Thai zoo helps endangered red-headed vulture population take off

The chick is an endangered red-headed vulture which hatched in March. It's the first to be bred in Asia and only the second in the world, and Wachiradol and his colleagues are doing everything possible to ensure it thrives.

This includes Wachiradol interacting with the fledgling in disguise. Every day at the crack of dawn he pulls on long red gloves, a red balaclava, and a black long-sleeved top to look less human and more like an adult red-headed vulture, before feeding his “child".

It is an unusual sight, but one that he says is necessary. The aim is to prevent the chick becoming over-dependent on humans and give it the best chance of developing its natural instincts.

“Upon opening their eyes for the first time, the birds will initially perceive the objects in front of them as their parents or one of their kind,” the bird's primary caretaker Wachiradol said.

"It's necessary to acquire tools or materials to disguise ourselves as a bird, so they see us as closest to what their parents would look like.”

The red-headed vulture, also known as Asian king vulture, plays a crucial role in the ecosystem as a scavenger. It limits the spread of diseases by helping dispose of animal carcasses. However, its population has plummeted due to hunting and human encroachment on its natural habitat.

Securing the future of the species is no small feat as Wachiradol now lives, eats and sleeps outside the vulture's nursery room in Nakhon Ratchasima Zoo in northern Thailand.

He feeds it four times a day with different types of raw meat like that of rabbit, deer, chicken and rat to simulate its diet in the wild. After feeding, the chick does some sunbathing so it receives warmth and vitamin D it needs for its physical and behavioural development.

“Is there enough nutrition in its food? Or is it receiving too much? At every moment, worries are there,” said Wachiradol.

Despite the challenge, Thailand’s near two decades of efforts to prop up the vulture’s population is starting to reap rewards, as another egg is currently being incubated by its parents in conservation.

Through a camera in the enclosure, researchers are watching and learning how the adults care for their young so they can do the same for future hatchlings. The hope for the conservation team is to create a population large enough to be released into the wild.

“The most crucial measure of our success would be to enhance the ecosystem of the Unesco heritage Huai Kha Khaeng Wildlife Sanctuary, which was once home to the largest flock of Asian king vultures,” said Thanachon Kensingh, director of Nakhon Ratchasima Zoo.

“We would like to see the Asian king vulture soar once again through the skies of Thailand,” said Thanachon.