Block of four off-show aviaries with safety porch at the front and shelters at the rear
By
First Published in The Avicultural Magazine Vol. 113 No. 4
Copyright © 2007 Avicultural Society, Published with Permission
The genus Zoothera comprises 36 species, about half of which are considered to be threatened or vulnerable. They are characterised by their short tails and relatively long beaks, an adaptation for spending most of the day foraging under scrubby vegetation.
The Orange-headed Ground Thrush Zoothera citrina has 12 subspecies (Clements, 2007). Zoothera citrina melliZ. c. melli is the one most often available to aviculturists nowadays. It is easily identified by its two black face stripes and orange throat; Zoothera citrina cyanotaZ. c. cyanota has the two face stripes combined with a white throat. Young birds can be sexed in the first year. The male's wings are slate grey in colour while those of the female are olive green. These are quite sociable though shy birds. Provided with the right environment though they will become confident and make ideal understory birds for mixed exhibits.
Here at Paignton Zoo we have two males and three females in our tropical house and these live happily together as a group. In addition we have 20 breeding aviaries behind the scenes, five of which hold individual pairs of Orange-headed Ground Thrushes. Each pair is separated from the next pair by another species such as the Chestnut-backed Thrush Zoothera dohertyiZ. dohertyi and Grey-backed Thrush Turdus hortulorum.
These off-show aviaries are of very simple construction and are easily managed without causing much disturbance to the occupants. Built on a concrete plinth, each aviary is 16ft long x 4ft wide x 7ft high (approx. 4.8m long x 1.2m wide x 2.lm high). They are in blocks of four. We also have smaller aviaries measuring 10ft long x 4ft wide x 7ft high (approx. 3m long x 1.2m wide x 2.1m high). Thrushes breed in both sizes of aviaries.
Aviaries
Orange-headed Ground Thrush
Block of four off-show aviaries with safety porch at the front and shelters at the rear
Each has a shelter directly opposite the keeper's access door. The shelters measure 4ft x 2ft 6in x 3ft 6in high (approx. 1.2m x 0.8m x 1m high) and are 3ft 6in (approx. 1m) above the floor. There is a small pop hole at the lower front centre with a landing ledge. The shelters are floorless, allowing the birds to enter and leave through the open bottom, which they often do. They were designed in this way to cut down on the amount of cleaning and the birds are more inclined to use a shelter from which they can easily escape.
Aviary Shelter
Orange-headed Ground Thrush
Simple shelter with pop-hole at lower front centre and no floor
Each aviary has a few high, straight perches and large amounts of scrubby vegetation. The floors of the aviaries are left bare all winter. Then just before the breeding season an abundance of nesting material is supplied, so that the floor of the aviary is covered with materials such as moss, leaves and dry grasses. This is replaced several times during the season. The nest pans measure 6in x 6in x 3in deep (approx. 15cm x 15cm x 7.5cm deep) and are similar to the containers used by supermarkets for mushrooms. Lower sided boxes have sometimes caused young birds to fledge prematurely. Breeding birds have never built in a bush, preferring instead to use the nest pans described above.
Heating is supplied by an electric tubular heater hung half-way up the back wall of the shelter. These measure 2ft (61cm) long and are of the type often used in greenhouses. A strip of 1/4in (6mm) wire mesh is fixed a few inches (5cm or so) above the heater to prevent birds roosting directly on top of it.
Food is placed in a dish hung high up at the front ofthe aviary. A piece of Perspex (Plexiglas) covers the feeding area. The diet consists of mixed fruits, Sluis, boiled egg and minced (ground) beef. The food is sprinkled with SA37 and a few mealwonns are given to the birds each day. As the breeding season approaches, chopped pinkies are added to the diet and the number of mealworms is stepped up. When there are chicks in the nest, mealworms are scattered in the aviary several times each day. The mealworms are 'loaded' with cuttlefish bone, stinging nettles, dandelion leaves and bran.
They usually lay four eggs but sometimes there are just three. The incubation period is 14 days and the chicks fledge at about 12-14 days. Chicks selected for hand-rearing are removed from the nest at five to six days old unless there is a more immediate problem. They are kept in bowls lined with soft tissue to prevent splayed legs and are fed every 1 1/2 hours on a diet of chopped pinkies and papaya (pawpaw). Water is given by syringe a couple of times each day. They are weaned after about 20 days and are then moved to a larger pen. They can be sexed at that time after the first moult. As we have not observed the adults driving them before this stage, chicks are removed from the breeding aviaries at about 30 days.
Chicks
Orange-headed Ground Thrush
Chicks approximately 11 days old
Clements, J. F. 2007. The Clements Checklist of the Birds of the World. Sixth Edition. Christopher Helm, London.
Jo Gregson.is Senior Head Keeper of Birds at Paignton Zoo Environmental Park, Totnes Road, Paignton, Devon TQ4 7EU, UK. Tel:01803 6975001 Fax:01803 5234571 Website: www.paigntonzoo.org.uk E-mail: jo.gregson@paigntonzoo.org.uk
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