Yesterday I was so lucky to visit a privat, none-public bird-collection in Belgium and because of the size and the ( very ) rare species kept here I want to make a little report of it. Because of privicy and security reasons I will not mention the name and the place where this collecion is but its really amazing - I will upload photos in the Belgium - other section of the Gallery. At least 4 different species of Tinamous are kept in the collection and from at least 2 species at least 15 - 20 animals each are kept ! Another speciality of the collection are doves and pigeons : at least 3 species of Imperial pigeons at least 6 species of fruit pigeons ( Ptilinopus ) at least 3 species of green pigeons ( Treron - still have to find out the exact species ) all 3 Crowned pigeon-species, Nicobar pigeon, Pheasant pigeon, some ground doves Also the Touracos were represented very well with at least 7 species. Next to this also a long row with parrot-aviaries ( macaws, amazons, cockatoos ), cranes ( 2 species seen ), snbittern, sandgrouse, pheasants, tawny frogmouths ( 2 specimens being hand-rared during the visit ), quails, honey-eater, starlings and ....... penguins ( first time I saw penguins in a private collection ). From many species I said "at least" x species because a number of the indoor enclosures were closed or the birds were inside and could not be seen from the outside so maybe even more species are kept. Most aviaries are also quite well planted and it was possible for the birds to hide in the vegitation. In the Tropical Hall ( yes this place has its own tropical hall ! ) the birds also had many hidding places whch made photograping not always easy but the birds were doing all very well and really looked healthy. Hope to visit this place again in the future because its really worth it !
I assume it would be inappropriate for safety or confidentiality reasons for you to post a species list?
Does the place have a zoo license, or is the legislation of private bird-keeping just not very strict in Belgium? I know for one that here in Denmark, you're not allowed to keep penguins (as well as herons, egrets, storks, cranes, cassowaries, flamingos, screamers, curassows, and a few others) in private hands.
You got a point, it is pretty strict here. (though even more so with mammals). That being said, penguins wouldn't be easy to keep for a novice, would they? They require a bit more than just building an aviary with a few branches and a nestbox. I think banning curassows and screamers may be a bit strict, but I can get behind banning penguins because only a few people would have the money, ressources and materials to build a sufficient penguin enclosure.
It doesn't sound like this person's a novice from the extent of their collection. I'm not sure (one way or another) whether penguins are any more difficult to keep than many other birds (or mammals, for instance even controlling the mob dynamics of meerkats isn't straightforward) but building a good enclosure might be a financial hurdle for many. That said I've seen penguins doing quite while in a number of poor (zoo) enclosures over the years. Basically, I disagree with the banning of the keeping any specific species provided it's needs can be met. If the person can build an enclosure, knows what they're doing and can look after the bird's (at least) as good as a zoo I have no problem with the situation.
It's not like I disagree (and no, of course this private bird collector's an experienced guy), but from a bureaucratical point of view, it would just be easier to say "most private persons wouldn't be able to house this animal in an acceptable way, and we don't have time to approve those who are able to, so let's just ban it altogether". I think that's way they are banned in countries like Denmark.
I understand what you're saying but I'm largely a libertarian in these matters who hopes governments try to leave individuals to do what they want (providing they do it well and it doesn't impact negatively on others -I have no problem with legislation providing guidelines, just the outright banning of things). The approach you mention (unfortunately taken by some governments) is potentially the thin end of a wedge -a logical extension would be, say, to ban alcohol because it's easier/cheaper than trying to police/catch people who may "drink drive". Besides, governments like bureaucracy -it keeps them employed.
Although I really don't know what I'm talking about here, I quite like the situation in the UK, as I understand it based on discussions on this site. I think most people would be very surprised to find out that you can keep big cats in private hands in the UK, it's just that the conditions needed to qualify for a license are so severe that almost no-one does. This seems like a very reasonable approach to me. I'm sure someone will now make it very clear that they disagree
That is actually the most sensible approach FunkyGibbon, but who decide for each species what are adequate conditions. Who has the knowledge and capacity to set up the guidelines for each single species? Even in penguins you have difficult degrees of needs. And keeping them is not that easy, beyond the enclosure needs and expensive food, there are some specific health issues that you need to address. I could imagine putting some restrictions on cassowaries as well as they are a species that can be dangerous and ideally you do not take care of as a single person.
