Sometimes the main task for biologists is getting rare animals to have sex. Joyously, a pair of red-crested turacos, Skittles and Scarlet, have not only been getting it on at the California Academy of Sciences, they’ve just hatched a chick — the first of the species to be born at the museum’s Osher Rainforest.
So move over, wild parrots. And who needs those pandas, anyway? San Francisco has a perfectly delightful mascot right here.
Red-crested turacos are found only in a few tropical and subtropical forests in Angola, where they’re the national bird. The academy’s indoor rainforest habitat mimics their preferred conditions, making it one of the few places outside sub-Saharan Africa where they can thrive.
Even though the as-yet-unnamed female hatchling is just a few months old, you can already spot her dark, fuzzy feathers when you visit. That muted juvenile fluff will soon give way to the dazzling, iridescent-green plumage of adult turacos, but for now she may give off a bit of an ugly-duckling vibe. “She looks like a vulture,” said Brenda Melton, the academy’s director of animal care and welfare. “Well, she’s adorable because I love vultures very much, but she does not yet look like her parents.”
While the academy has sometimes enlisted the public’s help in naming its animals — as with penguin chicks Nori and Bert — that’s probably not happening this time. “It’s likely that biologists will decide on a name,” said museum spokesperson Jeanette Peach.
Still, the hatchling and her proud parents present an easy viewing opportunity for anyone headed over to see the camels, reindeer, and yaks that populate the academy during the holidays — along with Claude, the resident albino alligator.
Red-crested turacos grow to be about 18 inches in length, making them among the largest birds in the academy’s care. With their bright coloration and charismatic habits, they’re easy to discern. “They don’t mind being in close proximity to humans,” Melton said. “They’re not shy. They go about their business, and they’re very fun to watch. And now we have this chick moving around.”
These gregarious creatures have distinct vocalizations, which defy easy mimicry by Homo sapiens. “Do not ask me to do it,” Melton pleaded, “because I can’t.”
The first bird species native to Africa that the academy has acquired, red-crested turacos are ideal for the Osher Rainforest because they eat bananas and other fruit — as opposed to devouring the butterflies and smaller bird species that also call the habitat home. While the turacos aren’t endangered, habitat destruction could take out the species, which explains the birds’ selection for the academy’s breeding program. And they’re flourishing. “There’s some combination of the components that we have in this rainforest that make the birds very happy,” Melton said. “If I had to guess, I would say the lighting.”
Only 20 or so avian institutions worldwide have red-crested turacos, and the birds have not successfully bred at all of them, making the academy’s announcement significant from a conservation perspective. “We brought these birds into our collection with the intention of breeding them, and they were very successful, very quickly,” said Melton.
Scarlet and Skittles are already nesting again, she added. Clearly, the lighting is setting the right mood.