Chicago’s subtropical parrots thrive in Chiberia



Veterinarian Zoltan Szabo measures one of the chicks.
TAMBOPATA, Peru — It’s 6:15 a.m, and Annie Hawkinson is 120 feet off the ground, peering into a nest box lashed to an ironwood tree. She throws a towel over the female scarlet macaw inside, then reaches in and grabs one of the two chicks. Mama macaw squawks and shuffles out from beneath the towel. Hawkinson repeats the maneuver and grabs the second chick, then lowers the ungainly pair to the ground in a padded bucket. She waits near the nest, where the macaw is now preening and appears unperturbed.