Friday, December 31, 1999 at 17:01 
Alex the Parrot
TUCSON, Ariz. -- "Calm down," Alex, an African Gray parrot, told Dr. Irene Pepperberg, the scientist at the University of Arizona who owns him. "Don't tell me to calm down," Dr. Pepperberg snapped. Sometimes Dr. Pepperberg and Alex squabble like an old married couple. He even says, "I love you."
Friday, December 31, 1999 at 17:01 
Thick billed parrotA SEVEN-YEAR effort to return thick-billed parrots to the pine forests of Arizona where they once thrived has failed because birds raised in captivity floundered in the wild, quickly becoming prey for hawks.
Some of the birds starved, others succumbed to disease, but most were eaten by predators, often within 48 hours of their release. Researchers have suspended the project, saying they are uncertain whether any of the 88 parrots released in the Chiricahua Mountains of southeastern Arizona from 1986 to 1993 survived.
Reintroducing a dying species to the wild, even in its native habitat, is never easy, conservationists say. In fact, most attempts fail, especially when they involve animals born in captivity. Yet wildlife researchers say that such efforts tend to be more popular than other conservation techniques, like those that rely on legislation and public education.
Friday, December 31, 1999 at 17:01 
Scarlet macawWildlife: Experts estimate only 500 remain in rain forests. Poachers are the main threat, but a budding ecotourism industry may save them.
Friday, December 31, 1999 at 17:01 
Monk Parakeet Performing Some Nest Maintenance. Image by John W. Iwanski.They are bright green and they are feathered and, this being Hyde Park, they already have their own legal representation and defense fund.
