The Albuquerque Biological Park created a special nest log for its Guam Kingfishers. These birds require soft, rotten logs in order to excavate a nest so finding the "right" log can be a challenge for zoos (more about this). The "log" the Albuquerque Biological Park created uses cork which the birds can easily excavate. In the below image you can see the cork was installed in the open fronted plywood box. The hole in the upper left is the entrance to the cavity that the birds excavated.
The cork log nests were a huge success with an egg already hatched (and the baby growing up) and a new egg in the nest! The below image is of the baby Guam Kingfisher at 13 days old.
Take a look at our other posts about the Guam Kingfishers at the Albuquerque Biological Park.
Thanks again to Peter Shannon, Curator of Birds at the Albuquerque Biological Park in New Mexico for sharing this information and these images with us.
An adult Guam Kingfisher.