It’s breeding season here at the Maui Bird Conservation Center (MBCC), and that means all the occupants—the staff, interns, and birds—are very busy!

It all starts with planning and preparation. The staff and interns work hard in the weeks leading up to breeding season building nest platforms, putting up nest boxes, and collecting various nesting materials that the birds can use to build their nests. Nest cameras are set up in breeding females’ aviaries so that nesting behavior can be observed around the clock.

Once all the materials are in place, it is time to socialize males and females a little at a time and watch the birds’ behaviors, good and bad. This part of the process feels a little bit like chaperoning a school dance—except that we want the amorous couple to go all the way! This year at MBCC we have three pairs of breeding puaiohi, three pairs of Maui parrotbills, and three pairs of ‘alala.

The Hawaiian crow, or ‘alala, is critically endangered, and breeding season for this species is especially important. Much thought and planning goes in to every step of the process. Socializations start with 20-minute sessions to watch for the crows’ initial reactions to each other. This new and sudden interaction can lead to positive results, such as wooing and copulation. It could also very easily go the other way with contact aggression and fighting. As the crows grow more comfortable with each other and within each other’s aviaries, the sessions are lengthened and will eventually last the entire day. It only takes one good socialization to produce results, but allowing for that perfect moment to occur is risky business.

So far this year we have three puaiohi hatchlings that the staff are hand raising, and they are doing great! One is now three weeks old and is learning to eat on his own. The second was hatched one week ago and is slowly and painfully growing in feathers. The last is only a few days old. The chicks hatch featherless and blind and are completely dependent on their substitute parents, the staff. Over the next 40 days they grow bigger and stronger, learn how to eat by themselves, fledge the nest, and eventually learn to fly. Whether these chicks are later released on Kauai or become captive breeders, they, like all the new arrivals, are valuable to the survival of the species. And that makes our work here so important!

We also have four more eggs in the incubators that are set to hatch within the next few days. Every day the eggs are weighed to monitor the amount of fluid that is being lost. The eggs are kept in highly sensitive incubators that can be adjusted to the most exact degrees of heat and humidity, depending on the specific conditions the egg needs to properly develop. The eggs are also candled periodically to watch for specific stages in development. What we look for during candling are signs of healthy egg development; blood vessels, embryo growth and movement, and expansion of the air cell.

Busy birds mean busy days for the staff at MBCC! We will keep you posted on our progress throughout breeding season. In the meantime, send lusty thoughts our way!

Karen McKeogh is an intern at the San Diego Zoo’s Maui Bird Conservation Center.

Read more blogs about the Hawaii Endangered Bird Program…

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