At the end of each year we take stock of the breeding results at the facilities of Loro Parque Fundación. Some species stand out more with their breeding results than others. This occurs not only with the rare species of parrots. The resume of this analysis is crucial in every breeding centre in order to step in the right direction during the upcoming breeding seasons.,
We are proud for having bred 27 babies of Mindanao lorikeets (Trichoglossus johnstoniae) which are developing well. We have been improving the management of this endemic species to Philippines in order to get more breeding success. The maintenance of this species during the different seasons has allowed us to obtain a stable breeding stock that regularly produces beauty and healthy offspring.
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Trichoglossus johnstoniae
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We are also proud of the breeding results of the Jamaican amazons (Amazona collaria). This species is endemic to the humid and high areas of Jamaica and their breeding presents a challenge for all breeding centres.
This unknown species has a specific biology and is characterized by it’s aggressively during few times of the year. At Loro Parque Fundación there are 10 species that are already flying in our aviaries for socializing. We enjoy their beauty, their different intense colours and love to learn from their behaviour that differs from other homologous species that inhabit in the same insular ecosystem of the Americas.
The curator Marcia Weinzettl and her team have paid special attention to the formulas of seeds and diet for the hand-reared species, as well as other species, achieving exceptional values of weight and plumage quality.
The weight and health that animals reach during the first months of their life will determine their strength to a great extent until they reach the reproductive stage. And this is the basis of solid breeding sites that resist any unexpected inconvenience.
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Amazona collaria, (c) Marcia Weinzettl
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The Bolivian Blue-throated macaw (Ara glaucogularis) has been, for another consecutive year, protagonists in the reproductive success. The different couples have been very prolific this season. The 23 babies show an intense orange-yellow colour that contrasts strongly with the marked blue of their plumage. During these years we have learned that this species is able to achieve an extraordinary reproductive success compared to other species of macaws that have fewer egg laying and whose success of chickens that jump from the nest is also smaller. In our field work in Bolivia we have observed exactly the same. The nests in the wild often harbour three chickens, so that its population increase can be exponential whenever the conditions are appropriate.
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Ara glaucogularis, (c) Rafael Zamora Padrón
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Ara glaucogularis babies in the nest
We also feel great satisfaction raising the Yucatan amazon (Amazona xantholora). This small but very colourful species shows us previous signs when it will have a good year. The males demonstrate their behaviour with characteristic movements announcing to us that some fertile laying is next. Two juveniles are already flying in their enclosures, increasing our group of this species.
11 babies of the green-winged macaw (Ara chloropterus) grow in harmony almost at the same time. The couples have synchronized amazingly in their sets. It is something that does not happen every season. When a couple raise their chickens until their independence, the following year it usually delays its cycle and it is difficult to match the rest. This species do a very good job as adoptive parents for other species of large macaws. Knowing the expected dates of each lying season we can organise a very useful auxiliary technique to grow up chicks of other species that are more sensitive and need the natural breeding.
The 9 chicks of the yellow-chevroned parakeet (Brotogeris chirirí) have become independent this year. This small pocket parrots are widely known in South America for their yellow wings and their boisterous voice and because they are regular visitors to fruit trees in parks and gardens. See them growing up is very satisfactory, since the group of the genus Brotogeris maintains common characteristics among the different species although each one needs a specific management to achieve its reproduction.
Concerning the Philippine cockatoo group (Cacatua haematuropygia), there are 8 youngsters that stand out. It is an endangered species in the wild as well as of scarce reproduction in controlled environments. Loro Parque Fundación maintains and exceeds its record of success with this cockatoo that is characterized by the difficulty to create compatible pairs in the time that they can give offspring in a stable way. These 8 specimens are added to the largest known breeding stock for the species in Europe.
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A group of young cockatoos
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Cacatua haematuropygia
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The list of reproduced species is long and sometimes we are more struck by all those which have formed new partners and enter into maturity after years of working together. The breeders really do not know if this species will really be good reproducers or not, nor how each will behave in the breeding task.
Sometimes a male is careful and attentive to his female, while another, who may be his brother, proves to be less dedicated to his partner. Likewise, the females differ among themselves within the same species, even the same family or even being nest sisters. Some can be very good incubating from the first year they try, compared to others that take several seasons to deploy their instinct and do all the expected tasks with the same efficiency. Without any doubt, this is what keeps parrot keepers expectant each year. We devote time and observe every detail in order to help and give the pairs all what they need. Season after season we got amazed by the unexpected cases that the animal world and the nature offers us.
Another important event was The Gorilla Award. This event took place as every year in Tenerife. On this occasion, Loro Parque awarded the bird food company Versele Laga. Loro Parque recognizes its great contribution in the development of animal nutrition at all levels. Thanks to the development of specific formulas according to the individual feeding of the different species groups and types, the parrots have benefited in a noticeable way.
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Loro Parque awarded bird food company Versele Laga
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The representative, Mr. Lode Versele, picked up the award making reference to the importance of the collaboration with Loro Parque and Loro Parque Fundación. Both organisations are working on in-situ and ex-situ projects where they are getting impressive achievements. Versele Laga shares our vision and objectives and our commitment occupies a very important place in their hearts.
The present authorities of Canary Islands Government referred to the hundred initiatives that Loro Parque Fundación has promoted in order to stop the extinction of the species. This award strengthens the collaboration between different sectors in order to achieve a global wellbeing of the animals.
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