Husbandry protocols for the Band-tailed Pigeon

What is it about?

We describe the husbandry protocols involved in the captive rearing of the Band-tailed Pigeon (BTPI), Patagioenas fascinate albilinea, for use as a tool in the future management of like extant and extinct avian taxa. Here we report on the establishment of a colony of BTPIs, at the Wildlife Conservation Society (WCS), and detail the progress attained. A confiscated group of BTPIs was presented to WCS and allowed us to set up the colony, document the husbandry involved, and monitor neonatal development and the factors that influence that development. The information has provided a better understanding of the BTPI and has implications for the future conservation management of this and like species.

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Why is it important?

Successful establishment of the colony of BTPIs has provided a foundation for the conservation management of this and other pigeon taxa in the future. The captive management of BTPIs is one of the several precursors to the development of the program to conserve extant populations of these birds, but also for developing advance reproductive and genome editing technologies for species to enable a growing array of genetic rescue opportunities, such as germ-line preservation, facilitated adaptation, and even de-extinction. This work highlights the contributions the zoo communities can provide in the development of future management protocols for programs such as de-extinction.