JEFFERSON COUNTY, Fla. (WCTV) – A rare pair of crane chicks just hatched at the North Florida Wildlife Center near Monticello.
“Sarus cranes are the tallest flying birds in the world, they’re also fairly rare,” Executive Director Ryan Reines said. “Unfortunately across a lot of their range they are an endangered species.”
The chicks are about two weeks old now and were hatched by a “foster hen.”
This foster hen was brought in to hatch two rare Sarus Crane eggs.(WCTV)
They were removed from their nest and brought here – as eggs – after their own mother refused to sit on them.
So the North Florida Wildlife Center asked a neighbor to lend them a doting hen to brood and nurture them until they’re big enough to fend for themselves.
“It’s a rarely used, but very successful and proven method,” Reines said. “Of course that only works for certain species, particularly ground birds like cranes.”
The rare Sarus Crane chicks are now two weeks old.(WCTV)
The two new chicks will eventually join Tara, a one year old Sarus crane here that’s already five feet tall.
Tara – a one year old Sarus Crane – is now five feet tall.(WCTV)
She was also hatched by a foster hen, who still keeps a close eye on her.
“All of them were raised very successfully by a foster hen, a local North Florida chicken,” Reines said with a smile.
This one year old Sarus Crane was also hatched by a foster hen.(WCTV)
Reines says the North Florida Wildlife Center is working to create brand new habitats for its cranes and storks and hopes to unveil them by the end of the year or early next spring.
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