Brookfield, Ill. —  On July 31, a helmeted curassow chick hatched at Brookfield Zoo. The species, which is native to the mountain forests of Colombia and Venezuela, is endangered, according to the International Union for Conservation of Nature and Natural Resources. Its population has continued to decline due to hunting and the long-term fragmentation of its habitat.

Although this chick hatched at Brookfield Zoo, its life began across town at Lincoln Park Zoo’s McCormick Bird House. The chick’s parents, which are relatively young at 7 and almost 6 years old, have been successful at constructing nests and producing eggs. However, they haven’t yet successfully incubated and hatched a chick. Currently, there are only 60 individuals that are housed in 18 Association of Zoos and Aquariums-accredited facilities in North America, so every hatchling is important to the overall zoo population and to conservation efforts for the species.

By assisting with egg management, the animal care staff at Lincoln Park Zoo made sure the fertile egg had every opportunity for a successful hatch. Therefore, the egg was removed from its nest and placed into artificial incubation. To monitor the chick, every few days, the fertile egg was weighed and candled, or held up to a light to see its development.

Once the egg hatched, due to the artificial incubation and these first-time parents, the chick would have to be handreared by human caregivers if it remained at Lincoln Park Zoo. The chick would most likely imprint, or become attached, to those caring for it and become reliant on its caretakers. Hand rearing long-lived birds such as curassows can have possible long-term effects on their ability to adapt to life as a bird, including future breeding and rearing offspring. For the chick to learn to be a bird, it was decided to transfer the egg to Brookfield Zoo where it could be placed with two similar-age peafowl for companionship after it hatched.

One of the largest birds found in the forests of South America, the helmeted curassow is about the size of a wild turkey and weighs up to about 8 pounds. It gets its name from the large bluish-gray casque on its forehead, which resembles a helmet. It has dark plumage with a blue-green gloss across its back and a red beak. Although it can fly, the helmeted curassow spends most of its time on the ground searching for food and only flies to trees to nest or roost at night.

Depending on its sex, it may stay at Brookfield Zoo or be transferred to another facility to be paired with a mate as part of the Association of Zoos and Aquariums’ Species Survival Plan (SSP). An SSP is a cooperative population management program for select species in accredited North American zoos and aquariums. Each plan manages the breeding of a species to maintain a healthy and self-sustaining population, which is both genetically diverse and demographically stable.

“We are happy to be able to collaborate with Lincoln Park Zoo and provide a home for the chick. In addition to giving it companionship with two of our peafowl chicks, our adult curassows—both helmeted and wattled—have the potential to be good mentors,” said Cody Hickman, associate director of avian care and conservation for the Chicago Zoological Society, which manages Brookfield Zoo.

The newly hatched helmeted curassow chick has been interacting well with its peafowl mates. They are currently behind the scenes and housed adjacent to Brookfield Zoo’s two adult female helmeted curassows.

“Saving species is a group effort,” said Lincoln Park Zoo Curator of Birds Robert Webster. “We are so grateful to have these trusted relationships across the Association of Zoos and Aquariums, including our neighbors at Brookfield Zoo, to ensure the future of endangered species like this curassow.”