‘Frank’-ly speaking? Cute
Tawny frogmouth bird hatches at Brevard Zoo
Amid the daily churn of gloomy headlines, the Brevard Zoo has some good news to share. It comes in the form of a tiny baby bird, a tawny frogmouth chick named Little Frank.
Weighing in at just 16 grams when it hatched April 21, the bird has been under the watchful care of the zoo’s animal care staff, dining on a combination of meat and cat food every two hours during a 16-hour period each day. The bird’s sex is not yet known.
The chick’s parents are 20-year-old Nathan and eight-year-old Hotdog, who’ve had five offspring at Brevard Zoo.
Though the tawny frogmouth species is commonly associated with owls, this nocturnal bird is more closely associated with nightjars and features bright yellow eyes, a wide beak, long wings and short legs. The bird is native to Australia but faces threats including habitat loss, pesticide use and predators like cats and foxes.
The Brevard Zoo, a notfor-profit organization, receives no recurring public funds and stands to lose one-third of its annual income, according to a press release. The zoo asks community members to consider supporting by visiting brevardzoo.org to donate, purchase a membership or symbolically adopt an animal.