The Spix's Macaw School's Project, Forum - Elaine Toland Speaks Out, DVD News

Issue 119 - December 2007

Forum – A licence to counter illegal bird sales – The writing is on the wall for commercial bird dealers who operate through pet fairs. Last year the Government acknowledged that commercial pet selling at markets and public places is, and should remain illegal. Since then however, known bird traders have continued to ply their illicit trade at these temporary events, such as sales at Stafford and Newark. According to the Animal Protection Agency (APA) Director, Elaine Toland, they won’t be allowed to get away with it for much longer… The Complete Psittacine – Should captive parrots be given grit? Asks EB Cravens. Living with Pilar – a Red-lored Amazon – I tried to resist says Diane Baron. Really I did. I summoned up all my will power and said ‘NO. I have enough birds. I cannot take another one.’ In spite of my determination , however, fate stepped in. The Spix’s Macaw School – Before it became extinct in the wild in 2000, the Spix’s Macaw held the dubious distinction of being the rarest bird in the world. From 1987, for 13 years, the entire wild population was represented by a single male Spix’s Macaw in the Riacho Melancia Creek watershed in the Caatinga region near Curaaca, Brazil. The two greatest threats leading to the Spix’s extinction were loss of habitat and poaching – the latter being responsible for the trapping and removal of the survivor’s mate and last two chicks in 1987. – In August 2006 Mark and Marie Stafford self financed a Parrots International trip to the area south of Curaca, Brazil, the historical habitat of the Spix’s Macaw. This is their story. Keep your birds happy – make a willow wreath – the buzz word going around at the moment is that of creating foraging opportunities for captive birds, says Dot Schwarz. The argument goes that the more foraging opportunities that mimic their wild life. The less likely they are to start unwelcome behaviours like feather plucking. Parrot magnets – Australia’s Outback water holes – Australia’s Outback water holes are oases in a desiccated landscape, says Bob Alison. Every dawn ushers in a psittacid extravaganza, a profusion of colourful plumages, a spectacular array of parrots that present themselves with extraordinary regularity, conforming to a standard protocol of sequential appearances. Parrots in Focus – Jardine’s Parrot – identifying the different subspecies can be tricky – according to Cyril Laubscher. The National Parrot Rescue & Preservation Foundation. - The National Parrot Rescue & Preservation Foundation is a 501(c)(3) all volunteer organization in the greater Houston area USA founded in 1999, its mission is to rehabilitate and re-home displaced or unwanted parrots. It is committed to the education of the public in all matters relating to parrots, and to networking with parrot related organizations nationwide. Walter and his New Friends – Ann-Louise Hoyt’s flock has grown since she first told us about her African Grey, Walter. Relocation of Philippine Cockatoos: a first step – The Philippine Cockatoo (Cacatua haematuropygia) also known as the Red-vented Cockatoo, is a Criti8cally Endangered species endemic to the Philippines, and with possibly fewer than 1,000 birds remaining in the wild, most of them are on the island of Palawan – by David Waugh of the Loro Parque Fundacion.

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