central America, and one of the few English-speaking countries in Latin
America. It is said to offer an ideal introduction to tropical birding, especially
for English-speaking tourists and is beginning to rival Costa Rica as the
most popular birding destination in Central America.

Helm Field Guides. Birds of Belize, is published in the UK by Christopher
Helm, an imprint of A & C Black Publishers Ltd. Website: www.acblack.com
Price £29.99.

Malcolm Ellis

82

MY WOODCOCK STUDY

by B. N. Lowde

I have kept birds for over 30 years, and I have studied in the wild and
bred in captivity many species of wild birds. My main study until 1972 was
of the Hawfinch Coccothraustes coccothraustes , a species which I bred many
times. In December 197 1 I was awarded the British Bird Breeders’ Bronze
Medal, for being the first person on record to successfully breed the Hawfinch
in captivity in Britain1.

The author holding a Woodcock.

1 FIRST BREEDING RECORDS FOR BIRDS REARED TO INDEPENDENCE UNDER
CONTROLLED CONDITIONS IN THE UNITED KINGDOM compiled by Dave Coles,

published in 1986, credits the first breeding to W. Teschemaker in 1911 - Ed

LOWDE - WOODCOCK

83

One early spring day in 1972, whilst out in the woods which adjoin the
back gardens of 65% of our village perimeter houses, I was off the beaten
track looking for Hawfinches’ nests. From just in front of me, a Woodcock
Scolopax rusticola flew up and I quickly found its nest, which had one egg.
Nearby, just a few inches (centimetres) off the ground in a clump of brambles,

Copyright BJSt. Lowde

Woodcock Scolapax rusticola

was the nest of a pair of Dunnocks or Hedge Accentors Prunella modularis,
with five eggs. To one side, away from the Woodcock’s nest was an old tree
which had split and fallen, but was still resting on the remaining stump, thus
forming a triangle with the ground. The whole of the tree including the
stump was covered in trailing ivy and with a slight rearrangement of the ivy
I had a natural hide, which if I approached from the rear, I would be able to
watch the Woodcock, confident of not disturbing it.

Most days I would go to this natural hide and watch the Woodcock sitting
on its eggs. On the day I hoped the eggs would hatch, I witnessed a
remarkable happening. After having been at the hide for a while it became
obvious that the Woodcock was agitated. It would leave its nest and approach
the Dunnock’s nest each time that the parents came with food for their young,
which turned out to be approximately one week old. On each approach the
Woodcock would turn around, fan its tail, then spread its wings, before
returning to its own nest. Whilst the Woodcock was off its nest, I saw that
one of its four eggs had hatched and another was just chipping. On what
turned out to be its last visit, the Woodcock went straight to the Dunnock’s
nest, tapped its beak on the edge and as the young chicks raised their heads
thinking they were about to be fed, the Woodcock took hold of each one in
turn, grasping it by the head, shook it and then threw it to the ground. This

84

LOWDE - WOODCOCK

Copyright B.N. Lowde

An alternative use of the tail feathers. The Woodcock will open and close its tail, to
show white ‘flashes’, to startle would-be predators.

done it returned to its own nest and settled down again. Whilst the above
incident was happening I was sitting spellbound and after a minute or so
realised that the Woodcock must have been acting to protect its own young
from any would-be predators, which at the Woodcock chicks’ most vulnerable
time, may have been attracted by the noise of the Dunnock chicks whilst
they were being fed. This behaviour was a revelation to me and I decided it
was a bird that would be worth studying.

I realised that it would be almost impossible to study the Woodcock in
the wild, as being a largely nocturnal bird, the only chance one would get to
study it would be at dusk in early spring when it was roding (i.e. when the
male was undertaking its display flights), or at the nest when the female
was sitting on eggs. Having already witnessed the remarkable behaviour of
the Woodcock with the Dunnock or Hedge Accentor chicks, I realised I
could possibly watch a hundred nests and never see this remarkable behaviour
again.

So my mind made up, my first step was to read everything I could find
on the Woodcock. I soon found that very little was known of the life cycle
of the Woodcock. This meant I would need to start my captive study from
scratch with a male and a female bird. According to the writings at that
time this would be a problem, as no known visible sex difference was apparent
at any time. The only way known was by dissecting a dead bird. I was left
with one solution - to obtain either a clutch of eggs or very young chicks, so

LOWDE - WOODCOCK

85

that I would be sure of getting one of each sex. Before attempting this, I had
to get permission from the local park manager and various local farmers,
allowing me to take a clutch from any part of the woodland around our
village. Permission was readily granted by the park manager, who brought
all sorts of injured birds to me, and by the farmers who brought injured non¬
pest species to me, to be looked after and released when fully recovered.

Due to the fact that here in Nottinghamshire we are situated on a belt of
magnesium limestone, the top soil is very rich in worms and invertebrates.
Also there are many natural springs, rising through the many fissures in the
limestone, creating open lakes and muddy areas, making ideal feeding and
breeding areas for the Woodcock.

My first acquisition, in 1 973 , was a chick about three weeks of age which
had run out in front of me, and which I had caught after a brief chase through
the sparse undergrowth. I was rather surprised, because it was only mid-
March and the BTO (British Trust for Ornithology) information at that time
stated that the Woodcock bred in April, with possibly a second brood around
August. I calculated that the chick must have hatched from an egg laid over
the Christmas-New Year period. I was unable to obtain any more chicks
until April, and then only after intensive searching I found two two-week
old chicks, and so my study could begin.

I had optimistically assumed that it would take approximately five years
to complete. However, as the result of an unfortunate mishap and the fact
that over the first few years, each Woodcock clutch I acquired seemed to
yield only one female (how I learned to sex Woodcocks I explain later), plus
the fact that by then I had become so fascinated by the intelligence of this
species, my studies have now covered over 16 years and still new facts are
becoming apparent.

In 1977 1 was lucky enough to successfully hatch a Woodcock egg under
a racing pigeon. The female Woodcock that laid the egg was blind in one
eye, a defect which made her extra nervous. She had left an earlier clutch of
eggs, which were found to have dead chicks inside, so I wanted to avoid
risking this happening again.

I had by then realised that if I wanted a true insight into the life of the
Woodcock, the only way was to bring up a chick in the house as one of the
family. So, whenever I could afford cine film and 35mm colour film, I
filmed a chick from when it was an hour old. I filmed its growth, its feeding
and its ability to learn. I kept it in the house for over a year, housed at first
in a 3ft x 1ft x 1ft (approx. 92cm x 30cm x 30cm) aquarium, with the bottom
lined with fine soil. It was kept at room temperature, but for extra warmth
and to assimilate the chick being warmed under its mother, I suspended a
40 watt light bulb at one end just out of the chick’s reach and the chick
would lay and rest underneath the bulb. This proved quite adequate for it

86

LOWDE - WOODCOCK

and for further young in later years.

I set it numerous tasks to test its intelligence, such as putting down small
brass dishes with lids on, and it had to pick the correct dish which contained
a reward in the form of a worm. Also I made a small model scaffold, from
which I suspended a small brass bell, and the Woodcock was taught that if it
rang the bell it would receive a reward in the form of a worm; or later a strip
of sheep’s heart. This test then progressed to getting the Woodcock to run
across to the bell and ring it. The Woodcock even learned that I would
refuse to accept a soft ring and on my command would return and ring it
louder so as to obtain its reward. Also I devised a matchbox test in which I
might put down 10-20 closed matchboxes, each with a hole in the side, and
just by touching the boxes with the tip of its bill, the Woodcock could detect

Phil Spencer

The Woodcock ringing the bell (a small Austrian cow bell suspended on a length of
string), reproduced from a newspaper cutting featuring the author’s trained bird.

and then extract the worm from the correct box in a matter of seconds.
These tests I was able to film on Super 8 cine film and was lucky enough to
have the film shown on television with the late Dr Magnus Pike and David
Bellamy, also shown was my recording of its mating display.

When the young Woodcock was three months of age I transferred it to a
hill mynah’s cage, with a removable bottom for easy cleaning. As I sat
watching television in the evenings, it would be resting contentedly, making
low throaty sounds, very like the distant “cooing” of the Turtle Dove

LOWDE - WOODCOCK

87

Streptopelia turtur and this was very pleasant to listen to. If after a while I
took no notice of this it would gently ring its bell (a small Austrian cow bell,
suspended on a length of string in its cage). If I continued to take no notice
it would take hold of the bell and smash it across the metal bars of the cage,
making a tenable noise so that I would go to it. If offered food, it would
refuse it, appearing instead just to want my attention, or to be let out of its
cage, as was normal most evenings after the family had gone to bed. It was
therefore using the bell as a form of communication.

If when he was ringing the bell gently, I turned to him and said ‘‘good
boy”, he would immediately stand up in his cage and puff out his neck
feathers, giving him the appearance of a Ruff Philomachus pugnax ; his throat
would inflate and he would make croaking sounds, like those of a frog, then
he would turn his back on me and display; this included rotating his tail
feathers.

When teaching a young Woodcock to do different tricks, it is not unlike
teaching a dog. If it did anything which pleased me I would say “good boy”
and give it a reward. I must have said this a thousand times during the first
few weeks and the Woodcock learned that if I said this I was pleased and it
meant it would receive a reward. If I said “good boy” as it was “cooing” it
would stimulate it to perform its mating display.

As the young Woodcock had been kept in an aquarium on the floor near
the fire during the first few weeks of its life, it had seen mainly our feet and
shoes. If I was filming or feeding him small worms with a pair of tweezers
as he stood on the carpet, he was always by my feet, so not surprisingly he
became imprinted on my shoes, as he saw more of them than any other part
of me, and came to regard them as his parents. At about three months of age
when he was transferred to the mynah’s cage, this was on a coffee table,
which meant he saw my face whilst I was feeding him or teaching him
tricks. He then, as I realised when he was a little older, became imprinted
on my face as well as my shoes.

One evening when I let him out after the family had gone to bed, he flew
around the room several times, as though roding in the wild - his prelude to
the mating display - and would usually land on the floor and then display.
He would raise his tail feathers and his under tail-coverts, and as he displayed
would alternatively rotate each row of feathers. As they were rotating, the
white iridescent spots on the underside tips of the tail feathers became a
white almost circular blur, like a catherine-wheel . As each row of feathers
passed and rubbed against each other it sounded like someone running their
thumb over the edge of a pack of playing cards; at the same time it held out
its wings and shook them vigorously. This it did intermittently, between
jumping up in the air, sometimes as high as 3ft (approx. 92cm), then landing
again and continuing this display and jumping pattern for five to six minutes.

88

LOWDE - WOODCOCK

Copyright BN. Lowde

Representations from the mating displays performed
within the author’s front room.

On this occasion he flew around the room and instead of landing on the
carpet and doing his display, he flew towards me and hovered in front of my
face, with the tip of his bill almost touching my nose. He hovered there for
almost a minute. He was rotating his wings in a figure of eight movement,
as does a hummingbird. His wings were almost invisible, such was the
rapid movement needed to keep him suspended in front of my face. Unlike
the Kestrel Falco tinnunculus and some other birds that need wind to enable
them to hover and remain in the same place, the Woodcock needed no such
assistance. The room door, the windows and the curtains were all closed.

On another occasion whilst filming the Woodcock, I kicked off one of
my shoes onto the carpet and the bird immediately began to display to it,
which culminated with it jumping up onto the toe, taking hold of the lace
and mating with the shoe. At times when I put my hand into the cage, he

LOWDE - WOODCOCK

89

would jump onto the back of my hand, take hold of my sleeve and attempt
to mate. It was very obvious that this was a male Woodcock that was heavily
imprinted. I learned from it that whenever I got a clutch of young Woodcocks ,
either from eggs or from the wild, I needed to keep them together for the
first few weeks and so 'cross print’ them. Then I could take one which I
wanted to teach and whose intelligence I wanted to test and if I wanted to
could soon put it back with the others without any difficulty.

Furthermore, I learned that young chicks can be sexed quite easily despite
their identical colouring. Some of the chicks would make the same sounds
as an adult male, though somewhat squeakier, while others would hardly
utter a sound. When they were being paired up for mating, the difference in
temperament between the male and female was even more distinct with the
adult birds, the male being boisterous and uttering gutteral croaking sounds
and the female being very quiet at all times.

Captive breeding sequence

Year 1 - February

Two adults in cage 8ft x 6ft (approx. 2.4m x 1.8m) produced young in
March. After breeding both birds dropped their tail feathers and went into a
moult.

Year 2 - February March

Two adults and two one-year of age Woodcocks in cage. The one-year
old pair had dropped its tail feathers and so could not display and thus
stimulate breeding. The adult pair then went on to breed, after which the
pair dropped its tail feathers and went into its moult.

Year 2 - My

The two younger birds then 16 months of age had by then regrown their
tail feathers and were able to go ahead and breed. Whilst the older adult
birds were regrowing their tail feathers ready for the following spring.

Is the Woodcock single or double-brooded?

The question has often been raised as to whether the Woodcock is single
or double-brooded? The main belief (by the Game Conservancy) is that it is
double-brooded, as young are seen in spring and again in July- August. Based
on my observations of the Woodcock in captivity, I have concluded that it is
single brooded - and that two different age groups breed in the same year -
one in February-March and the other in July-?, so that each year two lots of
young appear and it is this that gives the impression that the Woodcock is
double-brooded.

90

LOWDE - WOODCOCK

Copyright B.N. Lowde

Whilst concentrating on probing for a worm, the Woodcock was not distracted by

being stoked.

Copyright B.N. Lowde

Brought up in the house with the dog as well as with human beings, the Woodcock
accepted the dog as well as it accepted human beings.

B.N. Lowde ’s account of his Woodcock study will be concluded in the
next issue. B.N. Lowde retains the copyright of all material reproduced
above.

91

NEWS & VIEWS

MAY BE EXTINCT IN THE WILD

The Bali Starling Leucopsar rothschildi may be extinct in the wild - the
last remaining 12 not having been seen for some months according to a
report in International Zoo News Vol.51, No. 3, pp. 180- 181 (2004), which
cites as its source Chris Hibbard in the ARAZPA (Australasian Regional
Association of Zoological Parks and Aquariums) Newsletter No .6 1 (February
2004). Chris Hibbard is on a year’s leave from Taronga Zoo to take up the
position of Curator, Avian Department, Bali Bird Park, Gianyar, a privately-
run organisation in the south of Bali. The park has 17 Bali Starlings and is
currently trying to compile a studbook for this species in order to improve
standards of captive management. Until the pressures of poaching are
addressed, the release of birds into Bali Barat National Park will continue to
be problematic.

At the time the newsletter was published, the Bali Bird Park collection,
which also includes South-east Asian hombills and birds of paradise, had
young being reared by Moluccan Cacatua moluccensis, Eleonora’s C.
galerita eleonora and Triton Cockatoos C. g. triton , Scarlet Ibis Eudocimus
ruber , Von der Decken’s Hombills Tockus deckeni, Eclectus Parrots Eclectus
roratus and Green Junglefowl Gallus varius. It had also had its first successes
with Roseate Spoonbills Platalea ajaja, Buffon’s Macaws Ara ambigua and
White-crested Laughingthrushes Garrulax leucolophus. Two pairs of
Southern Pied Hombills Anthracoceros albirostris were currently rearing
well advanced young.

* * *

FURTHER SPIN’S MACAWS ACQUIRED

Tony Pittman’s website - www.bluemacaws.org - reports that Sheikh
Saoud Bin Mohammed Bin Ali A1 Thani has acquired a further 24 Spix’s
Macaws Cyanopsitta spixii from Antonio de Dios in the Philippines. It
brings to 3 1 the number of Spix’s Macaws at A1 Wabra Wildlife Preservation
in Qatar. They will be joined by a further 13 from Roland Messer in
Switzerland (see News & Views Vol. 108, No.l , pp .44-45 (2002).

* * *

SUNBITTERN BRED AGAIN

March 13th, a Sunbittem Eurypyga helias hatched at London Zoo and
fledged two weeks later, 127 years after the last Sunbittern was hatched
there in 1877, and almost 140 years after London Zoo was the first zoo in
the world to breed the Sunbittem back in 1865.

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NEWS & VIEWS

LONG-LIVED STARLINGS

Following publication in Gefiederte Welt 127:201 (2003) of the first
version of his compilation of longevity records of starlings, Dr Herbert
Schifter wrote seeking help in obtaining further information about a long-
lived Golden-breasted or Royal Starling Lamprotornis ( Cosmopsarus ) regius,
mentioned by C. S . Webb in Notes from London Zoo (. Avicultural Magazine
56,3:142-143 (1950)), who stated that it was still going strong having come
with an importation of birds from Abyssinia (Ethiopia) in 1923.

John A. Ellis has now checked the zoo records and the above bird would
seem to have been the one presented by Mrs Sevastopula May 22nd 1948
that died April 20th 1952, which was reputed to have been some 25 years of
age when it was given to the zoo, though as John pointed out, this cannot be
validated.

John also provided information on two other long-lived Golden-breasted
Starlings: (1) presented by Alfred Ezra April 21st 1925 that died October
10th 1942; (2) presented by the Hon. Anthony Chaplin February 2nd 1931
that died June 4th 1950.

* * *

PROBABLE WORLD FIRST CAPTIVE BREEDING

On October 16th 2003, the first of three Javan Pond Herons Ardeola
speciosa was hatched at Miami Metrozoo, Florida, USA. In December, Jeff
Sailer, Curator of Birds there, contacted the society to ask if there was any
way we could verify that this was a world first captive breeding? We could
only state with certainty that this species has never been bred in the UK, and
that we knew of no other previous breeding elsewhere. This remains the
case.

Earlier in 2003, the first of 20 Philippine Banded Rails Gallirallus
philippensis was hatched there. It was the first US captive breeding of this
seldom exhibited species.

* * *

CHICK HATCHED

The new male Spix’s Macaw Cyanopsitta spixii from Sao Paulo Zoo,
which arrived at Loro Parque, Tenerife, towards the end of last year (see
News & Views Vol. 110, No.l, p.43 (2004)), was placed with the Loro
Parque-bred female on January 8th. Two eggs were laid in May and were
placed with a pair of Chestnut-fronted Macaws Ara severa. One was infertile
but the other hatched on June 9th and on the fourth day, when the chick
weighed 15.4g, it was removed and hand-reared.

NEWS & VIEWS

93

EXTINCT IN THE WILD

The Socorro Dove Zenaida macroura graysoni or Z. graysoni exists
now only in captivity. The exact number being held is unclear, but one
estimate put the number at about 100 birds here in Europe. Chester Zoo
listed a male and four females at the end of 2003, and London Zoo listed a
male and a female. With the help of several sponsors, Marlow Bird Park,
Germany, in 2002 established a breeding centre with 10 aviaries. Last year
16 of these doves were reared there, the number being limited only by the
lack of more aviary space. If more collections could be persuaded to keep
the Socorro Dove, the number being bred each year could be increased.

The eventual aim is to reintroduce this dove back onto the island of
Socorro 600km (approx. 375 miles) off the west coast of Mexico.

* * *

FURTHER NEWS FROM LORO PARQUE

The rarely kept New Caledonian subspecies of the Rainbow Lorikeet
Trichoglossus haematodus deplanchii has been bred at Loro Parque. Two
out of the four pairs of Hawk-headed Parrots Deroptyus accipitrinus raised
young after being re-housed in new 5m (approx. 16ft) long aviaries, showing
that by changing a species’ accommodation, it is sometimes possible to trigger
successful breeding by birds which had previously shown no desire to nest.
Soon after a black screen was placed between their aviaries, so that the two
pairs of Collared Lories Phigys solitarius could hear each other, but no longer
see each other, both pairs produced young. One pair successfully raised its
two chicks, but the other pair killed its first chick, so the second was removed
and reared by a pair of Goldie's Lorikeets L. goldiei.

A further Blue-eared Lory Eos semilarvata has been hatched, bringing
the Loro Parque population of this rarely kept lory to six. Pol lowing a slight
change to the food formulation for the Brotogeris parakeets, there was
increased breeding activity, with both the White-winged B. versicolurus
versicolurus and Canary- winged Parakeets B. v. chiriri breeding for the first
time at Loro Parque.

* * *

EARLY STARTERS

As reported in the previous issue (News & Views Vol.110, No. 11 p.47
(2004)), shortly after arriving at Burgers’ Zoo, Arnhem, the Netherlands,
Guira Cuckoos Guira guira had already raised five young. Within weeks of
acquiring four Guira Cuckoos, a nest with four young chicks in it was found
at World of Birds Wildlife Sanctuary, Cape Town, South Africa. After two
disappeared, the remaining two were removed and hand-reared.

Apparently, these birds usually live in groups of eight, but the number
can rise to as many as 20. Burgers’ Zoo is looking for other collections with
which to exchange birds.

94

NEWS & VIEWS

SURELY A LONGEVITY RECORD?

We have been unable to get official confirmation from Frankfurt Zoo,
but believe that the Picathartes oreas (Frankfurt Zoo No 30925) 0.1 .0 hatched
there March 28th 1984, was still living there on March 28th 2004, meaning
of course that it is now 20 years of age. Surely a longevity record? It must
also be the bird in the photograph below taken by Christopher Brack in July
1994 at Frankfurt Zoo. It would be interesting to know more about the history
of this bird.

Christopher Brack

Picathartes oreas at Frankfurt Zoo in 1994.

NEWS & VIEWS

95

BLACK-FRONTED PIPING GUAN

Geer Scheres, President, Crax International, Belgium, provided
Christopher Brack with the following information about the Black-fronted
Piping Guan Pipile jacutinga: We first brought two pairs to the CBCC (Cracid
Breeding and Conservation Center) about three years ago from the population
in our breeding center Crax Belo Horizonte, Brazil, followed about a year
and a half later by another two pairs from different bloodlines , Last year we
raised several chicks. I saw a pair in Estudillo’s collection in Mexico the
last time I was there in 1989, and two birds that had been brought as chicks
years ago to Chechia from Uruguay by Mrs Franek. Of these birds, one, a
male lived in Prague Zoo. I do not know if it is still alive. The other bird
died. There are several private breeders who keep this species in their
collections in Brazil. Geer Scheres concluded by mentioning that at the
CBCC in 2003 they bred another White-winged Guan Penelope albipennis
(see News & Views Vol.109, No. 4, pp. 184-186 (2003)).

Christopher Brack

Black-fronted Piping Guan at Rio de Janiero Zoo in 1992.

Geer Scheres has recently provided the following additional information:
This year we have raised five Black-fronted Piping Guans and have a few
eggs still in the incubators, and have also raised some White-winged Guans.

Stichtung Crax is a Dutch foundation, founded in 1989, that also works
for the conservation of cracids. It also uses the name Crax International
outside of the Netherlands. The CBCC in Belgium is also a non-profit making
organisation, where guans, other cracids and cranes are kept and where we
work with endangered species. We train people from the countries of origin
of the birds in all the things we do here, which includes developing artificial
reproduction techniques. We also finance conservation and reintroduction
programmes, for example, at breeding centers in Brazil, Peru and Russia,

96

NEWS & VIEWS

and finance field research in countries such as China.

We also work with Crax Peru and Crax Brasil. All of us are independent
of each other, but since 1989 we have been working together for the
conservation of these beautiful birds. All of the people working for these
organisations are volunteers, nobody gets a salary.

Since March, Geer Scheres has also been Deputy-Director of the
Endangered Wildlife Breeding and Conservation Center, an institution under
the private management of the Crown Prince of Abu Dhabi, UAE.

* * *

EARLIER SUCCESS

As seemed likely, considering that it used to be a commonly kept softbill,
the White-eared Bulbul Pycnonotus leucogenys leucotis or P. leucotis had
been bred in the UK before Gary Bralsford’s recent success {Avicultural
Magazine Vol.110, No.l, pp. 17-19 (2004)). Using his recently completed
index to the Avicultural Magazine covering the period 1894-2003, which
can now be accessed on the society’s website - www.avisoc.co.uk - Dave
Coles found a reference to correspondence on breeding what F.W. Dugdale
called the White-eared Persian Bulbul ( The Avicultural Magazine , Fifth
Series, Vol. 1, No. 8, p.224 (August 1936)).

The previous year, F.W. Dugdale had kept a pair in a garden aviary, that
succeeded in rearing three young. It was the pair’s second attempt, the first
proving unsuccessful because of other insectivorous species living in the
same aviary. Once these were removed, the pair went to nest again and
hatched three out of four eggs. At the time of writing, the pair had hatched
three eggs in its first nest of 1936, but two of the youngsters had died during
a severe storm; the third was fine and was flying about in the aviary with its
parents. F.W. Dugdale had been told that his 1935 success was only the
fourth occasion on which this bulbul had been bred in Europe.

* * *

SPANISH BREEDINGS

Miguel Avedillo, Zamora, Spain, has bred Atlapetes guteralis, a brush
finch, in a lOOsq m (approx. l,000sq ft) aviary with an abundance of
vegetation. In the first nest, three eggs were laid, from which two chicks
were reared to independence. A further clutch of three eggs was due to
hatch shortly. There were eggs in 2003, but no young were reared.

In the same aviary, Rufous-collared Sparrows Zonotrichia capensis bred
last year and have bred again this year. The aviary also houses a dozen
different species of American Emberizidae and cardinals, along with a dozen
Eurasian finches and buntings.

Robin Restall kindly translated Miguel Avedillo ’s original e-mail from
Spanish into English.

AVICULTURAL MAGAZINE INDEX 1894-2003

At long last Dave Coles’ index to the Avicultural Magazine , covering
the period November 1894, when the first issue was published, through to
Vol.109, No.4, 2003, can be accessed in a searchable form on the society’s
website: www.avisoc.co.uk It is in two parts: the first and largest part (241
pages) lists references to the species; the second part (84 pages) lists subjects,
e.g. aviary fittings, early aviculture, etc. Each entry gives the year and page
number or numbers and, when appropriate, notes of illustrations.

* * *

MYNA ALERT

A pair of Common Mynas Acridotheres tristis (with a nest with five
eggs) has been shot in northern Tasmania, in an operation involving police
and Department of Primary Industries, Water and Environment (DPIWE)
staff. The Common Myna is slowly extending its range on mainland
Australia, where it is regarded as a pest, and every effort is being made to
prevent it from colonising Tasmania.

In Brisbane a trained Wedge-tailed Eagle Aquila audax is being used to
scare away Australian White or Sacred Ibis Threskiornis aethiopica from
the Botanic Gardens, where they breed and roost, and from two of the squares
in Brisbane, where they scavenge for food scraps. Ibis have been living in
Brisbane for at least 10 years and the population had increased to about 100
strong, a number which was unacceptable to Brisbane City Council, that
accused the ibis of harassing outdoor diners and of being a health risk. The
majority have been scared away by the eagle, leaving just 20 or so, a number
that is considered tolerable. People are being encouraged not to feed the
birds and to take greater care when disposing of their garbage. In New
South Wales, Department of the Environment and Conservation staff think
that by watching for the presence of ibis, they may be able to identify illegal
waste tips.

The shooting of the Common Mynas in Tasmania and the ibis-scaring
eagle were reported in Wingspan Vol.14, No.l, pp. 5-6, March 2004,
published by Birds Australia (Royal Australasian Ornithologists Union). Emu
Vol.104, No.l, pp. 45-57, 2004, also published by Birds Australia, has a
paper on the breeding biology of the Grey-headed Parrot Poicephalus
fuscicollis suahelicus in south-east Zimbabwe and Northern Province, South
Africa by Craig T. Symes and Michael R. Perrin of the Research Centre for
African Parrot Conservation.

CONTENTS

SMITHSONIAN INSTITUTION LIBRARIES

3 9088 01

15 2147

The successful breeding of the American Bald Eagle Haliaeetus

leucocephalus at Flamingo Gardens and Zoological Park
by Christopher Marler . . 49

The 2003 breeding season - some disappointments

by Chris Bralsford . 54

Breeding the Grey-capped Greenfinch Carduelis sinica

by Brian Massey . 57

Notes on the Red-legged Honeycreeper/Yellow-winged Sugarbird
Cyanerpes cyaneus

by F. Bamicoat . 59

Report on the implementation of the Wuyuan Project

by He Fen-qi . 64

Unrecorded heat stress posture and feeding habit in captive

Red-tailed Black Cockatoo Calyptorhynchus banksi

by Paolo Bertagnolio . 69

Metabolic Bone Disease and general leg deformities in chicks -
causes and preventative measures

by Louise Peat . 71

The Japanese Waxwing Bomby cilia japonica

by Jim Jerrard . 76

79

80
81

82

91

Book Reviews

Handbook of the Birds of the World (Volume 8)

Fabulous Feathers, Remarkable Birds .

Birds of Belize

\ ru

My Woodcock Study
by B. N. Lowde

nrrr n i omi

News & Views

Published by the Avicultural Society, England.
Produced by Data Publishing Service, Cheddar.