Help With Perchmaking

[keydiver]

Hi, I'm trying to make a nice stand up perch with lots of branching patterns for my new african grey, I would like to know if wild tamarin is suitable to use. I cannot find any info on it, however, it is native to areas that parrots inhabit and the fruit is supposed to be safe for parrots (Tamarindos). I'm in south florida and have a nice little tree I'd like to chop up and make perches out of. Please help me with any information you have!

 

[Dinosrawr]

Hi Keydiver!

I also had a lot of difficulty finding out whether or not it's safe. I know that its fruit is safe, though can be a diarrhetic for birds if consumed in high quantities. As for the wood, this is what I found:

"Color/Appearance: Heartwood is a deep reddish brown, sometimes with a purplish hue—heartwood portions of Tamarind tend to be narrow and are usually only present in older and larger trees. The pale yellow sapwood is very wide and sharply demarcated from the heartwood. Spalting and other discoloration are very common in the sapwood, and the majority of the Tamarind available in the United States is spalted sapwood."


Keywords being: "majority of Tamarind available in the United States is spalled sapwood".

This being the reason:

"Rot Resistance: Heartwood is reported to be durable to very durable regarding decay resistance, and also resistant to insect attack. Sapwood is non-durable and prone to insect and fungal attack, as well as spalting."

The risk of fungal attack concerns me, as does insect attack. You would have to make sure the trees have not been infected by fungi or insects and then treat them with bleach through and through to clean anything. Beyond that, I'm not sure about whether or not chomping on it is safe. Generally the wood is not toxic, or not known to be toxic, and does not carry any natural toxic properties (to humans). I would assume it IS safe considering where it is native to, but until you find out more information I would be very wary of using it.

 

[keydiver]

Hi Keydiver!

I also had a lot of difficulty finding out whether or not it's safe. I know that its fruit is safe, though can be a diarrhetic for birds if consumed in high quantities. As for the wood, this is what I found:

"Color/Appearance: Heartwood is a deep reddish brown, sometimes with a purplish hue—heartwood portions of Tamarind tend to be narrow and are usually only present in older and larger trees. The pale yellow sapwood is very wide and sharply demarcated from the heartwood. Spalting and other discoloration are very common in the sapwood, and the majority of the Tamarind available in the United States is spalted sapwood."


Keywords being: "majority of Tamarind available in the United States is spalled sapwood".

This being the reason:

"Rot Resistance: Heartwood is reported to be durable to very durable regarding decay resistance, and also resistant to insect attack. Sapwood is non-durable and prone to insect and fungal attack, as well as spalting."

The risk of fungal attack concerns me, as does insect attack. You would have to make sure the trees have not been infected by fungi or insects and then treat them with bleach through and through to clean anything. Beyond that, I'm not sure about whether or not chomping on it is safe. Generally the wood is not toxic, or not known to be toxic, and does not carry any natural toxic properties (to humans). I would assume it IS safe considering where it is native to, but until you find out more information I would be very wary of using it.

I think there may be a few varieties referred to as tamarind trees. The one i'm talking about in particular is lysiloma bahamensis, otherwise known as sabicu wood. Another common name for it is horseflesh mohagany. Although none of these common names come up in internet searches when I've been trying to find out whether or not the wood is toxic.

Regardless, I would be stripping the bark, bleaching it, then rinsing thoroughly, then letting it bake in the sun for a few days. I would just hate to use something that's not 100% safe for my grey. Any ideas on this particular "Wild tamarin"?

Thanks in advanced

 

[Dinosrawr]

Ah, that's Cuban Tamarind then, and not at all the Asian/African Tamarind I was discussing (and apparently not Tamarind at all - it's a false tamarind). It appears that this tree is a type of bonsai tree, which has been listed as toxic to birds.

Just a quick edit - I do understand that "bonsai" is a style of tree, but because in general they tend to be toxic I would perhaps avoid it for now.

 

[henpecked]

Hey Keydiver, There's much better / safer stuff to use growing wild near you. Dragonwood is what i use. lyonia ferruginea , rusty staggerwood, dragonwood, i'm sure there's a few other common names. it grows in scrub oak habitat. It does grow slow so look in places that haven't burned or been roller chopped. i sell it for parrot perches and stands, if you need some let me know. I'm on the gulf side, near Sarasota.

 

[keydiver]

Hey Keydiver, There's much better / safer stuff to use growing wild near you. Dragonwood is what i use. lyonia ferruginea , rusty staggerwood, dragonwood, i'm sure there's a few other common names. it grows in scrub oak habitat. It does grow slow so look in places that haven't burned or been roller chopped. i sell it for parrot perches and stands, if you need some let me know. I'm on the gulf side, near Sarasota.

Hey there,
Thanks for the advice! I did a little scouting today at a natural area not far from my home and found some stuff that resembled dragonwood, although its very hard to tell from google images. Would you happen to have any closeup pictures of the bark/leaves/berries? Do they berry during summer? And does the foliage really look that dried up and crystalline on healthy plants? Hopefully what I saw was dragonwood and I can go back tomorrow and cut some up.

Thanks again!

 

[henpecked]

You could be looking at salt bush or wax myrtle , but both of them grow in wetter areas than the dragonwood. Dragonwood is poor looking, scraggly,taller than bushy. Yes it does have berries this time of year. The bark is different in different areas, sometimes almost cedar like and other places almost like the scrub live oak,and i find some that looks almost like hickory bark. After wet periods and it's putting on new growth the tips of branches/leaves will be a redish color. I'm not at home now but will be next week. I need to cut some and will try and get you some pixs. The only pics i have now can be found in the forum and are of stuff that's cut and trimmed. I'll see if i can find some pics.

https://imageshack.com/i/jnm1n7j

I think that should get you to my imageshack where the next several pics are of dragonwood. There are more pics scattered about in there. Contact me if you need pics of some growing live. Where in S fla are you ? Could your county ag agent help you? Know anyone at the state park? Anyone who does any botany stuff?

 

[henpecked]

Hey diver, went out and took pics of dragonwood and other similar trees and their habitat. Let me know if you are still around and need some pics.