STEVENS - PINK-BACKED PELICAN



107



Hatching and immediate aftercare


Following the internal pip (on approximately day 30), the egg is placed in

a hatcher at a temperature of 36.5°C (97.7°F) with high humidity to prevent

the egg from drying out. It is left in the hatcher until the chick has hatched

(at approximately day 32). There it remains for a few hours to acclimatise,

after which it is placed in a brooder at a temperature of 36°C (96.8°F).

Again the humidity is kept high to avoid the chick becoming dehydrated

and developing dry, peeling skin (Wexler,1997).


The chicks are placed in plastic bowls 6in (15cm) in diameter and 4in

(10cm) deep. The bowls are lined with hay and lime tree twigs (lime tree

twigs are also placed on the nesting platforms and are used as nesting

material), cut to appropriate lengths to fit into the bowls (see photo p.l 16).

Each morning the chicks are weighed and placed in freshly made nests. It

is important not to use twigs that are too small, as an inquisitive chick may

try to swallow them, and could perforate its gut. Placing the twigs in the

nesting bowls is important, as in the past there have been problems with

foot deformities.


The twigs seem to encourage the chicks to use their feet and gives them

something to grasp hold of, instead of just scrunching their feet together.

They also provide a sturdy platform on which the chicks can move about, as

opposed to being stuck in one area of the bowl, which can happen if only hay

is used. The chicks are taken out of the bowls only to be fed, at which time

they are placed under a heat lamp to avoid a sudden change of temperature.

As the chicks develop, they need to be moved into larger containers to allow

them to move about and build up their strength. We have found that plastic

washing-up bowls and plastic crates are ideal for this purpose.


The chicks are removed from the brooder after two to five days and placed

under a heat lamp set at a height of approximately 3ft (lm). The chicks are

not placed directly under the lamp, but to one side of it, as the heat given

off by the lamp is very hot and dry. We try to maintain the temperature at

approximately 30°C-33°C (86°F-91.4°F). It is carefully monitored in case

it gets excessively hot or the temperature drops, in which case the placement

of the heat lamp and bowl have to be adjusted accordingly. As the chicks’

down starts to develop, they become less dependent on the heat lamps, which

are then turned on only at night.


Diet and feeding methods


At Longleat we have changed the hand-rearing diet three times since

1998. The seasonal availability of certain items of food was partly the reason

for these changes, but there was also an element of trial and error to find out

which was the best diet to promote growth and prevent health problems.



