Taipei Fine Arts Museum

A few days ago someone found a semi-mature African Sacred Ibis in the middle of a field in Taoyuan, aka the “Taoyuan Tian Zhong” (a name literally means “at the middle of a field in Taoyuan”). Because the ibis was in such weak physical condition, the Taoyuan City Government transferred it to the Taipei Zoo to begin medical treatment. Although there weren’t any visible wounds or injuries externally, the ibis was unable to stand on its own when it first arrived, having a portion of its middle toe missing on the right foot. The staff members at the Rescue Center forced fed nutritional supplements to Taoyuan Tian Zhong in addition to given it fish to eat.

With all the attentive care, Taoyuan Tian Zhong finally started to eat on its own after three days. It managed to surprise the keepers however, by first scraping off the fish scales, then removing the fish fins. It would feed only after the fish has been thoroughly cleaned. Today, Taoyuan Tian Zhong is in excellent spirits and has a good appetite. But because it is not an indigenous species, hence it won’t be released back into the wild.

The African Sacred Ibis is not a migratory bird species to Taiwan in winter, nor is it a resident bird. It came here originally as an escapee from captivity, and it then adapted well to the environment in Taiwan, managed to reproduce, and began a colony.