I have asked a few pertinent questions to a few people in the know about
Northern Pintails in captivity and can confidently state the following:
There are no Northern Pintails registered in the collections of Australian
Zoos. This, however, does not include "B" class zoos or private
avilculturalists which aren't included in the register. There is at least
one major avicultural collection near Grafton but they do not have Northern
Pintails (mainly Macaws and other cockatoos and parrots). The advise that I
have received is that it is extremely unlikely that avilculturalists could
be bothered with keeping this species. I assume that this is because ducks
aren't all that popular among avilculturalists and the problems with
bringing stock into the country.
Why then is this bird in apparently fresh breeding plumage? It could well
be that it has been lurking around for some time on a wetland where
birdwatchers don't venture (and there are quite a few of those in the
Clarence).
Pity the bird didn't show up during my time on the Cowans Pond Management
Committee back in the '80's.
David Geering
Birding-Aus is on the Web at
www.shc.melb.catholic.edu.au/home/birding/index.html
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