The book to guide you through the journey of caring for magical creatures, a great beginners book to set you on your path to become a magizoologist.
This book was made in accordance to the guidelines of the Ministry of Magic and as a textbook for t...
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The Diricawl, or the dodo as they are known by Muggles, is a plump, flightless bird covered in feathers. Muggles feel that the creature was hunted to extinction. However, it is a well-known fact in the wizarding world that Diricawls can become invisible at will. The International Confederation of Wizards has yet to find a reason to reveal this fact to Muggles, and considering the International Statute of Wizarding Secrecy that was signed into place by the International Confederation of Wizards, there probably never will be a reason to share this tidbit with Muggles.
They are native to the island of Mauritius, which is east of Madagascar in the Indian Ocean. Over the past one hundred years, they have migrated to live on both Mauritius and Madagascar, brought to the island by boat. They were on top of crates, invisible of course, being moved into the cargo hold of the ship, therefore, the Muggles manning the ship had no idea they were there. The Diricawl is about three and a half feet tall and weighs anywhere from 23 to 47 pounds. Diricawls are omnivores, using their hooked beaks to open nuts, fruits, and seeds, and on occasion, shellfish like crabs, clams, or oysters.
Diricawls lay eggs just like other birds. They will lay a clutch of two eggs before settling down to incubate them. Diricawls make their nests on the ground, near the base of trees. The nests are made of sticks, leaves, and shells. It takes 17 to 21 days to incubate Diricawl eggs. After the eggs hatch, the chicks are fed crop milk by both the mother and father. Crop milk is produced in the crops of birds. The crop is a muscular pouch near the esophagus, considered a part of the digestive tract. The food will sit in the crop to partially digest before moving forward. For crop milk, this partially digested food is brought back up to feed to the chicks. The chicks are born with feathers that look like yellow hairs coming off of their body. By the time they reach 28 to 31 days old, their initial coat of down, or fluffy underlayer, has started to grow in, with the main feathers following soon afterward.
Diricawl feathers are often used in fancy quills if the collector can collect feathers before they disappear. Because the Diricawl can vanish at will, their feathers will randomly vanish for several hours after being removed from the body. Diricawl eggs can also be collected to make ornaments, similar to how Fwooper eggs are kept as decoration. Diricawl eggs are blue in color.
