Mar 5, 2001, Ooi Chin Hock of the Malaysian Nature Society contacted me.(Update: Have conveyed to Ooi the possibility of MNS taking over the sanctuary project.)
Mar 5, 2001, I am still waiting for Dr. Amin of UPM to contact me as he is doing a lot of conservation work and releasing RJFs back into the jungles of Malaysia. (Update: Dr. Amin looking at the photos on my website speculated that the pair may be what he termed "high-cross" RJF. He based this conclusion on the color of the legs as appeared on the website. He said the color should be slaty blue, not black.)
Mar 10,01. The pair is sick. Keeps to themselves, shuts eyes in bright sunlight. Likes to sit a lot. Not usual self. Am starting herbal medication tonight, and broadspectrum antibiotic today.
My farm manager found 4 eggs in the jungle. Two have about 16days old embryo. Found at 10pm last night. Put into my incubator at 1pm today, 15 hours later. Hopefully can survive. Airsac shows about -18% weight loss, higher than as per books. Maybe books should be re-written.
Mar 11,01. Mr Ludo Pinceel of the European Jungle Fowl Group send me instructions on how to take DNA samples for him to test on the genetic purity of this bird.
One of the eggs hatched. Looks exactly like the "normal" type RJF, one of which hatched on the same day. Maybe not the same as the "pure" one.
Mar 22,01. The female "pure" died last week due to mishandling by my inexperienced staff when he attempted to medicate her. Most probably died of stress. I wish I have more experienced people to help. I am waiting for ethanol to be delivered to me to preserve the tissue samples I will be sending to Mr. Ludo Pinceel.
The single chick that hatched is beginning to behave like a "pure". He freezes and presses himself to the ground when I approach and is extremely wary and flightly. I am only succeeding in keeping him calm by mixing him with some ducklings that are calm and always hungry for food from my hand. He is learning from the ducklings to accept food from my hand.
April 16, 01. I have discovered that mixing Golden Pheasants with the wild junglefowls seems to calm the junglefowls down. This may aid in their survival in captivity.
May 5, 01. My farm hands found 4 chicks without the hen. The hen may have been taken by a predator. I doubt the chicks will survive based on pass experiences. If hatched in the wild, they seem not to have developed immunity to common poultry diseases, and they seem to be under stress all the time which may likely weaken their immune system further.
Sept 8, 01. I now have my original male, a younger female and four juveniles. I am pleased with their progress. The presence of Golden Pheasants in the reban has a calming effect on them and they are less flighty though they will still take off in a fright if we make sudden movements. I have never heard the male crow and I have asked my workers and they too have not heard the male crow. I wonder whether researchers in other countries have noted this perculiarity.
Sept 30, 01 I was mistaken, it does crow a single crow at 3am and another single crow at 5am. The female makes no sound both before and after laying, and if caught, both male and female make no sound absol