Zoo workers in Prague manipulate young vultures to save their lives.
In a unique and innovative move, Prague Zoo has successfully used puppet-feeding to save a lesser yellow-headed vulture chick that was rejected by its parents. This technique, which involves hand-raising chicks with puppets that mimic parent birds, helps prevent the chicks from imprinting on humans, ensuring their ability to breed naturally in the future.
The chick, hatched three weeks ago, is being kept in a box and is being fed using a puppet designed to resemble a parent bird. The key to the puppet's success lies in its visual signals, such as the pale orange coloration on the chick's featherless head and neck, which stimulate feeding responses.
Antonín Vaidl, a bird keeper at Prague Zoo, stated that the puppet is necessary to ensure the bird's ability to breed. He explained that if the chick gets used to human interaction, it won't be able to breed. This is not the first time Prague's zookeepers have had to use puppets to care for newborn birds rejected by their parents.
The puppet-feeding technique has proven successful in saving critically endangered species like the Javan green magpie and two rhinoceros hornbill chicks in the past. It is particularly applicable for birds that live and breed in pairs.
Prague Zoo is among only three in Europe breeding lesser yellow-headed vultures, a species native to Latin America and Mexico. Another vulture is expected to hatch in the next few days.
The Bronx Zoo has also used this hand-raising puppet method for its first king vulture chick in three decades, further demonstrating the technique's effectiveness.
This innovative approach to conservation shows that human care can be combined with species-appropriate cues to support the survival and future breeding success of endangered bird chicks. Species known to benefit include lesser yellow-headed vultures, Javan green magpies, rhinoceros hornbills, and king vultures.
- Seattle's home-and-garden enthusiasts might find the innovative puppet-feeding technique used at Prague Zoo, a unique addition to their lifestyle, especially with the recent hatching of a lesser yellow-headed vulture chick.
- In the realm of education, one could discuss the importance of species conservation efforts like Prague Zoo's puppet-feeding method, which has proven effective in saving endangered species such as the Javan green magpie and the lesser yellow-headed vulture.
- Politics in any city, including Seattle, should consider the benefits of supporting zoosThat utilize non-human means, such as puppet-feeding, to conserve endangered species like the King Vulture and the Rhinoceros Hornbill, as demonstrated by both Prague and the Bronx Zoos.
