International Turaco Society

28/06/2026

27/06/2026

27/06/2026

27/06/2026

This Purple crested Loerie flew into an office block in Harare. Advice was provided by BIRDS AT THIRTY (in Zimbabwe) and the bird was successfully released

25/06/2026

25/06/2026

An aviculture tale of woe. I'm a big fan of parent raising birds and try to interfere as little as possible, but sometimes even a little is too much.

A hand raised Lady Ross Turaco pair went to nest for the first time. This pair sat very tightly, never leaving the nest alone. I nest checked once during beginning of incubation and saw two eggs - no problem. I nest checked again weeks later and saw two healthy, active chicks about 6-8 days old - was happy! Days later, nest checked again and saw only one chick, about ready to fledge - sad, not sure what had happened, but one was certainly better than none.

The very next day, both parents were off the nest for the first time since the nesting started. I checked, and the nest was empty. After a careful search of the whole aviary, I found the two bodies, both with crushed skulls. They had obviously killed a chick right after each nest check.

Harsh lesson learned. This pair demands complete privacy. Now, most turaco pairs will be fine with minimal nest checking, but obviously not this one. Hopefully sharing this experience can help other breeders.

Well, the pair went to nest again, and chick/s should be hatching this week. I have not nest checked since they started nesting again and will not. Hopefully in a month or so, we'll see if we get fledged chicks.