A passionate volunteer at Healesville Sanctuary has 3D printed fake swan eggs for Melbourne Zoo's courting pair of male rescued swans, so they can experience the first stages of fatherhood.
The announcement was made on Zoos Victoria’s Facebook page, as Melbourne Zoo’s resident birdkeeper Ben explained the prevalence of male courting among swans and how the couple could benefit from experiencing the nurturing stages of raising eggs, despite their fake nature.
The video explained that its swan pair, Billy and Elliot, had both been rescued after dog attacks and now lived at Melbourne Zoo, as they can’t be returned to the wild. In spring, the swans began courting each other.
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“This is something we do see in male swans,” Ben said. “Two boys can pair up. This got the bird team thinking about ways that we could provide an opportunity to have reproductive behaviour as part of their behavioural repertoire.
“As well as the courtship behaviours, Billy and Elliot had also constructed a wonderful nest on the edge of their billabong and we wanted to provide them some eggs.”
Healesville volunteer Guy explained that making replica swan eggs is beneficial for the swans.
“I’ve been 3D printing eggs for all the Zoos Victoria properties,” he said. “Eggs aren’t necessarily about just making babies, they’re actually part of the behaviours inbuilt in these birds.
“They were honking away and telling us to get away. So it was, I think, a really important part of their behaviour. They’ve gone ‘Hey, how did that girl get those eggs in there without us knowing?'”
“Billy and Elliot were very curious about the eggs,” Ben concluded, “but they didn’t sit on them this year, so that’s something for us to work on.”
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