11 Sept 2010
The Prague zoo Saturday opened a new exposition, Swamps, with shoebills on display, a rare bird species whose home habitat are the swamps of central Africa.
Only some 40 shoebills live in zoos all over the world. They are extremely difficult to breed in captivity. To an extent, they are as rare exhibits as the giant panda, for example, Prague zoo director Miroslav Bobek told reporters.
The zoo has kept two pairs of shoebills for several years now but they have not been displayed for visitors. This is what experts reproached to the zoo's previous director Petr Fejk.
The new exposition will present one of the pairs, a male and a female, both coming from Tanzania.
Bobek described them as maybe the most beautiful and most bizarre birds in the world. They are blue-grayish, 120 cm tall and with the wingspan of 120 cm. Their enormous bill reminds of a whale head or a boat.
The shoebill population in the wild is estimated at 8,000.
"They hunt for fish but also water snakes and small crocodiles. ...If a man goes missing in the swamp, the blame is put on the shoebill," Bobek said, referring to African legends.
Due to the birds' sensitivity, world zoos failed to breed them until recently. The first successful attempt was in Belgium in 2008, when the keepers raised two young artificially.
Prague's two pairs are a rarity in the former Soviet bloc countries. The pair on display shares the new pavilion with other bird inhabitants of swamps, representing Europe, Africa, America and Australia. For the first time, the Prague zoo visitors can see the Hamerkop, the Wattled Crane and the White-Headed Lapwing.
