BEE-EATER SURVEY – 2001

Institution: Disney’s Animal Kingdom

Contact person:  Lyn Heller and Susan Congdon

Phone number:  (407) 938-2684

Email address:

 

1.  Please list sexes and species of bee-eaters currently held at your institution.

 2.4 Merops n. nubicus

 

2.  Note method and company used to sex your birds.

Unsure.  Received already sexed.

 

3. Describe how your birds are banded and discuss any band problems you have had.

Colored metal open leg bands are used.  Due to the size of the exhibit we have difficulty seeing the bands.

 

4.      Please describe your bee-eater diet, including use of beehives, other live food, coloring agents offered.

Large mealworms dusted with 2 parts betatene to 1 part each of Emeraid II and Necton S.  The mealworms are tossed into the air 2-3 times daily and caught by the birds. Naturally occurring insects are also regularly eaten. We will be offering live bees as soon as spring arrives.

 

5.  Please describe your bee-eater exhibits and holding spaces in detail – dimensions, inside or outside, water areas, species exhibited together, etc.

The birds are housed in a 120’x50’x40’ outside walk-through African aviary.

The aviary is well planted with many large trees, shrubs, and flowering plants.  There is a large 2-level waterfall in which we often observe the bee-eaters bathing.

Other species housed in the exhibit:

Olive pigeon-Columba arquatrix

African green pigeon- Treron australis

African pygmy geese- Nettapus auritus

Hottentot teal-Anas punctata

White backed ducks-Thalassornis leuconotus

Marbled teal-Marmaronetta angustirostris

White bellied go away bird- Corythaixoides leucogaster

Racquet tailed roller- Coracias spatulata

African grey parrots- Psittacus erithacus

Snowy headed robin chat- Cossypha niveicapilla

Magpie shrike- Corvinella melanoleuca

Hadada ibis- Hagedashia hagedash brevirostris

African jacana- Actophilornis africana

Black crake- Limnocorax flavirostra

Hammerkop- Scopus umbretta

Wattled starling- Creatophora cinerea

Golden breasted starling- Lamprotornis regius

Superb starling- Lamprotornis superbus

Emerald starling-Lamprotornis iris

Amethyst starling- Cinnyricinclus leucogaster

Brimstone canary- Serinus sulphuratus

Taveta weaver- Ploceus castaneiceps

White-headed buffalo weaver- Dinemellia dinemelli

Common bulbul- Pycnonotus barbatus

Bearded barbet- Lybius dubius

Madascar red fody- Foudia madagascariensis

African hoopoe- Upupa epops

White-collared kingfisher- Halcyon chloris

 

6.  Describe any reproductive activity observed and time of year of occurrence.

N/a

 

7.  Describe parent-rearing behaviors and procedures when young are present (incubation periods, diet offered, frequency of feeding by adults, fledging information), and/or artificial incubation and hand-rearing information.

N/a

 

8.  Have you seen any aggressive behaviors in your birds and in what context?  Any other interesting social behaviors observed?

Have observed displacement behavior, wing flashing, and individuals feeding or soliciting feeding from other birds.

 

9.  Please discuss any acclimation and/or medical problems you have had with your birds.

No problems with current birds.  We are trying different ideas to encourage them to eat from a pan and eat a wider variety of food.

 

10.  Feel free to add anything else you consider pertinent to bee-eater husbandry.

 

 

 

Please return to Marcia Arland at [email protected] or

FAX #: (718) 733-7300

Or mail to:

Department of Ornithology

WCS/Bronx Zoo

2300 Southern Blvd.

Bronx, NY 10460