'Eggs-Traordinary' Feat Will Be Hatched At Kl Bird Park Via Yellow-Billed Stork

By Suhaila Said KUALA LUMPUR, Aug 10 (Bernama) -- An 'eggs-traordinary' feat will be hatched at the Kuala Lumpur Bird park located near Taman Tasik Perdana between August and September. To those having a fascination for ornithology or passion for bird watching, the world's largest free-fly cage is a 'must-visit' destination during the two months. For, the two months make up the annual breeding season for a large wading bird known as the Yellow-billed Stork. What is truly extraordinary about this bird is that since the species was brought into the park in 1991, it had only laid between one and three eggs! Kuala Lumpur Bird Park marketing and promotions executive Taufik Mohd Sharif said the species had only laid between one and three eggs over the past 24 years. "Currently, the male species has begun building nests from twigs to attract the females before mating. Visitors will have the opportunity to see for themselves how a breeding process takes place," he told Bernama. Taufik said Yellow-billed Stork was a large bird in the stork family, Ciconiidae, averaging between 90 and 105cm in height. He said it would take about 30 days for a Yellow-billed Stork egg to mature and hatch. Meanwhile, Taufik said a larger and fully equipped educational centre for students was being built at the bird park and was expected to be completed by year-end. The park also hosts more than 3,000 birds from about 200 species. Tickets to visit the park are priced at RM27 (US$6.87)for adults, RM13 for children and RM50 for foreigners (adults). (RM1 = US$3.92) The tickets are priced at RM41 for children of foreigners. -- BERNAMA