Update on DDS265, "Samsom"

There are 4 posts that I have in mind to do and for which I already have the videos, photographs and materials.  These are:

1.  My impressions of the Samyong after keeping 2 males for 16 months with suggestions on how to care for it.

2.  Method to polygamously breed the white-rumped shama.

3.  Breeding Wax Worms

4.  A series of video grabs showing in pictures the attitude of an aggressive male shama in display. Below is a photo from the collection:

Please note that the above articles presently exist only in my mind and may be published in due course or not at all.

Meanwhile here is an update video on the molt of DDS265 in the 8 days since October 16.  Jeffrey says that the sheaths of the 2 primary feathers are still present and the feathers are still growing. I will post a further update when the molt is completed.



Somchai, who owns Samsom had also acquired Samsom's sister from Jeffrey. Here she is after the first molt under Jeffrey's care:

Letter from France

Below is a new blog on shamas by Loutfi (Huli Papu). It is in French but a transalation into English is available on the site:

http://shamaclubfrance.wordpress.com/ 

I also set out below an email that I received from Loutfi yesterday (16/9/14):

Hello David,

On the 18th of September, I sent to you fotos of a pair Shamas in very bad condition that I had just bought from a breeder here in France. You will find the foto of the female Shama that I sent to you, attached with this e-mail, as she was on 18th september.

Then, I took the "opportunity" to strictly apply your recommendations and using Jeffrey's Shama Food to see what will be the results.

You will find the results in the fotos that I just took today, the 16th October, that is to say not 1 month later and I think that the fotos speak better than words ...

I send you this first report regarding only the female because the male is still molting his tails ... and I should be able to give a report within a few weeks ... 

Warmest regards

Loutfi

Skyhawk after his recent molt

Care during molt

Last Sunday, I had the privilege to have 3 guests at my place in the evening to see my shamas.  They were visiting for the first time.  At my request, Michael and Jeffrey came along.

We spent close to 2 hours chatting about shamas while the 5 birds in cages on the garden floor sang and displayed.  The aviary birds provided background accompaniment.  One of the guests later kindly remarked in his email that the experience had been eye-opening.

Among the topics we discussed was how to bring the shama into form and how to maintain the form thereafter.  The first thing to note is that a shama can only come into form if the hormone, testosterone, is present in its system.  Without this hormone, the bird will not even sing.  If the bird is well taken care of before and during the molt, it will continue to have some testosterone during the molt and it will sing and display to some extent throughout the molting process although it will be less active.  If the bird is fluffed or it is unresponsive when placed in the company of other male shamas during the molt, then something is wrong and you will need to review its care and maintenance.

As the shama approaches the end of its molt, the level of testosterone in its system should gradually increase.  In tandem with the rise in its testosterone, the bird’s form should also rise.  This rise in form together with good feathering provides confirmation that the bird’s nutrition and care during the molt are correct.

Let’s assume that all is well with the bird and it is starting to sing its primary song towards the end of its molt.  It may even do so quite vigorously.  Seeing what seems to be the bird’s good form, most of us become impatient to take the bird to a gathering.  This could be a mistake.  If the primary tails are still growing, its roots will be soft and could be damaged if the bird vigorously displays.  Also, as the bird is not yet in top form, placing it in a gathering of fierce shamas could cause it to be intimidated.  This could adversely affect its form after the molt.

The hobbyist should learn to exercise patience.  The male shama can be expected to come into top form about 1 ½ months after it completes the molt.  In the meantime, continue to have the cage in a quiet corner so that the bird is not disturbed by the songs of other shamas.  The cage should be fully covered with its cloth cover during the molt and until you are sure that the molt is completed. The cover can than be removed and you will be able to enjoy the bird and its songs as you hear its songs becoming louder and its display improves.

The bird should only be brought to bird gatherings after it has reached top form.  It should not be brought to gatherings too often such as once a week.  If you do so the bird will be stressed.  Its form will deteriorate and it may enter into a stress molt.

Effect of breeding on molt

Breeders of shamas may know that a bird that has been bred during the year will likely have a molt that is not as good as a bird that has not been bred. I recently came across a research paper that sought to explain why this is so. The reason offered was that breeding and molt cause great stress to the bird and as the molt takes place at the end of the breeding season, the bird is in a weakened state as it enters the molt. Also, if the bird is bred late in the season, the time available for molt will be reduced. In other words, the bird will need to complete its molt within a shorter time than a bird that has not been bred.

I would accept that the bird that has been bred will have depleted its its bodily resources that are required for a good molt. However, I am not sure that the researchers are substantially correct in their hypothesis and conclusions that the period of molt is reduced, at least for birds that molt in the tropics.

The research was done in the West where there are 4 seasons but I have noticed that even in the tropics where there is no winter, the breeders tend to have an inferior molt as compared to the non-breeder. It is true that even in the tropics, there is a season of sorts and there is the monsoon or cool "season" towards the end of the year but I doubt if it has the effect of shortening the period of molt.

I would venture to think that the cause of breeders having an inferior molt is not so much the reduced period of molt but rather that breeding and molt place great stress on the bird's physiological system and they have not fully recovered when the molt commences.

During breeding, hormonal changes take place in both the male and the female. These hormones are different from the hormone required for molt. At the end of the breeding season, some of these hormones can be expected to still linger in the bird's system. Consequently, before the hormones for molt have fully had had time to properly replace the hormones required for breeding, the feathers have started to change under less than ideal conditions.

Bear in mind that feathers are comprised largely of protein and form about 20% to 25% of the body weight of the bird. In the circumstances, it is no wonder that the bird that has been bred, is likely to have an inferior molt.

There are of course things that we can do to assist the bird to have a good molt. Stopping the pair from breeding will allow some time to lapse before the molt so that the bird can build the reserves required for molt. I would also separate the pair. This has the effect of keeping the male's form at a higher level than if the pair are left together and this helps to delay the molt during which time, the bird's system can better prepare itself for molt. As feathers are made up largely of protein, a diet rich in protein will also help.