Abilene Zoo Celebrates Secretary Bird Hatching and 3 Fossas Born

Three Fossa pups were born on June 26th at the Abilene Zoo, while we may know them as "Fossas" they're actually tree-dwelling carnivorous mammals that mainly inhabit the forests of Madagascar and nearby islands. The Fossa is better known as Cryptoprocta Ferox it has a slender body, long tail, and sharp claws. The Fossa is considered a top predator in its ecosystem and plays a crucial role in regulating prey populations.

Fossas are nocturnal creatures, and that's why the Abilene Fossa (as seen below) is often seen napping throughout the day. They typically feed on a variety of mammals, including lemurs. They normally hunt and live alone (unless they're mating). Fossas are threatened by loss of habitation.

The fossa was made hugely famous in the movie "Madagascar" when the fossas tried to attack the zebra, hippo, and giraffe, when out of nowhere the lion comes to their rescue, as seen in the Madagascar video below.

A week prior the Abilene Zoo announced the hatching of a secretary bird chick on Thursday, June 15th. The zoo has welcomed the hatching of many different birds throughout the years. However, I was told that this is the first secretary bird to hatch at the Abilene Zoo in over 30 years. This is really important because of the secretary bird’s recategorization as an endangered species in 2020.

Momma bird Pam is a seven-year-old and Jaggar the daddy bird is nine years old, both came to the Abilene Zoo about four years ago. Interestingly, earlier this year both birds were seen gathering nesting materials. With the average nest being approximately four to six feet in diameter and up to 20 inches deep, they can take up to six months to build.

In early May, Pam laid an egg and both birds started taking turns sitting on and incubating the egg. A few weeks later zoo keepers candled the egg and saw signs of a growing chick. After many weeks of incubation, the new chick hatched and zoo keepers could see Pam and Jagger taking turns feeding and tending to the chick.

Everyone is encouraged to come to see the new hatchling and learn about these amazing snake-stomping birds. The birds' habitation is dense and makes it hard to see the 3-ounce bird. This would be a great time to get a zoo membership and keep up with both new additions to the Abilene Zoo.