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Habitat crucial to chicks’ survival

http://www.iol.co.za/scitech/science/environment/habitat-crucial-to-chicks-survival-1.1592085

By Theresa Taylor

Johannesburg – After nearly two decades of effort, South Africa’s first wattled crane chick has been hatched and reared by a breeding pair in captivity. The species is critically endangered, with only about 250 left in the wild.

Elvi (female) and Amanzi took three years to socialise and have been together since January. Elvi laid two eggs in mid-August, the first of which hatched on September 15. The chick was named Blake.

When the pair stopped incubating the second egg to devote full care to the first chick, it was removed and hand-reared by the staff of Hlatikulu Crane and Wetland Sanctuary in the KwaZulu-Natal Midlands. The chick hatched and is called Trinity.

The wattled cranes’ continued survival is dependent on the captive breeding and reintroduction programme known as the Wattled Crane Recovery Programme (WCRP).

Nic Shaw, director of Entabeni Communications, which is involved in running the sanctuary, said nutrition and habitat were crucial to the birds’ breeding. He said it was important to raise the birds correctly. If they imprinted towards humans, they would seek human and not crane mates.

Shaw said now that they had the correct formula, there was hope of raising more breeding pairs.

Lara Jordan, co-ordinator of the WCRP, said: “Since the inception of the WCRP in 2000, only one egg has been produced by naturally fertile captive birds. This was hand-reared by staff.

“This is the first time in the history of South Africa that a captive pair of wattled cranes have hatched and reared a chick. Wattled cranes are notoriously difficult to breed in captivity, and Entabeni’s years of concerted efforts have finally paid rich dividends.”

Until now, field workers have visited known nest sites and collected the second egg, which is an insurance policy as it would not be hatched by the breeding pair naturally. From this they have built up a flock of about 40 birds.

From the next breeding season, Shaw said, the aim would be to raise birds fully “in costume”. This means all feeding and interactions with the chicks is done via a puppet, so the birds never imprint on humans and can, therefore, be released back into the wild. – The Star