A Bundle of Baby Birds Hatch at Adelaide Zoo

Posted By : The Animal Facts Editorial Team

Date: December 17, 2021 12:01 pm

A tawny frogmouth chick is being cared for by keepers at Adelaide Zoo

Photo Credit: Zoos SA

Bird keepers at Adelaide Zoo have had their hands full as they help care for a range of new arrivals across the zoo. Recent arrivals include a tawny frogmouth, black-necked stork and six swift parrots.

The tawny frogmouth chick and four of the swift parrot chicks have been cared for in the zoo’s bird nursery. The tawny frogmouth zoo is being cared in the nursery at the Variety Children’s Zoo and can be seen by visitors.

Visitors can also see Karumba the black-necked stork chick who is now on display across from the nocturnal house his name was taken from a town on the gulf of Carpentaria.

A jabiru chick is among the latest arrivals in the bird department at Adelaide Zoo

Photo Credit: Zoos SA

One of the hatching’s was a little surprising for keepers as Senior Keeper of Birds and Free Flight, Chad Crittle explained, “We haven’t had a Tawny Frogmouth chick for years, this little one was a bit of COVID baby,” he said.

“The mating pair have had 14 chicks between them but over the last few years they haven’t had any.

“We don’t know what changed, but we did add two young Tawny Frogmouth into the aviary and having a young male there might have stimulated breeding!”

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The hatching of the swift parrot chicks is another welcome arrival contributing to the survival of their threatened species. “Caring for this species is crucial to their long term survival, we have long been involved with this species. Supporting research and developing husbandry techniques to allow for this species to survive into the future,” said Crittle.

Swift parrot numbers have fallen to between 1,000 and 2,500 mature birds in the wild. Australian Birds are increasingly threatened as the Action Plan for Australian Birds 2020, released last week revealed. 216 Australian bird species are now threatened up 21 from a decade ago.

The swift parrot is high on the list joining 22 other species in the critically endangered category.

With the new additions the Adelaide Zoo flock now includes 19 individuals.

Learn more about Tawny Frogmouth here – Tawny Frogmouth Fact File | The Animal Facts

Learn more about Jabirus here – Jabiru Fact File | The Animal Facts

Learn more about Adelaide Zoo on their website – Adelaide Zoo