• Vetiranary Medicine
  • ACVCACVC
  • DVM 360
  • Fetch DVM 360Fetch DVM 360
DVM 360
dvm360 | Veterinary News, Veterinarian Insights, Medicine, Pet Care
dvm360 | Veterinary News, Veterinarian Insights, Medicine, Pet Care
By Role
AssociatesOwnersPractice ManagerStudentsTechnicians
Subscriptions
dvm360 Newsletterdvm360 Magazine
News
All News
Association
Breaking News
Conference Coverage
Education
Equine
FDA
Law & Ethics
Market Trends
Medical
Politics
Products
Recalls
Regulatory
Digital Media
dvm360 LIVE!™
Expert Interviews
The Vet Blast Podcast
Medical World News
Pet Connections
The Dilemma Live
Vet Perspectives™
Weekly Newscast
dvm360 Insights™
Publications
All Publications
dvm360
Firstline
Supplements
Top Recommended Veterinary Products
Vetted
Clinical
All Clinical
Anesthesia
Animal Welfare
Behavior
Cardiology
CBD in Pets
Dentistry
Dermatology
Diabetes
Emergency & Critical Care
Endocrinology
Equine Medicine
Exotic Animal Medicine
Feline Medicine
Gastroenterology
Imaging
Infectious Diseases
Integrative Medicine
Nutrition
Oncology
Ophthalmology
Orthopedics
Pain Management
Parasitology
Pharmacy
Surgery
Toxicology
Urology & Nephrology
Virtual Care
Business
All Business
Business & Personal Finance
Hospital Design
Personnel Management
Practice Finances
Practice Operations
Wellbeing & Lifestyle
Continuing Education
Conferences
Conference Listing
Conference Proceedings
Resources
CBD in Pets
CE Requirements by State
Contests
Veterinary Heroes
Partners
Spotlight Series
Team Meeting in a Box
Toolkit
Top Recommended Veterinary Products
Vet to Vet
  • Contact Us
  • Fetch DVM360 Conference
  • Terms and Conditions
  • Privacy
  • Do Not Sell My Information
  • About Us

© 2023 MJH Life Sciences and dvm360 | Veterinary News, Veterinarian Insights, Medicine, Pet Care. All rights reserved.

Advertisement
By Role
  • Associates
  • Owners
  • Practice Manager
  • Students
  • Technicians
Subscriptions
  • dvm360 Newsletter
  • dvm360 Magazine
  • Contact Us
  • Fetch DVM360 Conference
  • Terms and Conditions
  • Privacy
  • Do Not Sell My Information
  • About Us
  • MJHLS Brand Logo

© 2023 MJH Life Sciences™ and dvm360 | Veterinary News, Veterinarian Insights, Medicine, Pet Care. All rights reserved.

Two critically endangered female blue-billed curassows born at Smithsonian’s National Zoo and Conservation Biology Institute

September 2, 2022
dvm360 Staff
dvm360, dvm360 November 2022, Volume 53, Issue 11
Pages: 17

Celebratory births as more males than females of this species remain in the wild

The Smithsonian’s National Zoo and Conservation Biology Institute in Washington, D.C., announced that 2 female critically endangered blue-billed curassows were born. The first chick, Aluna, hatched on August 5, 2022, while her sister, Lulo, hatched on August 28, 2022. The chicks are the first offspring of Jackie, their 6-year-old mother. The 16-year-old father, JB, also fathered chicks at another institution.

According to an organizational release,1 keepers note the sisters are doing well and described them as “confident and curious” as they are being monitored off exhibit.

While Jackie arrived at the zoo in 2016, JB arrived there in 2019, after a breeding recommendation from the Association of Zoos and Aquariums’ Species Survival Plan (SSP). Female curassows usually incubate their eggs for 29 to 31 days, but in this case, Jackie did not display interest in incubating her eggs. Thus, it was clear to the team that she would not accept or bond with her chicks, so they put the eggs in an incubator.

Keepers decided to hand-raise Aluna and Lulo to offer them the best chance of survival. They imprinted, or socially bonded, with the animal care team, and received adult feathers to cuddle under and a mirror that provides “socialization” when keepers are away.

Advertisement

“Every moment with these chicks has been a dream come true for me,” said Heather Anderson, animal keeper, in the release. “I have had the goal to breed the blue-billed curassow since my first year of zookeeping. It was amazing to watch these precocial birds as their instinctual abilities to eat, perch and preen their feathers kicked in—all in the first day of life! For other bird species, those milestones could take weeks to achieve.”

Blue-billed curassows are native to Colombia and deemed critically endangered by the International Union of Conservation of Nature. It’s estimated that 1,000 and 2,500 remain in the wild, according to the release.1 These birds once resided throughout northern Colombia, but currently the entire wild population lives in just several small areas of tropical lowland forest. Their primary threats include habitat loss and fragmentation.

Reference

Two critically endangered blue-billed curassows hatch at Smithsonian’s National Zoo and Conservation Biology Institute. News release. Smithsonian’s National Zoo and Conservation Biology Institute. August 29, 2022. Accessed September 1, 2022. https://nationalzoo.si.edu/news/two-critically-endangered-blue-billed-curassows-hatch-smithsonians-national-zoo-and

download issueDownload Issue: dvm360 November 2022

Related Content:

Exotic Animal Medicinedvm360 November 2022
Maryland Zoo giraffe Willow dies suddenly
Maryland Zoo giraffe Willow dies suddenly
From the lens of a veterinarian: Voyaging to Camp Leakey in a klotok
From the lens of a veterinarian: Voyaging to Camp Leakey in a klotok
Oakland Zoo mourns the death of an African Elephant
Oakland Zoo mourns the death of an African Elephant

Advertisement

Latest News

Spectrum of care: protocols to support pet owners’ budgets

How to support women while still running a successful business

The Vets expands to Raleigh, NC

Two pups find their forever homes while at Fetch Charlotte

View More Latest News
Advertisement