Recent News

Sea Turtle Nest Found On Beach, 15 Hatchings
Monday, August 17, 2015

The beach at Alexandra Battery in St. George’s is currently closed to public use as a turtle nest was discovered yesterday on the beach, and 15 hatchlings have been found.


Debris Thrown In Ocean Harming Sea Turtles
Monday, August 17, 2015

Residents are being urged not to throw debris into the ocean after another sea turtle was found dead recently.


THE CLASSROOM COMES TO LIFE FOR JAYSUN PAYNTER
Monday, August 17, 2015

What started out as an ordinary summer Sunday morning has turned into the anticipation of an exciting event for one nine-year-old St. George’s boy. Jaysun Paynter, who lives across the street from the Alexandra Batteray beach, tells Today in Bermuda that yesterday started out like every other weekend at home with his parents and siblings


Bringing Bermuda’s legends to life
Thursday, August 06, 2015

Bermuda’s myths and legends are being brought vividly to life thanks to a creative collaboration by Rockfire Productions.


28 Teams Take Part In BZS Reef Watch Event
Thursday, July 23, 2015

Although the weather may not have fully cooperated on Saturday, June 27th, the Bermuda Zoological Society’s annual REEF Watch citizen science initiative, sponsored by Hiscox, has proven to be another successful year.



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Latest News

All the latest updates and news from the Bermuda Aquarium, Museum, and Zoo, one of Bermuda's leading visitor attractions!

Breeding Success! Tawny Frogmouth Chicks
Bermuda Zoological Society
Wednesday, July 01, 2015

By Sara Westhead

There has been a lot of excitement in the Zoo over the past few months with the birth of three Tawny Frogmouth chicks.

The threesome are the offspring of Kermit and Duane, who have resided in the Australasia exhibit for the last one and a half years, having arrived in October, 2013.

Natives of Australia and Tasmania, Tawny Frogmouths are most closely related to oilbirds and nightjars. They are carnivorous, dieting mostly on nocturnal insects, as well as small mammals, reptiles and amphibians. They do much of their hunting at dusk.

In the wild, they typically breed from August to December, however, because Bermuda is located in a different hemisphere, this has been reversed to January through May. They typically form partnerships for life and will take turns incubating eggs on the nest, rarely leaving the nest unattended.

BZS_150707_9a.jpg
The first two chicks hatched from BAMZ residents
Kermit and Duane.
 Photos by S. Westhead

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What makes these chicks particularly special is that Kermit, our male, has not previously been genetically represented in the tawny frogmouth population. His offspring are important as they will contribute to genetic diversity within the population that are in human care.

Also significant is the fact that Kermit is 18 years of age. In the wild, Tawny’s will usually live between 10 to 14 years, and in human care, there are only eight recorded males that have reproduced after the age of 17 years.

The oldest two chicks were born on March 21st, 2015 and March 28th, 2015, and are already on display in the Australasia exhibit, however they have been placed in an enclosure for their protection. The third chick was born on May 5th, 2015, and will hopefully be big enough to join its siblings in the near future.

The tawnies are a part of a Species Survival Protection breeding programme and the manager of that programme will recommend where the new chicks should be placed, in order to best maintain the breeding population. Those recommendations are generally issued annually, so for the next few months, they will still be calling BAMZ home.