The Breeding Center
Procedures

All our Scarlet Macaws and Great Green Macaws have been obtained within Costa Rica. This has been achieved by 'swopping' birds, accepting birds from individuals, but mainly from Minae as confiscated birds. At the beginning of 2005, we held 97 Scarlet Macaws and 62 Great Greens and since then the numbers have risen.

 

The refuge came about as Minae brought us more confiscated birds indigenous to this country, but that were neither Scarlet or Great Green macaws. Many of the birds have big personalities and some, physical and mental disorders, and we strive to give these birds a future with a good quality of life. (see Birds section)

  
 

Diet

The Amigos de las Aves diet is constituted out of locally available foodstuffs, nuts and seeds. We try to grow as much of our own produce as possible. During the past few years, many trees have been planted on the property and are now producing an excellent range of foods. The citrus trees give us lemons (sweet and sour) and oranges, we also have mango, rose apples, water apples, guava, low quats, kumquats and papaya. We grow yucca, sweet potato, maize, sunflower, peanuts, carrots, sugar cane, green beans, melon, peppers and banana. While this extensive list is not enough to feed all year round, they certainly makes a major contribution.

For extra protein, we add eggs, oil, various nuts and seeds. Some of the pods that are available in the garden are used in the feed mix, with guanacaste pods being a favorite. Suppliers donate oil palm nuts and chicken feet and marrow bones are delivered once a week.

The macaws are fed three times per day. In the early morning, they receive a portion of masa corn flour, soaked rice, garbanzo beans, peas, corn and cooked red and black beans. Also mixed into the masa is garlic, crushed egg shells, oyster shell, yeast, vegetable oil, bee pollen, calcium supplements, spaghetti, and multi vitamins.

In mid-morning, the macaws receive chopped seasonal fruits and vegetables, including bananas, papaya, mango, watercress, spinach, beets, sugar cane, sweet potato, water apples, rose apples, and citrus.

At midday each pair of macaws gets a small scoop of mixed peanuts, and sunflower seeds. (the nuts are only added during the breeding season.)

Additional protein in the form of large nuts, extra chicken feet, linseed, and eggs are added to the diet of breeding pairs during the breeding season,

Environmental Enrichment

The birds are provided with new perching as required. We generally use fruit branches and occasionally bamboo perches if we are limited for natural wood. We also use palm fronds in the aviaries, attached at one end only, but which are sturdy enough for the birds to land upon. These allow the birds to adapt to perching conditions similar to those in the wild and give the birds an idea of what to expect in the wild.

  

Browse is also given to the birds. We use the local 'peacock flower' - the red and white flower is always very popular and the birds demolish this very quickly.

Homemade toys are supplied to each aviary - these are made from cloth knotted or wound around frameworks of various kinds. These are renewed when necessary. Cloth chains are made from the clothes donated to us. We find that T-shirt material works best, as it does not fray. Some chains can be anything up to 40 - 50 feet when tied together, and then hung in the flights. We also utilize old rubber tyres in the flights - holes are punched into the bottom of them so they don't collect water and they are hung to allow them to swing free.

Flocking

We use a flocking technique to allow our birds to come together in large groups, and choose their own mates for the following breeding season.

The breeding season extends from the end of December to August or September. At the end of the breeding season, we put all the breeding birds into the main flights. The flight has plenty of toys, branches and browse to stimulate them during their stay, as well as two nest-boxes, one of wood and one metal barrel.

Birds are in the flight for approximately four months, if the seasons allow. During this time, the older birds tend to stay with their mates, but there are always new pairs. Prior to being placed into a breeding aviary, birds are given a health check and we ensure the breeding paperwork is correct and the birds are not related. Any birds that have not selected their own mates are paired together after consulting records. If any birds do not bond within two weeks, or are obviously not happy together, birds may be moved around to try and establish a viable pair.

Over the past couple of years, we have found that the "miscellaneous" Scarlets, male and female, that are not paired, and are not showing any particular affection towards a mate, have eventually formed bonds within the flight with the introduction of several nestboxes. For the size of the flight, we have placed three and four boxes, and during the season, six birds have paired ( 3 pairs ) and produced youngsters in three of the nesting boxes.

For the juveniles, the flocking works extremely well and the birds quickly integrate into their own small groups or pairs. This prepares them well for their life in the wild. They are often preening each other and do not tend to form any particularly strong bond to one single bird, instead they integrate and socialise as a group.

The Breeding Aviaries

The aviaries at Amigos de las Aves are built on two sites and partly acts as separation of the Breeding Facility from the Refuge.

The construction of these aviaries is the result of ensuring the best possible housing for the birds, and the consideration of limited funding.

Being a non-profit organization we rely heavily upon donations.

• Welded mesh is just becoming obtainable in Costa Rica, but is very expensive and not widely available. Chain-link fencing is easily obtained and is the wire that we use for the breeding facility at this time.
• Although labor may be considered 'cheap' compared to first-world countries, wages are one of the greatest recurring costs.

The aviaries were designed, after trial and error, to be 10 x 8 x 8 feet. Each aviary is constructed of chain link mesh, with a feed drawer at the front, which does not allow the feed dishes to be upturned. Water is provided by a system of high-level tanks, which fill by pump from a private well. The water is fed along a series of pipes which provide a sprinkler for each aviary for daily spraying, and a down-wards 'touch & drink' pipe for each aviary and for all the flights.

There are two large breeding aviaries, one for scarlet macaws and one for great green macaws. Each aviary has an outer wall of wire mesh and 16 smaller breeding aviaries within. This floor plan allows for walkways and dog patrols, as well as added insurance in case of bird escape and thefts. Attached to each aviary is a flight used by the birds at the end of the breeding season. This allows the birds to interact with each other for re-selection of mates, and to give them a large space for flight. The flights are approximately 60 x 20 x 10 feet for the scarlets and 100 x 20 x 10 for the great greens. Shelter is provided by corrugated tin or plastic roofing, and is placed in all aviaries and flights, giving thought to the seasons, sun and rain. All aviaries and flights are provided with free-swinging toys (see environmental enrichment). Both aviaries have halogen lights overlooking the main structures, and bamboo screens are provided for any aviary that requires privacy. We have found, that the great green macaws tend to breed better when not distracted by other pairs, so all the great green macaw aviaries have screens to each side and hedging behind.

There is another smaller aviary of similar design for the Scarlet Macaws, which currently has five single aviaries within it, 40 x 100 x 8 feet. Attached to the end of the main aviary are three small flights, each 10 x 40 x 8 feet and one large one 40 x 20 x 8 feet.

There are two juvenile flights, used for birds leaving the nursery. Once the birds have fledged and weaned, we put them into a juvenile flight for approximately 3 months where we can monitor them closely. This separation from more mature birds allows for extra feeding supplements and more varied foods, giving them a 'good start' in life. They are later moved to the large aviary 'North Central' 40 x 50 x 12 feet. This aviary has a much higher roof, allowing the birds to fly and strengthen their muscles for their future. The birds stay in this flight until selected for release. They have no contact with humans, other than the placing of food bowls at the feed station. It is at this stage that they also begin to form bonds with each other (see flocking behavior).

The Nestboxes

In the wild, great green macaws nest in almendro trees (Dipterix panamensis). For this reason some of our great greens have a choice of almendro nests, approx. 50 gallon. All other nest-boxes provided for macaws are metal barrels; large (50 gallon) for the great greens and small (40 gallon) for the scarlets.

The great green macaws tend to ignore the natural almendro barrels (with the exception being two old pairs), and given the choice of upright or horizontally mounted barrels, will opt for the horizontal, with only one pair showing interest in an upright barrel. Barrels are mounted in an upright position for the scarlet macaws. Large pieces of non-treated natural woods are chopped to approx. 4 -6 inches long and 1-2 inches diameter and are placed inside the nesting boxes for the birds to 'work', as stimuli prior to breeding.

We try to place breeding females in the same aviary as they occupied the previous year. As a pair comes into breeding condition the wood chips in the nest drums are chewed into match-sized wood chips are added as needed.

The Security

Security continues to be a real concern at the breeding centre, with intermittent thefts over the past few years.

Security lights have been kindly donated by Beirute Refrigeration and RAAVE Bird Club in Reno, and several are attached to each aviary - which light up the inside of each aviary, but also illuminate the surrounding areas.

 

The inside of the aviaries have had added extra fencing and screening to assist in security. These have been made from branches and bamboo.

 

We also have guards and dogs working 24 hours a day, seven days a week.

Health Management

Health management is extremely important due to the ever-present possibility of infectious diseases. Quarantine is observed at Amigos de las Aves. Birds are quarantined for 45 days following arrival onto the property. Each bird undergoes a physical examination and has samples taken, worming medicine administered, is sprayed for mites, tested for Chlamydia and Pacheco's, DNA sampled, and rung for identification.

General health checks are carried out whenever a bird is caught for any reason. General blood counts and fecal samples are also taken whenever necessary and cultures run, although this is always governed by cost. Veterinary technicians carry out general checks twice a year and take samples when necessary.

General worming is carried out three times yearly, and any feather mites are controlled with mite spray at the same time. (see report from Jeannie Slaughter and Michelle Burt )Any minor injuries or problems are treated at the Breeding Center, more serious conditions are taken to the veterinary school where necessary treatments are administered with the help and assistance of Dr. Mauricio Jimenez. We have our own resident veterinary surgeons, Dr. Silvia Coto keeping an eye on everything and Dr. Raymond Kray. Visiting veterinary surgeons, Dr. Matthew Bond and Dr. Rhoda Stevenson are also happy to help, and general health checks during their visits are always kindly administered.

Certain medical protocols are required by MINAE before approval is given for the release of birds. Tests currently required Chlamydia, Paccheco's, Avian Influenza, Salmonella, Polyoma, Newcastle's Disease, and a general health check by a veterinary surgeon.

Babies

Incubation and Hatching

First clutches are usually laid anytime from January to June. We tend to double-clutch the birds if it is deemed feasible, depending upon the individual pair. The first clutch of eggs is "pulled" approximately two weeks after being laid and is artificially incubated and raisied. This depends upon the 'stock' of youngsters from the particular parents The second clutch is usually laid about a month later. Hatching time is 26 days for scarlet macaws, and weighting approximately 18gms and 28 days for Great-green Macaws, weighting approximately 28 gms.

We incubate eggs using Humidaire incubators set at 99.5 degrees F and relative humidity of 50 - 54% (wet bulb temperature 82-84 degrees F). Eggs are hand-turned, half a turn approximately every 4 hours. Eggs that are naturally incubated for the first two weeks tend to have a lower death rate. When hatching begins, egg turning ceases and the relative humidity is increased to about 59 % (86 degrees F wet bulb temperature).

Chicks

Newly hatched chicks are not fed for 12 hours allowing egg sacs to be absorbed and for the baby to rest and gain strength. Chicks are fed following a recommended schedule, modified when appropriate. Zupreem & Kaytee Macaw Handrearing Formula (fat level of 19-13%) is syringe fed to the chicks, with an extra peanut butter added.

The babies are moved along a small line of brooders, decreasing in heat, until they can be left out in the nursery during the warmer part of the day with no added heat at all. At this stage they are returned to the brooders at night.

Eventually, (approximately 40 - 50 days) they are moved to the nursery aviary and are left there overnight, once they have developed a good covering of feathers to retain the heat. Birds are usually paired together, by the same species, during this stage, to ensure company and body heat.

From approximately 20 days, the babies are placed on appropriate sized wire, or plastic shower flooring in the base of their baskets. Thus ensuring we have no leg or feet problems. These surfaces have worked extremely well and we have had no problems to date.

The second clutch of scarlet and great-green macaws are raised by the parents in a natural manner. The parent-raised chicks are checked every day to ensure they are being properly cared for by the parents. If the chicks are not being fed properly, they may be given supplemental hand feeding or may be removed from the nest for artificial feeding before being returned to the parents. Chicks that are plucked or injured by the parents are also removed. Time from hatching to fledging for handreared chicks averages 80 - 100 days.

Weaning

The weaning is gradual. From day 30-35 chicks are fed spoons of husked sunflower seeds and pieces of crushed fruit in between scheduled formula feeds. Human baby food can be of considerable help if the baby finds it difficult to make the transition from soft to solid. At approximately 30-40 days chicks are moved to an indoor weaning cage. Extra food is then offered to the babies, a bowl of chopped fruit, "Nutriberries," husked sunflower seeds and any rearing pellets available. They also still receive feeds of handfeeding formula. When they are 70-80 days old they are given a small morning feed of formula and put outside in the juvenile flight. There is also an adult diet available in this flight. The baby is brought back indoors during the evening and fed an evening feed of formula.

After approximately 2 weeks of spending the day in the juvenile flight, the baby is left in the flight overnight (weather depending), with a feed of formula last thing at night until self-feeding. The babies stay in the juvenile flight for several months to observe their feeding habits and to ensure that they are eating satisfactorily. They are then transferred to larger flights with other macaws (of anything up to five years of age), after which they are then assigned to a release site or to the breeding population.

For parent reared chicks, the weaning appears to average approximately 100 days, and the babies fledge approximately 70 - 80 days.

Notes

Once in the main flight, the birds have no human contact other than to place food in the aviaries. They tend to flock together with ease and although birds are not scared of humans, they do not seek attention or show any interest in any visitors or staff.

Scarlet and Great Green macaws are not permitted to mix once they have left the juvenile flight.

After selection for release, the birds are then placed into a separate aviary, so they may learn to integrate with each other and begin to form bonds with each other.

Amigos de las Aves and the official Release Programs of Amigos de las Aves in Costa Rica, www.amigosdelasavescostarica.org and www.hatchedtoflyfree.org are not affiliated or associated with any other company, organisation or association, by name or in any other country.