Kookie The Kookaburra Adopts Madagascar Duckling (For Now)

Kookie a six-week Kookaburra and a two day old rare Madagascar duckling have both had a slightly rough start to life. Maybe that's why instead of chowing down the little chick for lunch, Kookie has taken it under his wing - For now at least!

Kookie, born at Seaview Wildlife Encounter, a wildlife park in the Isle of Wight had to be taken away from his parents after they killed his two siblings. The little Madagascar duckling also had pulled out of the aviary, because it was too small to defend itself against some of the bigger birds.

The two orphans met up quite accidently in the office of the Center's administrative director. As she was feeding Kookie her meal, the little duckling who also happened to be in her office, started to whine, obviously looking for someone to comfort it.

The director cautiously put the little duckling next to Kookie, to test how he would react. To her complete surprise the two took to each other right away, The little duckling snuck under the Kookaburra's wing and stayed there obviously comforted.

Since then, the two have been inseparable - with the duckling acting like a real baby, crawling all over the Kookaburra, who doesn't seem to blink an eyelid.

Cute as it is, the staff at Seaview are keeping an eye on the pair, to make sure the little duckling doesn't end up becoming Kookie's lunch or dinner. That's because in the wild, Kookaburras are very carnivorous, consuming any small creature they can find - ranging from lizards to rats and of course, chicks. In fact, even at the center Kookie's daily diet comprises of minced meat and . . . . . . Baby chicks!

sources:odditycentral.com, telegraph.co.uk, dailymail.co.uk