Life in captivity impacts Australian birds' wild survival chances

Xinhua
17 Mar 2023, 13:25 GMT+10

CANBERRA, March 17 (Xinhua) -- Life in captivity hinders birds' chances of surviving migratory flights, a new research has found.

In a study published on Friday, researchers from Australian National University (ANU) have shown that changes in wing shape among birds bred in captivity have a significant impact on their survival in the wild.

For the orange-bellied parrot, a critically endangered native species that is the subject of one of the largest breeding programs of any Australian species, captive-bred juveniles with altered wing shapes had a migration survival rate 2.7 times lower than those with an ideal wing.

A previous study published by ANU in November revealed that animals bred in captivity develop physical and behavioral changes.

The new research found direct evidence for the first time that the altered wing shapes of orange-bellied parrots lower migration success.

It also found evidence of altered wing shapes in four other captive bird species.

Dejan Stojanovic, author of the study from the ANU College of Science, said the findings could have widespread implications for breeding programs.

"This is likely only the tip of an iceberg of subtle physical changes to the bodies of captive bred animals that, although easily overlooked, have a big impact after release," he said in a media release.

"We should be aware of this and find ways to mitigate the effects of captivity if we want to give our breeding programs the best chance of supporting wild populations."

This could become especially important as the global extinction crisis forces more species into captive breeding programs, he said.

Watch latest videos

News RELEASES

Publish news of your business, community or sports group, personnel appointments, major event and more by submitting a news release to Australian Herald.

More Information

null in null

International

Section

Native leaders, activists oppose detention site on Florida wetlands

EVERGLADES, Florida: Over the weekend, a diverse coalition of environmental activists, Native American leaders, and residents gathered...

Beijing crowds cheer AI-powered robots over real soccer players

BEIJING, China: China's national soccer team may struggle to stir excitement, but its humanoid robots are drawing cheers — and not...

COVID-19 source still unknown, says WHO panel

]LONDON, U.K.: A World Health Organization (WHO) expert group investigating the origins of the COVID-19 pandemic released its final...

Fox faces $787 million lawsuit from Newsom over Trump phone call

DOVER, Delaware: California Governor Gavin Newsom has taken legal aim at Fox News, accusing the network of deliberately distorting...

DeepSeek faces app store ban in Germany over data transfer fears

FRANKFURT, Germany: Germany has become the latest country to challenge Chinese AI firm DeepSeek over its data practices, as pressure...

Canadian option offered to Harvard graduates facing US visa issues

TORONTO, Canada: Harvard University and the University of Toronto have created a backup plan to ensure Harvard graduate students continue...

Sydney

Section