THE LOVE ISSUE JUNE 2007

Transcription

1 THE LOVE ISSUE JUNE 2007

2 SPRING HAS SPRUNG! By: Stephanie Krueger, Bird and Mammal Department It s spring here at the Alligator Farm, and animals all over the park have been gearing up for breeding season. For the bird and mammal department, this means that the many birds here at the Farm have started courtship and nesting behavior. In particular, our pair of Laughing Kookaburras, on display in The Great Down Under exhibit, are currently incubating two eggs in a palm hollow they have recently excavated. Laughing Kookaburras (Dacelo novaeguineae), so named because of their distinct chuckling call, are native to eastern Australia and can be found in both rural and urban habitats. A pair of Kookaburras will choose and defend a territory, and will occasionally stick to that territory all year long. However, as spring approaches, the birds become nesty and begin looking for a particular place within their territory to lay their eggs and raise their young. At this time, courtship behaviors, which include increased vocalization of the male and female and impressive flight displays by the male over the chosen territory, become more frequent. they excavate cavities in trees, or more commonly, will take over an old arboreal termite mound and transform it into a room. In this new space, the female Kookaburra will lay 2-4 small white eggs right onto the cavity floor. Both the male and female will take turns incubating the eggs for about a month. Kookaburra chicks are altricial, meaning that they hatch out nearly naked and totally blind with their eyes still sealed shut. Mom and dad will spend all of their time hunting up food, primarily insects, to feed their ferociously hungry chicks. The chicks fledge (leave the nest) at about a month old, but mom and dad will still feed their young for up to ten more weeks. Even after the chicks become independent, the new offspring will stay with their parents to form a family group and will assist in the rearing and feeding of the next Kookaburra generation. Breeding season is a unique opportunity to witness natural behavior in action. Be sure to keep an eye out for our other cavity nesters across the zoo, including our Yellow-Billed Hornbills and our Toco Toucans, who should also start excavating nests in the next few weeks. SURPRISE! By: Geralyn Decker, Bird and Mammal Department On March 23, 2007 the Alligator Farm welcomed a new addition. Our Black Swans (Cygnus attratus) hatched out a chick. This came as a huge surprise to our animal staff, because the female is 40 years old and has never produced a fertile egg before. A baby black swan is called a cygnet, and is born with gray down feathers. The cygnet follows the parents around searching for food, and learning how to rule the pond. Both parents are doing a great job, and are very protective of their little baby, who the animal staff has lovingly called Jabba due to its huge appetite and quest for life. Baby birds grow very quickly, and little Jabba is growing up very nicely. So, bring the family to the alligator farm to see this happy surprise. And, may the force be with you!!

3 BELLOWING BEASTS By: Kevin Toregrossa, Reptile Department What s that sound? This sound is called bellowing and it is coming from our American Alligators. It s that time of year again. Almost every morning you can hear a low thundering sound echoing through the Alligator Farm. What is bellowing? We will be getting asked this question a several times a day for the next few weeks. Bellowing is a form of alligator conversation. It is heard more frequently this time of year, especially during morning or evening hours. However, they will perform this behavior throughout the year and is very contagious. A couple animals in one enclosure may start and it won t be long before animals all through the park will be joining in. Well what are they talking about? It is mostly a territorial display. They are informing some animals to stay away while trying to attract others. An animal will lift its head and tail high out of the water, take a deep breath, and before they let out that loud call that is audible to us, another subsonic sound is produced. We can not hear this sound but we can see and feel the results. Watch the back of an alligator as it emits this sound and you will notice the water start to dance on the alligator s back. Even though we do not hear this sound it does create a strong vibration that can often even be felt through the boardwalk. Of course all of this is much more frequent now as we are in the breeding season. For the next few weeks our alligators will be going through all of their courtship rituals. Early summer signals the start of nesting season. The alligators will begin scraping together dirt and debris into large mounds that they will deposit their eggs in. Of the reptiles, crocodilians are the most attentive parents. The females will protect their nest site during incubation. Incubation will usually last a little more than 60 days. When the eggs start to hatch the young alligators let out a chirping call that tells the mother that they are ready. The female will then dig up the nest site to find her young. At this point some of the young alligators may be completely freed from the eggs but others will have trouble breaking through. Alligator eggs are fairly tough with almost a ceramic feel to them. The female will pick up any eggs, which have not fully hatched, in her powerful jaws and crack them to assist the babies with hatching. The young must then make their way to the water. The female will again use her jaws to help her babies make the trip, after all what safer place for a young alligator than behind their mother s many teeth. The young alligators will stay with their mother for protection. Sometimes she may continue to protect them for more than a year. This is not seen in any other group of reptiles. So what s that sound? Another year has gone by and our alligators are starting up a very complex and fascinating series of rituals. These rituals will lead to future generations of alligators. So if you find yourself at the Farm this time of year, keep your ears open. You might hear the impressive bellow of the American Alligator.

4 LIZARD LOVE By: Candace Donato, Reptile Department There are many different and wonderful animals for our guests to admire and learn about at the St. Augustine Alligator Farm Zoological Park; however, there are also a number of different species currently not on display. One such species is the Crocodile Monitor Lizard, Varanus salvadorii. Native to New Guinea, Crocodile Monitors are the longest lizard species in the world, reaching lengths of more than 12 ft. Crocodile monitors are closely related to Komodo Dragons, Varanus komodoensis, which are the heaviest know lizard species. The great length of the Crocodile Monitor is achieved by its exceptionally long tail, often reaching more than twice the length of their head and bodies combined. Captive reproduction of the Crocodile Monitor is very difficult and only a handful of facilities have ever successfully hatched this species. Although not on display, the Alligator Farm currently houses 2 males and 1 female Crocodile Monitor. In late February the female was first introduced to the older, larger, and less aggressive male, with hopes that if they were to start fighting it would have been easier to break up. Luckily, aggression was not an issue; unfortunately they showed no other interest in each other either. The other male, however, was very interested, flicking his tongue and following her intently

5 every time she came close to the dividing wire. This continued for several days until the female was finally given access to this male s side of the enclosure. Almost immediately he began following her everywhere, his tongue was flicking intensely followed by short head jerks, a definite sign of interest. After a short chase and a little persistence, the monitors mated. They were left together for about a week when their interest in each other seemed to diminish. The female was moved back with the larger male who, by this time, appeared to show some interest. While this male displayed many of the normal courtship behaviors, mating was not observed between the two and after a few days the female was reintroduced to the first male. The time spent away from each other was just enough to spark some interest in him and mating was later observed. Once she starts developing eggs, the female will become intolerant of any other animals in her territory. Nesting areas have been set up in several places around her enclosure. A wide range of nesting options was made available with some high in the perching and others on the ground. She seems to have settled on a nesting site, spending a great deal of time near a small wooden box on the ground. She has been seen several times digging inside this box and will watch with interest anytime this nesting site is inspected. We are expecting the female monitor to deposit her eggs sometime in late April or early May. But don t hold your breath waiting for the babies. This species of lizard has an incubation period of over 200 days. NEW DVD ON SALE By: John Brueggen, Director Each of our largest crocodiles has a unique story. Gomek, a maneating crocodile from Papua New Guinea, was the largest reptile ever displayed in this hemisphere. Maximo, is a captive raised giant, father to many, and is under 40 years old. He has the genes to possibly surpass Gomek. You can learn about both of these special crocodiles by watching videos at the St. Augustine Alligator Farm, or for the first time ever, you can purchase their stories on DVD. "From Gomek to Maximo, A Crocodile Story" is now available in our gift shop or on our website at: Those of you with annual passes don't forget you receive a 10% discount off any items in our zoo gift shop with your pass and I.D You may have noticed that some of our park benches have dates and names on them. Have you ever wondered who these people are and why their names are on our park benches? They are the names of people that have contributed significantly to the animal sciences. One such person is Wilfred T. Neill. Neill was best known in crocodilian circles for his book, THE LAST OF THE RULING REPTILES: ALLIGATORS, CROCODILES, AND THEIR KIN, In this comprehensive work, Neill combined an overview of what was known at the time about crocodilians with his own insightful and sometimes visionary, appreciation of their biology and significance. The book has been an inspiration to two generations of crocodile biologists and remains as readable, factually correct and inspirational today. Wilfred T. Neill was, like the crocs he wrote about, a larger than life figure, renowned for his colorful lifestyle, iconoclastic pronouncements and unconventional career path. He was reputed to have bitten by venomous snakes more than 40 times, a figure he did not refute. In addition to crocodilians, he was widely recognized and admired for his work with snakes and with his general contributions to knowledge of the Seminole Indians, archeology and Indonesia. He was a prolific writer producing hundreds of scientific and popular articles, writing a regular column for his local newspaper and drawing wildlife cartoons that were syndicated to newspapers across the country. Reprinted from the Crocodile Specialist Group Newsletter VOLUME 20 NUMBER 1, January March 2001 WWW Edition.

6 VULTURE CULTURE By: Gen Anderson, Bird and Mammal Department Cape griffon vultures (Gyps coprotheres), like many bird species, are monogamous. A pair will remain together for life, reusing the same nest site year after year as long as it is available. These large African vultures are colonial nesters, forming paired-up groupings along ledges on the sides of cliffs. Pairs will choose nest sites so close that their outstretched eight to nine foot wingspans touch their neighbors. Nests are constructed of sticks, twigs, and dried grasses worked primarily by the female into a compact mat. Seldom are fresh green branches used in nest building. Copulation occurs frequently alongside the collection of nesting material for up to ten weeks before the laying of a single white egg. Both the male and female take turns incubating the egg for an average of 57 days. The nestling takes two days to hatch out of the egg and then grows quickly on regurgitated fresh meat offered by both parents. After five months, the chick jumps off the cliff ledge, flies awkwardly, and fledges. Juvenile plumage is molted in towards the end of the first year, while full adult plumage does not occur until the sixth year. The sub-adult pair at the zoo has been frequently observed copulating and collecting nesting material since late February. Kwa and Sephara have built a beautiful nesting platform on top of the fallen tree s root ball located in the middle of the Birds of Africa exhibit. This is the first possible nesting season for the vultures since their arrival from South Africa last August. The exhibit also houses a juvenile pair that cannot successful breed for at least two more years and another male and female that have not yet shown any interest in each other. The bird department is excited the rehabilitated wild vultures have adapted so quickly to captivity after traveling half way around the world and adjusting to the Northern Hemisphere s seasonal cycles. The Cape griffon vulture is considered Vulnerable in its native range of southern Africa with less than 4,000 breeding pairs. Photo courtesy of C. Tague

7 NESTING FUN FACTS LARGEST TREE NEST HIGHEST TREE NEST LARGEST CLUTCH OF EGGS BALD EAGLE 9 FT WIDE, 20 FT DEEP MARBLED MURRELET 148 FT HIGH NORTHERN BOBWHITE 28 EGGS Did you know that the bee hummingbird's eggs are only about 1cm (1/2 in) long? An ostrich egg on the other hand, is usually about 18cm (7in) long. It would take over 4,000 humming bird eggs to equal the weight of one ostrich egg.

8 TOUCANTINA Congratulations to Kath Macedo. She suggested the winning name for our rename the snack bar contest. Kath won a renewal on her annual pass and a free meal at the new TouCantina! NEWS Published by the St. Augustine Alligator Farm (904) CONTRIBUTORS Amanda Whitaker...Curator/Editor Stephanie Krueger...Keeper Geralyn Decker...Keeper Kevin Toregrossa...Sr. Keeper Candace Donato...Keeper John Brueggen...Director Gen Anderson...Asst. Curator 999 Anastasia Blvd. St. Augustine, Florida P.R.S.R.T. U.S. POSTAGE PAID PERMIT NO. 40 ST. AUGUSTINE FLORIDA IN THIS ISSUE Nesting Kookaburras Surprise Swan Baby Alligator Breeding Behavior Lizard Love Vulture Breeding New DVD Kids Zone