FEATURE
Watch the Birdies
Video: Monica Vega, Research Communications; Red Macaw: chuvipro / iStock.com; Monk Parrot: Helena Rodriguez, Research Communications
Feature photo; Monica Vega, Research Communications; Red Macaw: chuvipro / iStock.com; Monk Parrot: Helena Rodriguez, Research Communications
Photos: Monica Vega and Helena Rodriguez, Research Communications; Red Macaw: chuvipro / iStock.com
Hundreds of birds live inside the Avian Health Complex managed by the Schubot Center for Avian Health on Texas A&M University’s West Campus. Veterinarians, scientists and students study these macaws, monk parrots, cockatiels and other species to learn more about the health of individuals and populations in relation to their environments.
“The Schubot Center has more than 70 members across campus all with an interest in advancing avian health through research. Our members are active both inside the aviary and outdoors, where we study birds in their natural habitats,” says Sarah A. Hamer, holder of the Richard Schubot Endowed Chair, School of Veterinary Medicine & Biomedical Sciences, and director of the Schubot Center for Avian Health since 2018. “The aviary allows us to study bird health in a controlled setting and allows us to answer questions that would be hard to do with pet birds in a clinic or wild birds in nature.”
The complex also creates training opportunities for veterinary students and undergraduates to gain experience handling birds, performing physical exams and taking blood samples.
Photo: College of Veterinary Medicine & Biomedical Sciences
Associate Professor Sarah Hamer with Togo, her 17-year-old African Grey parrot
Video: Monica Vega, Research Communications
We offer a class every semester that educates our students in the principles of animal behavior and positive reinforcement training,” Hamer says. “The students can then put those practices into play inside the aviary, learning from how the birds respond and how their behaviors can be modified.”
The $3.2 million aviary opened in 2014.
Eight to ten A&M students serve as avian caretakers each semester under the supervision of Senior Research Scientist Debra D. Turner, who manages the aviary.
These undergraduates come from a range of academic disciplines, including animal science, wildlife and fisheries and biomedical sciences. “The student caretakers are our first line of eyes and ears to detect changes in the health and behavior of birds while they are providing food, water and enrichment,” Hamer says.
Texas A&M University student caretakers gain experience handling the birds at the aviary.
Texas A&M University student caretakers gain experience handling the birds at the aviary.
Video: Monica Vega and Helena Rodriguez, Research Communications, Photo: Rachasie / Shutterstock.com
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