Two tiny bird species are soaring at Monarto Safari Park
This World Wildlife Day, conservation efforts for two tiny but mighty bird species have taken flight at Monarto.
They may the smallest animals at Monarto, but the plains-wanderer and Mallee emu-wren have achieved huge milestones for their species this World Wildlife Day.
Endangered in the wild, two teeny plains-wanderer chicks have hatched and, in a first for the park, have been raised and cared for by a feathered foster father.
Meanwhile, the first ever ex-situ population of endangered Mallee emu-wrens have completed their second breeding season, with the flock increasing from 10 to 25 birds.
The Mallee emu-wren is one of Australia’s smallest birds, with adults weighing just four to six grams.
The project has been the outcome of a collaboration between Monarto Safari Park and the Threatened Mallee Bird Conservation Action Plan steering committee.
World Wildlife Day is celebrated each year on March 3 and recognises the importance of wild animals and plants to our planet.
The Plans Wanderer chick and mum at Monarto Safari Park. Video: Zoos SA.
Senior natives keeper Gemma Asser said the tiny new additions would make a big impact on the conservation of both species.
“The two plains wanderer chicks are doing really well, and what’s been extra exciting is that we’ve used a foster dad for the first time with this species at Monarto Safari Park,” she said.
“The chick’s parents unfortunately have a history of not sitting on eggs – this is where super dad Neo came in.
“He sat beautifully on a nest of dummy eggs, and we were able to swap them out with the viable clutch.
“He dutifully sat for the next 23 days and we’ve had two little ones hatch.
“He has been taking his parental role very seriously and huddling them under his feather shroud during cooler mornings.
“As for our Mallee-emu Wrens, it’s been incredible to see how well they’ve adapted to life here at Monarto.
“What’s exciting is we’ve now also installed cameras, made possible through a generous donor, to be able to monitor the birds’ activity and record key behaviours for future reference.
“They are a cryptic species and little is known about them.”
The Red-tailed Phascogale and Mallee-emu Wrens have been apart of conservation efforts for Zoos SA. Photo: Zoos SA
At Adelaide Zoo, the dedicated keeping team are celebrating a bumper breeding season of the red-tailed phascogale, a small marsupial that is locally extinct in South Australia.
In a partnership with the Australian Wildlife Conservancy and the New South Wales National Parks and Wildlife Service, Zoos SA has been working to save the native species from extinction.
“This program is just one of Zoos SA’s many conservation initiatives, which are making a huge difference for native Australian species and ecosystems,” said assistant curator of natives Michelle Birkett.
- More information: zoossa.com.au.
