Breeding program means endangered birds can be released back into the wild.
Breeding program means endangered birds can be released back into the wild.
The Vienna Zoo has created a new 127-square-meter aviary for an extinct species of owls in an effort to bring their population back into control.
Forty-one owls that hatched in the Austrian zoo have already moved into their new home. And the news is that their population is now stable.
Kuehnapfel Jonas, the video journalist at Vienna Zoo, told us the exhibition cost 180,000 Euros ($218,791) and has been funded by entrance fees and donations. The Association of Friends of the Zoo supported the building with 3,000 Euros ($3,646).
“Despite its large size, the aviary is nearly invisible because of the carefully placed girders and the slender net,” said Jonas.
Jonas has been working for the Vienna Zoo since Jan 2018 also known as Schönbrunn Zoo. He has a Bachelor of Philosophy degree in Journalism and Communication Studies from the University of Vienna and a Master of Arts in Journalism and New Media from FHWien of WKW.
He added that the offspring of the owls living in the aviary will eventually be reintroduced into the wild.
“The aviary was perfectly integrated into the forest. Locust trunks were placed between the trees as natural supports for the net. The black net is barely visible, and you have the feeling that you are watching the fascinating owls in the middle of the forest,” said Stephan Hering-Hagenbeck, zoo director, Vienna Zoo.
In 2019, Owl and Birds of Prey Rescue Station, Haringsee, run by Four Paws since 2016, was able to help 1,851 animals. Where possible, all the young owls and birds of prey were raised by foster parents of their species and 90 percent were released back into the wild. The sanctuary is the only care unit in Austria in which young bird foundlings can be raised by foster mothers of the same bird species, in other words, in a natural family group. In this way, the harmful consequences of hand-rearing can be avoided. European pond terrapins, bats, hares, hedgehogs, and other small mammals are also frequent patients at the sanctuary where they are cared for by experts and, when possible, released back into nature.
The Owl and Birds of Prey Rescue Station Haringsee in Vienna, operated by FOUR PAWS since 2016, helps a variety of wild animals in distress, such as birds of prey, hedgehogs, bats, terrapins, and other small mammals.
The team helps with the rehabilitation (including offering first aid) and the release of owls and birds of prey. Animals that can no longer be released into the wild for health reasons find a lifelong home here in an animal-friendly, species-appropriate environment.
(Edited by Ritaban Misra and Vaibhav Vishwanath Pawar)
