Rare Secretary Bird Chick Rescued at Longleat Safari Park

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With fewer than 10,000 secretary birds left in the wild, this rare chick represents hope for a species facing rapid decline across Africa.

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The chick required human intervention after parents Janine and Kevin experienced difficulties with their eggs breaking or vanishing during incubation.

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"When first hatched, the chick needed five to six feeds per day," explains Matt Hardy, Lead Keeper of Lakes and Birds at Longleat.

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This marks only the second successful breeding for Janine and Kevin since arriving at Longleat in 2018, joining just eight chicks hatched worldwide in the past year.

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Secretary birds were upgraded from "Vulnerable" to "Endangered" in 2020 as their population plummeted across sub-Saharan Africa due to habitat destruction.

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These distinctive birds, known for their snake-hunting prowess, can stamp on prey with force six times their body weight in just 15 milliseconds.

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Agricultural expansion, overgrazing, and climate change have devastated the open grasslands these birds need to hunt and nest successfully.

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Beyond habitat loss, secretary birds face threats from power line collisions, pesticide poisoning, and direct hunting – challenges conservation breeding programs aim to offset.

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Longleat's success story represents a crucial step in global conservation efforts to preserve this iconic African species for future generations.

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[{"selector":"#anim-594bcc26-5dc8-4ff4-b581-b0429a8c5dfe","keyframes":{"opacity":[0,1]},"delay":200,"duration":3000,"easing":"cubic-bezier(0.4, 0.4, 0.0, 1)","fill":"both"}] [{"selector":"#anim-9a6c4c8d-5b32-4453-970a-0c24891fcb75","keyframes":{"opacity":[0,1]},"delay":200,"duration":3000,"easing":"cubic-bezier(0.2, 0.6, 0.0, 1)","fill":"both"}] [{"selector":"#anim-9a012808-a01b-479a-ac10-b183c3773efb","keyframes":{"transform":["translate3d(-114.50152%, 0px, 0)","translate3d(0px, 0px, 0)"]},"delay":200,"duration":3000,"easing":"cubic-bezier(0.2, 0.6, 0.0, 1)","fill":"both"}] [{"selector":"#anim-57c0c51f-53fc-41c1-807d-ddcf1d396534","keyframes":{"opacity":[0,1]},"delay":700,"duration":3000,"easing":"cubic-bezier(0.2, 0.6, 0.0, 1)","fill":"both"}] [{"selector":"#anim-9753fd42-0f29-4ffd-ac88-94bdde5c6f0c","keyframes":{"transform":["translate3d(115.2381%, 0px, 0)","translate3d(0px, 0px, 0)"]},"delay":700,"duration":3000,"easing":"cubic-bezier(0.2, 0.6, 0.0, 1)","fill":"both"}] Rare King Vulture Raised by Puppet at Bronx Zoo After 30-Year Gap Learn more