Wattled Crane Hatch at WOCC

YULEE, Fla. – A wattled crane chick recently hatched at White Oak Conservation Center and is being raised by its parents.  The egg hatched in a nest under the parents after a 34 day incubation period, which included temporary placement of the egg in an artificial incubation environment to protect the embryo and insure safe hatching. The chick’s progress is being monitored closely by avian specialists and veterinarians.

This hatching is significant because it is the first chick for the parents.  The hatching is part of a cooperative scientific breeding program between the Association of Zoos and Aquariums (AZA) Crane Species Survival Plan (SSP) and Conservation Center for Species Survival (C2S2) to help save this and other endangered crane species.  White Oak Conservation Center is a member of C2S2 and collaborates with the Crane SSP and partners at the Smithsonian Conservation Biology Institute, Fossil Rim Wildlife Center, San Diego Zoo Safari Park and the Wilds. 

The wattled crane is so named because of the fleshy appendages which hang near the base of the lower beak.  The wild population of wattled crane inhabits upland wetlands in the Horn of Africa and in southern Africa, and is considered endangered by the IUCN and the US Fish and Wildlife Service. Due to physical similarities at this early age the chick’s gender is currently unknown but will be determined later through blood sample genetic analysis techniques.    

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