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The Great Crane Escape or “Should I Trim My Bird’s Flight Feathers?” – Part 2

Posted by: Frank Indiviglio in Bird Health, General Bird Care July 6, 2010 Comments Off on The Great Crane Escape or “Should I Trim My Bird’s Flight Feathers?” – Part 2 7776 Views

Sarus CraneIn Part 1 of this article I mentioned some general considerations regarding the trimming of flight feathers, and then launched into a story about a huge Saurus Crane (Grus antigone) that, while under my care at the Bronx Zoo, launched itself into the air and went sailing out over the South Bronx (its previously trimmed flight feathers had grown back in with astonishing rapidity).  I continue with the story here….

Brave Young Bird Keeper to the Rescue

Amazingly, while I was out searching for the nearly 6-foot-tall Saurus Crane, a 13-year-old boy of slight stature showed up at the zoo with the huge bird in tow.  He had its rapier-like bill, which had sent one keeper to the hospital for stitches in the past, tucked beneath his arm, exactly as should be done with potentially dangerous birds. 

The boy explained that he had grown up on a farm in Puerto Rico and, being smaller than most of the geese kept there, learned early on how to deal with avian aggressors – unfortunately, he left before I could offer him a job!

Pet Escapes

But I digress…my point is that even in professional collections, mistakes are made.  It’s quite difficult to keep track of just when a clipped bird will re-gain its powers of flight, as had the Saurus Crane.  Sometimes the re-growth of only 2-3 key feathers will allow the bird enough lift to escape.  Pet owners who have become accustomed to their bird being flightless tend to forget precautions after a time, and may leave escape routes available to their birds.

Six months is often given as a guideline for feather re-growth where popular cage birds are concerned, but seasons, light cycles, diet, age, health and a host of other factors render this a rough estimate at best.

Why Not Clip all Birds?

On the positive side, fully-flighted birds kept in large cages or outdoor aviaries are more usually active and occupied, and in general possessed of a better quality of life, than are their perch-bound counterparts.  Reproduction is also impacted, as copulation can be difficult or even impossible for wing-clipped males.

There is also some evidence that unclipped birds remain at healthier weights and that females experience few problems with egg-binding and related concerns (assuming they are given room to fly!).

Further Reading

An interesting article on feather clipping as a field research technique.

A video on clipping parrot and cockatiel flight feathers.

 

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I believe that I was born with an intense interest in animals, as neither I nor any of my family can recall a time when I was not fascinated by creatures large and small. One might imagine this to be an unfortunate set of circumstances for a person born and raised in the Bronx, but, in actuality, quite the opposite was true. Most importantly, my family encouraged both my interest and the extensive menagerie that sprung from it. My mother and grandmother somehow found ways to cope with the skunks, flying squirrels, octopus, caimans and countless other odd creatures that routinely arrived un-announced at our front door. Assisting in hand-feeding hatchling praying mantises and in eradicating hoards of mosquitoes (I once thought I had discovered “fresh-water brine shrimp” and stocked my tanks with thousands of mosquito larvae!) became second nature to them. My mother went on to become a serious naturalist, and has helped thousands learn about wildlife in her 16 years as a volunteer at the Bronx Zoo. My grandfather actively conspired in my zoo-buildings efforts, regularly appearing with chipmunks, boa constrictors, turtles rescued from the Fulton Fish Market and, especially, unusual marine creatures. It was his passion for seahorses that led me to write a book about them years later. Thank you very much, for a complete biography of my experience click here.
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