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PROGRAMS Mother from
Another Feather

On a recent trip to the zoo, you may have FROM TOP TO BOTTOM: PEAHEN AND
noticed several gray birds shuffling around near one of our GUINEA FOWL CHICKS,GUINEA FOWL EGGS,
resident peahens (the name for female peacocks). AND HUMBOLDT PENGUINS

They may have seemed like an odd pair—and usually, they BROOKFIELD ZOO | FALL 2018 11
would be. However, the peafowl and guinea fowl at Brookfield
Zoo have a special relationship: some of the guinea fowl were
raised by the peafowl.

This foster program has been going on for nearly a decade.
On years that the peafowl population is doing particularly well,
animal care staff will take guinea fowl eggs and place them in
the peahens’ nests. This allows the peahens to raise chicks, while
keeping the peafowl population managed—and provides the
guinea fowl chicks with a bit of extra guidance.

“We were losing a lot of guinea fowl eggs to predation, and
the peahens are more ‘street-savvy,’ so the guinea fowl chicks
have been able to learn a lot from them,” said Tim Snyder,
curator of birds. This is just one example of fostering that is
happening at Brookfield Zoo.

“With birds, this is something that’s really easy to do, because
we’re able to move the eggs before the chicks hatch,” Snyder
said. “Sometimes we have birds that we just know are really good
parents, but their genes are already well-represented within zoos.
When we allow them to foster chicks from under-represented
pairs, they’re able to act as parents while helping increase
genetic diversity.”

The fostering program also allows birds who have laid eggs
several years in a row to have a season “off”—they’ll still have the
chance to raise chicks, but their bodies are able to return to their
natural cycles. Fostering is done fairly often with Inca terns here at
Brookfield Zoo, and this year, two of our Humboldt penguin chicks
are being raised by foster parents.

Humboldt penguins often lay two eggs, but in the wild, they
usually only raise one. By moving one of the eggs to a different
penguin, both eggs have a good chance of hatching and both
offspring have the chance to receive the level of parental care
necessary to thrive. Both of this year’s fostered penguin chicks
come from pairs that are under-represented genetically in zoos,
and are being raised by seasoned parents who got the year off
from laying eggs.

“It really is a win-win situation for everyone involved,” Snyder said.
“The parents are happy, the chicks are happy, and we’re increasing
genetic diversity within institutions. It’s a great program.”