Searching for the rare Abaco parrot

The lime-green Abaco parrot isn't easy to find, since the birds nest in the ground, or six feet under in limestone caves. We got lucky. Image by Diane BairABACO, Bahamas -- The first thing you should know if you go exploring the interior of Great Abaco Island is that nobody does this. Nobody. In spite of the fact that there are more than 200 species of birds — five found only in the Bahamas — plus dozens of “blue holes” and a lovely national park, you will be a sight more rare than the Abaco parrot if you venture away from the beach.

Click to read more ...

Bahama Parrot populations bounce back

Bahama Parrot Populations on the Rise After Hurricanes - Recent surveys of the Bahama Parrot on Inagua conducted by Dr. Frank Riviera, US Fish and Wildlife Service and Zeko McKenzie, lecturer at College of The Bahamas indicated that the Bahama Parrot population on Inagua is bouncing back and is now reaching an estimated 14,000 parrots. (Photo courtesy of Lynn Gape for Barefoot Marketing)INAGUA, The Bahamas -- Recent surveys of the Bahama Parrot on Inagua conducted by Dr. Frank Riviera, US Fish and Wildlife Service, and Zeko McKenzie, lecturer at College of The Bahamas, indicated that the Bahama Parrot population on Inagua is on the rise reaching an estimated 14,000 parrots.

Click to read more ...

Abaco Parrot Population Increasing

The Abaco Parrot Population is Increasing. The Bahamas National Trust in conjunction with Dr. Frank Riviera and Caroline Stahala recently conducted an intensive survey of the Bahama Parrot on Abaco.

Population surveys were conducted in 2002 resulted in estimates of the Abaco parrot population of about 2,500 parrots with similar values in the following years. This year  Dr. Frank Rivera and Caroline Stahala, who took part in the initial surveys ,helped by  BNT wardens and volunteers, conducted a 10 year follow up survey to determine the change in the Abaco parrot population since management began. The results indicate that the Abaco parrot population has increased since the BNT’s management efforts were implemented with a new estimate of just over 4,000 parrots on Abaco.

Click to read more ...

Bahama Parrots on Abaco

Abaco National Park ParrotABACO ISLAND, BAHAMAS—I am being watched. Through a mass of dark green leaves, there’s a hooked beak pointed in my direction. I squint, peer a little closer and correct that number — well-camouflaged by the greenery, there are a dozen or more sets of eyes looking back at me.

Click to read more ...

Endangered parrots will soon have a new home thanks to $1,500 grant

Submitted by the US Embassy Nassau

The Director of the Ardastra Gardens, Richard Roswell, shows Shawn Kobb the new enclosure that is expected to be completed by the end of January.Bahamas -- Nassau’s Ardastra Gardens Zoo and Conservation Center is the recipient of a $1,500 grant from the J. Kirby Simon Foreign Service Trust to build a new enclosure for the endangered Bahama Parrots.  Shawn Kobb, a dedicated American volunteer who is also an officer at the U.S. Embassy, applied for the grant to help protect the colorful birds that once lived in abundant numbers in the trees on two Bahamas islands. The construction for the new enclosure for the Bahama Parrots is expected to be completed by the end of January 2011.

Click to read more ...