Why City Parrots can help with parrot conservation

Red-fronted conures checking out the local Gazette, Miami Springs, FLCity slickers

Have you spotted them in your area already? Chances are you are closer to a wild parrot than you might have imagined. In the USA and Europe, many major cities have one or two species of parrot living and breeding within their city limits. 10 European capitals, for example, hold psittacine populations.

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Surabaya Police Confiscate Rare Birds

Purple-naped Lory (Lorius domicella). Vulnerable because it has a small population, which is undergoing a continuing decline owing to trapping. Image by WayanHenri Jakarta: East Java police and animal rights organisation confiscated 40 rare birds from a house in Surabaya and arrested a suspected animal trader.

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Some vocal-mimicking animals, particularly parrots, can move to a musical beat

CAMBRIDGE, Mass. -- Researchers at Harvard University have found that humans aren't the only ones who can groove to a beat -- some other species can dance, too. This capability was previously believed to be specific to humans. The research team found that only species that can mimic sound seem to be able to keep a beat, implying an evolutionary link between the two capacities.

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Saving the World’s Rarest Cockatoo

The world’s rarest cockatoo has been re- discovered in Indonesia. The Yellow-crested Abbotti’s Cockatoo is found in the wild only on a single island (tiny Masakambing Island; 500 ha) in the Masalembu Archipelago. This island is in the remote Java Sea, north of the cities of Surabaya and Bali, and east of southern Sumatra. This archipelago also contains Masalembu Island [2000 ha] and Keramaian Island [300 ha].

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Cockatoos of Hong Kong

Lesser Sulpher crested cockatoo's (Cacatua sulpherea) in Hong Kong. Image by Davis Kwan. One great source of info about parrots in cities is Flickr. The popular image sharing website hosts thousands of pictures of parrots that people encounter on their travels and in their back yards. While most amateur birders have little regard for feral or naturalized parrot species because of their non nativeness, the general public is usually smitten with these charming characters that come to visit their garden feeders and city parks.

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