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The Moluccan
cockatoo is endemic to the Moluccas island group (nowadays
renamed the Maluku island group) in Indonesia. It has been
recorded from the islands of Ceram, Saparua, Haruku and Ambon.
Preferred habitat is lowland forest up to 1,000 meters (3,300
feet). The highest population densities occur in primary forest,
but the species is also found at lower density in secondary
forest. This species is clearly endangered in the wild, with
the principle threats against the wild population being habitat
disturbance and illegal trade in wild birds. The Moluccan
cockatoo is listed upon Appendix 1 of the Convention on International
Trade in Endangered Species (CITES) that restricts international
trade in this species, but surprisingly the species is not
well-protected within Indonesia where a local trade continues
to supply the internal pet market.
In captivity
the Moluccan cockatoo has been a popular avicultural subject
for many decades, but the past history of captive breeding
success has been sporadic and inconsistent. In the last decade
of the 20th century however, many breeding centers established
consistent breeding and a new wave of young captive bred and
hand-raised birds became available to the pet market.
Aviaries
for Moluccan cockatoos should reflect the species’ need for
security and seclusion, while also being stoutly constructed
to withstand the species’ strong bill and with sufficient
flying space to allow exercise and to ensure that potential
mate-aggression can be avoided. At Loro Parque, in the Canary
Islands, when the new breeding area was being built in 1996,
I designed a series of aviaries for the larger members of
the white cockatoo family. They measured 12 meters (39.6 feet)
in length by 2.5 meters (8.25 feet) in height and 1.5 meters
(4.95 feet) in width. The aviaries were designed to be long
and thin to allow a 12 meters (39.6 feet) flying distance
from one end to the other, but the narrow width meant that
adult birds could not turn in flight. This meant that a cock
bird chasing the hen would have to fly the length of the cage
and land before turning, slowing down the chasing action.
In the case of males that appeared to be getting very excited
in the early breeding season, we would trim a few flight feathers
from each of the wings. This would give the hen bird a slight,
but significant, flying advantage. After flying one or two
lengths of the aviary the cock bird would begin to tire much
sooner than the hen.
There
are many cases of Moluccan cockatoos eating a restricted diet
of their own choosing. My experience with more than 200 individuals
has shown that most birds can be encouraged to eat a balanced
diet, particularly if the food is divided into more than one
feeding period per day. Ideally a morning feeding period should
provide the bird with a varied salad mixture that includes
items such as diced apple, pear, orange, alfalfa, carrot,
banana, beet root, papaya, tomato and other seasonal fruits.
Also, I would recommend that the owner use the morning feeding
period to encourage the bird to eat a commercial dietary pellet,
such as one of the good quality products provided by companies
such as Pretty Bird, Kaytee or Hagen. In the afternoon, a
mixture of dry seeds, nuts and cooked beans can be given.
More of the dietary pellet can be offered with the afternoon
mixture if the bird has finished the food offered during the
morning. With patience on the part of the owner, most birds
can be encouraged to experiment and eat a wide variety of
foods.
As one
of the most intelligent psittacines kept in captivity, the
Moluccan cockatoo has a constant need for mental stimulation.
Therefore opportunity to use food items as part of this process
provides the means to introducing new components to the bird’s
diet at the same time as providing play and chewing material.The
nestboxes I supply for pairs of Moluccan cockatoo normally
measure 80 centimeters by 45 centimeters by 45 centimeters
(32 inches by 18 inches by 18 inches), made from 1 centimeter
(.4 inch) thick panels of plywood. Essential requirements
of the nestbox include the provision of an inspection door,
a metal ladder up the interior front of the box leading to
the entrance hole and a perch on the exterior of the box immediately
in front of the entrance hole. The diameter of the entrance
hole normally measures about 20 centimeters (8 inches), although
many pairs of Moluccan cockatoos will enlarge the entrance
hole themselves. The nesting medium that I have always used
for Moluccan cockatoos is large wood shavings that are provided
fresh at the beginning of the breeding season, and which are
changed as frequently as needed throughout the course of the
breeding season between breeding activity.
Moluccan
cockatoos show far less seasonality of egg-laying compared
to other psittacines. I have recorded eggs laid by birds under
my care in every calendar month of the year. The normal clutch-size
for Moluccan cockatoos is most commonly two eggs; occasionally
a single egg or rarely three can be laid in a clutch. During
the four years that I was curator of Loro Parque, I recorded
the frequency of Moluccan cockatoo clutch-sizes from a sample
of 37 clutches laid between January 1994 and December 1997.
This showed the following results: Five clutches contained
a single egg (13.5 percent); 29 clutches contained two eggs
(78.4 percent); three clutches contained three eggs (8.1 percent).
It is probably worth noting that all three of the clutches
that consisted of three eggs were laid by the same female.
I would still consider this as an uncommon clutch-size for
the species.
The eggs
are completely white in coloration, and measurements from
a sample of six eggs (laid from two different hen birds) showed
average external dimensions of 45.4 millimeters by 33.7 millimeters
(1.8 inches by 1.3 inches) — ranges: 48.1/43.6 by 34.3/31.4
millimeters (1.9/1.7 by 1.4/1.3 inches).
The incubation
period for the Moluccan cockatoo is 28 days, with brooding
being undertaken by both the cock and hen bird. Incubation
normally begins soon after the laying of the first egg. Eggs
are laid at roughly 48 hour time intervals, with hatching
times also showing the same 48 hour time intervals between
chick emergence.
The potential
for multiple clutches is good if eggs are removed for artificial
incubation. Loro Parque in Tenerife is situated in a near-perfect
sub-tropical climate. Given these climatic conditions, pairs
of Moluccan cockatoo that were left to rear their own chicks
were still capable of rearing two broods of young each year
if the first brood of chicks were removed from the parents
aviary by four weeks after fledging. Moluccan cockatoos at
Loro Parque that had their eggs removed could regularly lay
four or more clutches of eggs each year.
Newly
hatched Moluccan cockatoo chicks commonly weigh between 14-20
grams (.49-.7 ounces) in body weight. A yellow primary natal
down is present over the body at hatching, but often disappears
from abrasion after a few days. Under the care of their parents,
the chicks will normally begin to leave the nestbox at 14
weeks of age. Hand-reared chicks can also be weaned by the
age of 14 weeks, but can sometimes demonstrate food-begging
behavior for up to two months longer if they have become imprinted
upon their human parent and receive constant human attention.
Moluccan cockatoos bred in captivity are routinely banded
with a closed legband, normally between 14-20 days of age.
Stainless steel legbands should be used because of the Moluccan
cockatoo’s great bill strength. I also recommend that once
the chick is weaned and independent, a microchip identification
be placed into the breast muscle of the bird. This is always
a good precaution in case the leg band becomes damaged or
has to be removed for any reason.
When Moluccan
cockatoo chicks are being parent-reared, I always maintain
regular observation of the chicks’ progress. Breeding pairs
of Moluccan cockatoos often have a reputation of being difficult
to work with in the nestbox while they are breeding. If there
is a risk of aggression the nest box should only be examined
when the adult birds are outside in the aviary. The chick
should be visually checked to ensure that there is food present
in the crop, the size and weight appearance of the chick is
as expected for its age, and the eyes, wings, legs, toes and
feathers appear normal. The chick and the nesting medium should
also be checked to ensure that no ecto-parasites are present
(such as ticks or mites). Common problems that may affect
a chick being parent-reared can potentially include inconsistent
feeding behavior, such as failure to feed the chick after
hatching or stopping feeding the chick part way through the
rearing period. Biting of the chicks’ emerging pin-feathers,
or even the chicks’ toes and wings, and the risk of parasitic
infestation are other potential problems. While a breeding
pair of Moluccan cockatoos has eggs or chicks inside of the
nest box, the husbandry routines of feeding and cleaning should
be kept as regular as possible so that the birds become used
to the presence of their keeper at certain times of the day.
The remainder of the day they should be left undisturbed.
If eggs
are removed for artificial incubation, I use the following
parameters. The interior incubator temperature is maintained
at a constant 37.4 degrees Celsius (99.3 degrees Fahrenheit),
from the initiation of incubation until the time of internal
pipping (25-26 days after the initiation of incubation when
the chicks’ beak first breaks through into the air cell).
From the time of internal pip the temperature is lowered and
maintained at 36.6 degrees Celsius (97.8 degrees Fahrenheit),
ready for the chicks’ hatch and emergence. Humidity is maintained
at 55 percent for the incubation period, until it is raised
to 90 percent once internal pip (or external pip) has been
observed. If eggs are being incubated from an early stage,
or if candling of the egg indicates an abnormal size of the
air sac compared to the relative stage of embryo development,
closer management of egg weight loss can be implemented (Jordan,
1989: Harvey, 1990).
From the
beginning of the incubation period until internal pipping
has been observed, the eggs are turned several times each
day through 180 degrees, always in alternating direction at
each turning. Once pipping has taken place the egg is no longer
turned, but allowed to rest in a natural resting position.
Once the egg has pipped and is maintained as described above
under hatching conditions, then the emergence of the chick
from the egg normally takes place between 36-48 hours after
the first external pip mark has been recorded.
Once hatched
in the incubator, the chick should be left undisturbed for
up to eight hours so that it can rest and dry after the emergence
process. After this, the chick is moved to a pre-prepared
brooder set at a temperature of 36 degrees Celsius (96.8 degrees
Fahrenheit) for the first five days. Then the temperature
is slowly lowered by about 1 degree Celsius (33.8 degrees
Fahrenheit) every three days. The exact rate is varied according
to the chicks’ reactions. Signs that the chick is uncomfortable
due to the temperature being too high include panting and
a brighter red skin coloration than normal. If the chick is
too cold, it will be lethargic and the skin coloration will
be pale.
I have
successfully hand-raised Moluccan cockatoos on a variety of
different diets. Today I would recommend one of the commercial
hand-rearing diets manufactured either by Pretty Bird or by
Kaytee. I would recommend the very first feed given (about
12 hours after hatching and once the chick is comfortable
with the temperature environment of the brooder) should simply
consist of a hydration solution, such as lactated ringers
solution with some lactobacillus added. If the chick appears
normal then use of the main hand-rearing diet can begin once
the crop has emptied from the hydration formula.
Preparation
of the hand-rearing formula begins with the chick receiving
a proportion of 10 percent solids to 90 percent water during
its first day after hatching. This increased to 12 percent
solids on the second day, 15 percent solids on the third day,
18 percent solids on the fourth day, 20 percent solids on
the fifth day and 23 percent solids on the sixth day. From
day eight onward, the chick should receive food prepared with
a 25 percent solids to 75 percent water ratio for the remainder
of the rearing period. Detailed records of husbandry parameters
used and results achieved have been prepared for publication
(Sweeney, at press).
Some care
does need to be taken to ensure that young Moluccan cockatoos
do not become overweight in the latter part of hand-rearing
(between the period from pin-feathers emerging until the period
of weaning begins). If the chick does appear to be unduly
overweight, as assessed by the amount of fat covering the
chest muscles, then the feeding schedule or amount of fat
in the diet needs to be reassessed. Pretty Bird manufactures
hand-rearing diets that have different levels of fat (15 percent,
12 percent and 8 percent). In the case of an overweight chick
it is recommended that a low-fat diet be used rather than
reducing the frequency of feeding away from recommended guidelines
(Sweeney, at press). The weaning period for hand-raised Moluccan
cockatoos can be particularly long and drawn out, compared
to other species of psittacines. This is partly due to their
larger physical size and also to their increased intelligence
and sensitivity. Whenever possible hand-reared Moluccan cockatoos
approaching the weaning period should be socialized with con-specifics,
ideally two or possibly three birds sharing a large cage.
Single birds will prove more difficult to wean as they will
lack the mental stimulation of social interaction with cage
mates, instead being totally dependant upon their human keeper
for companionship and mental stimulation. It is no surprise
that the Moluccan cockatoo suffers a deeper degree of imprinted
behavior than other species of psittacines that are regularly
hand-reared as intended pet birds.
The pet
appeal of young Moluccan cockatoos is obviously very strong,
but anyone considering bringing such a bird into their lives
should be aware that this is one of the most demanding parrot
species that can be kept within the home. The Moluccan cockatoo
has a beak with enormous strength and a constant need for
items to chew. This means that a pet bird will need human
presence within the house throughout the time it is allowed
to wander outside of its cage. For such a large and active
bird, it would be unfair to see the birds confined to a cage
for too long. So if the potential owner has a household that
does not have somebody present through the middle of the working
day, then perhaps a less demanding choice of species would
be advisable.
References
Harvey
R. (1990) Practical Incubation. Birdworld, Farnham, U.K.Jordan
R. (1989)
Parrot Incubation Procedures. Mattacchione press. Canada.
Sweeney R.G. (at press) The husbandry, breeding and hand-rearing
of the Salmon-crested Cockatoo Cacatua moluccensis at Loro
Parque Foundation, Spain: International Zoo Yearbook, Vol.
37, Zoological Society of London, Regents Park.
Roger
G. Sweeney is the former curator of birds at Loro Parque,
S.A., Tenerife, Canary Islands.
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