A beloved Halifax mascot has lastly made a pal and his well being appears to be bettering, based on the Ontario nature park the place he’s rehabilitating.
For 20 years, Merlin the Rainbow Macaw greeted guests on the Maritime Museum of the Atlantic till he needed to retire as a result of declining well being.
Throughout COVID, Merlin had fewer interactions together with his human buddies. He plucked his personal feathers, a behaviour some birds exhibit when beneath stress.
His caregivers determined to seek out Merlin a brand new residence final spring so he may get well. Maybe he may make new flying buddies and study to be a hen after being surrounded by people his total life.
Taryn Hipkiss, the overall supervisor at Safari Niagara, stated Merlin’s feathers have regrown and he now shares a staff-only enclosure with Kiki, a feminine blue and gold macaw.
“We really feel that Merlin is making some good progress,” she stated, noting he is likely to be in an out of doors show open to the general public this summer season if his progress continues.
Merlin the Macaw has been greeting guests on the Halifax museum for nearly 20 years. However employees on the museum say his well being is declining, regardless of his relative youth. Merlin will quickly transfer to a zoo in Ontario so he might be round different unique birds and perhaps even study to fly.
Issues over mobility, weight loss plan, hygiene
When Merlin arrived, Hipkiss stated there have been issues about his mobility as he would hesitate to depart his perch.
Whereas Merlin cannot fly but, Hipkiss stated his caregivers made a plan to make him stroll round his enclosure as a lot as attainable.
“His and Kiki’s meals is strategically positioned so that he’s inspired to journey with locomotion,” she stated.
The employees additionally needed to diversify Merlin’s weight loss plan and encourage him to wash himself.
“We have additionally launched straightforward foraging choices to assist him [be] excited by exploring his total area,” she stated. “So that is to show him and encourage foraging and unbiased pure parrot behaviour.
“[Bathing was] one thing that Merlin was very hesitant for and confirmed no real interest in to start with.”
Making a pal
Hipkiss stated the crew at Safari Niagara has additionally paid consideration to Merlin’s social life.
Parrots are very social birds that may grow to be depressed if they’re stored alone, she stated.
This meant that Merlin needed to recover from his social awkwardness as a part of his restoration.
Hipkiss stated Merlin averted Kiki originally as a result of he had spent his life round people.
“They had been simply sharing the enclosure however weren’t actually having a lot interplay with one another,” she stated.
“Kiki would come over and type of examine him and he would permit that, however he wouldn’t method her.”
Zookeepers inspired Merlin to work together with Kiki by making them share meals and water.
In addition they positioned a flock of six macaws in an enclosure throughout from Merlin so he may observe different birds interacting, stated Hipkiss.
This appears to have improved his social abilities, as Merlin now regularly interacts with Kiki.
“They get alongside very properly,” she stated.
‘Prime instance’ of restoration
Hipkiss stated Merlin’s progress makes him “a main instance” of hen rehabilitation on the zoo.
She added that macaws often reside till their 80s, which implies Merlin, who’s in his 20s, has a few years forward of him to adapt to his new life.
“He is been making his transition,” she stated. “He’s doing very, very properly. We do take all of our cues from Merlin, so Merlin principally decides how briskly or gradual his progress [is].”
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