Zoo staff helped birds of a feather get back together

The newest offspring of North America’s only breeding pair of milky eagle owls has fledged her parents’ nest, thanks to a unique sequence of events demonstrating the expertise and innovation of Zoo Atlanta’s Bird Department.

Her story began with a cracked egg. On January 14, 2008, keepers discovered that the Zoo’s adult female milky eagle owl had deposited a new egg in her habitat. Staff removed the egg, which appeared to be damaged, and placed it in an incubator to increase the embryo’s chances of survival. Despite the odds, the chick hatched successfully on February 21.

For the next 21 days, the Bird Department hand-reared the female owlet, feeding her with a lifelike puppet that closely resembled an adult owl. This deception was a critical part of the chick’s development, as many hand-reared animal species, especially birds, can become imprinted on humans. (Imprinted animals do not recognize themselves as members of their own species – a developmental condition that can prevent their being successfully introduced to natural habitats or to other animals.)

To ensure that the chick continued to grow and behave as a wild owl would, keepers began making plans to re-introduce her to her mother. While chances were good that the milky eagle owl pair – both proven, experienced parents – would accept their offspring, no one was entirely certain of how the birds would react after her long absence.

The owlet’s mother, who by now was already guarding another egg, was in for quite a surprise on March 13, when keepers removed the egg and replaced it with the 21-day-old chick. Staff, watching in cautious optimism while the owl discovered that her nest was now inhabited – not by a lightweight, inanimate egg, but by a hungry, 1.5-pound baby bird – were overjoyed when her maternal instincts took over.

The chick, now distinguishable from the adults only by the downy, juvenile quality of her feathers, left their nest a healthy, well-adjusted owl in late April. A Zoo success story and a living testament to the dedication of the Bird Department, she has been recommended to pair with a male at the San Diego Wild Animal Park. To date, her parents are the only pair of milky eagle owls to have successfully reproduced in a North American zoological institution.

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