Abstract
The Red Siskin ( Carduelis cucullatus) is an endangered finch from Venezuela. Its vermillion red and jet black coloration is the primary reason for its appeal and subsequent demise in the wild. This colorful finch has been commonly kept by local peoples for many years, in addition to being captured for export to Europe and the U.S. for cross breeding with the common canary to produce brighter colors in canaries.
In 1985 the Venezuelan Audubon Society's Conservation Committee sent a plea to the AFA for help in saving the Red Siskin. Since the late eighties, an AFA breeding consortium run solely by dedicated aviculturists, has worked to help save this endangered species. In order to be accepted into the AFA Red Siskin Project one must have previously worked successfully with some of the difficult to breed finches.
The participants in the AFA RSP come from a variety of professions: they include scientists, a physicist, certified public accountants, psychologists, and many others all of whom are dedicated aviculturists.
The project participants cover the costs of cages, food, disinfectants, electricity and all other expenses, with the exception only of necropsies and shipping fees, which are reimbursed by the project. At eight to nine days of age all siskin chicks are closed banded. The project breeders are meticulous about the timing of this procedure because birds at an older age have feet too large to be pulled through the metal band. Bands are inscribed with the identity of each RSP participant, the year of hatch and the individual bird's number. Complete records of all consortium birds, including unusual characteristics, are reported on an annual basis to Dr. Orland Baker, the RSP Studbook Keeper.
In the past, much hybridizing of the Red Siskin has occurred through pairing with other siskin species and with canaries. The AFA RSP holds the goal for the future of performing isoenzyme analyses on the siskins in the project.
With DNA "fingerprinting," we would hope to determine whether or not there are any hybrids in the consortium birds and remove them from the program. At present the RSP uses the S.P.A.R.K.S. (Small Population Analysis and Record-keeping Systems), which is a proven computerized program used to determine inbreeding coefficients, and which helps us to properly manage the siskin program to maintain the best possible genetic diversity within the captive population.
Chuck Seigel, AFA RSP Director and also Curator of Birds at the Dallas Zoo, in Texas, encourages keeping Red Siskins separate from other birds in order to avoid possible disease transmission. The AFA RSP project participants feel that two years of quarantine helps to prevent isolated problems from reaching our other birds or the siskins. Although a few birds have been donated by breeders from around the U.S., most siskins in the project were raised by participants at project facilities.
AFA RSP participants are highly motivated. It is rewarding to work with...