apatrimo94
New member
A few weeks ago, I went on a trip to the Bronx Zoo with a teacher and two other classmates. It was a pleasure trip for my environmental class, yes, it's just us!!! A teacher with three students in one class 
Anyway, so we went to the Zoo. There's a building there called the World of Birds. It's absolutely amazing. I was hoping to see a lot of parrots, but they only had two Amazons, which they were pretty cool. And next to their habitat were these two big billboards with amazing info I've seen. I took pictures of them but they're hard to see, so I'm going to type what they say.
Billboard 1: This discusses the wild parrot trade.
On top of the bill board, it says "1 pet parrot = up to 19 dead parrots from the wild" (This chilling statistic will be explained in three steps)
These are three steps:
Step 1: Taking birds from the wild
Only 15 out of 20 survive this step.
-Trees are cut down
-Nests are destoryed
-Eggs are broken
-Chicks are killed
-Birds are injured
Step 2: Holding and transpot to America
Of the 15 parrots previously mentioned, only 7 survive this step
-Cramped spaces cause stress
-Birds are exposed to diseases
-Birds are exposed to too much heat or cold
-Birds are incompatible
-Food and water is inadequate when available
Step 3: Quarentine and delivery to stores
Of the 7 previously mentioned, only one survives
-They reject new routines and diets
-Traveling causes stress
-Exposed to more envionmental extremes and diseases
Now when you add up those dead parrots from the three steps, you get 19 with only one survivor.
Then after the steps, it says "Action." Then there's good news and bad news:
Good News:
The Wildlife Conservation Society (WCS) helped pass legislation to stop the bird trade:
-New York State-Bird Bill Regulations
-New Jersey-Bird Law
-USA-Wild Bird Conservation Act
As a result:
-Millions fewer birds are killed in the bird trade
-more birds are being bred in captivity
Bad News:
Unfortunately, there's still an active bird trade going on in other countries, as well as illegal bird smuggling into the United States.
"There is much more to be done to help these parrots!!!"
Then there were replicas of how parrots and parrot eggs from the wild used to be transported:
Then on the second billboard, it tells people the reality of having a parrot if they still want to get one. On the top it says, "If you still want a parrot, listen to this!"
I need constant attention:
I am like a 2 year old child. Are you ready for that? You must talk to me and be a constant companion. You must never leave me alone or I may pluck my feathers, chew dangerous things I can reach, or bite.
I may screech:
I make very loud noises. My screech equals the sound of a passing subway train. And I may chatter constantly.
I can be very messy, spilling food and feathers all over the room.
I could live to be forty:
Unlike a two year old, I never "grow up." I may have a lifespan of 40 years. I will always need the same amount of attention and care.
If you get me a mate:
I may no longer be friendly or interested in you. I won't love you anymore, I will love my mate. Or I might hate my mate, and fight.
I may not talk:
Getting a bird to say words takes a lot of time and discipline. Many birds never learn to talk.
What happens when you don't want me anymore?:
WSC's Bronx Zoo gets over 300 phones calls a year from people who don't want to take care of us birds anymore.
The zoo can't possibly take care of all of us, but WSC has helped create Fauna Link-a non-profit organization-to set up breeding pairs and find new homes for a few abandoned birds.
The rest of us are HISTORY!
If you still want to get a parrot, make sure you don't buy one taken from the wild!
Get Captive Bred birds. Why?
Captive bred birds are accustomed to people, so therefore they're:
-easier to train
-healthier than wild birds
-less likely to get or transmit diseases to people and birds.
-accustomed to a captive diet and lifestyle
-have not been stressed with so much shipping and handling
-have not been exposed to many diseases
Before you adopt/buy a bird:
-buy directly from the breeder or get information about the breeder from the seller
-Look for banded birds so you can trace their origins. Closed-ringed or solid bands can only be put on baby birds. This usually indicates that the bird is captive-bred.
-Ask to see the health certificates and insist on getting the origins of all birds. Is it captive-bred? From where? By whom?
Whoooo, all done, that sure was a LOT of typing (lol), but I hope many of you get a lot of information from this. Another thing too, this is not about breeding birds, this is about the wild bird trade. Thank you for reading.
Anyway, so we went to the Zoo. There's a building there called the World of Birds. It's absolutely amazing. I was hoping to see a lot of parrots, but they only had two Amazons, which they were pretty cool. And next to their habitat were these two big billboards with amazing info I've seen. I took pictures of them but they're hard to see, so I'm going to type what they say.
Billboard 1: This discusses the wild parrot trade.
On top of the bill board, it says "1 pet parrot = up to 19 dead parrots from the wild" (This chilling statistic will be explained in three steps)
These are three steps:
Step 1: Taking birds from the wild
Only 15 out of 20 survive this step.
-Trees are cut down
-Nests are destoryed
-Eggs are broken
-Chicks are killed
-Birds are injured
Step 2: Holding and transpot to America
Of the 15 parrots previously mentioned, only 7 survive this step
-Cramped spaces cause stress
-Birds are exposed to diseases
-Birds are exposed to too much heat or cold
-Birds are incompatible
-Food and water is inadequate when available
Step 3: Quarentine and delivery to stores
Of the 7 previously mentioned, only one survives
-They reject new routines and diets
-Traveling causes stress
-Exposed to more envionmental extremes and diseases
Now when you add up those dead parrots from the three steps, you get 19 with only one survivor.
Then after the steps, it says "Action." Then there's good news and bad news:
Good News:
The Wildlife Conservation Society (WCS) helped pass legislation to stop the bird trade:
-New York State-Bird Bill Regulations
-New Jersey-Bird Law
-USA-Wild Bird Conservation Act
As a result:
-Millions fewer birds are killed in the bird trade
-more birds are being bred in captivity
Bad News:
Unfortunately, there's still an active bird trade going on in other countries, as well as illegal bird smuggling into the United States.
"There is much more to be done to help these parrots!!!"
Then there were replicas of how parrots and parrot eggs from the wild used to be transported:
Then on the second billboard, it tells people the reality of having a parrot if they still want to get one. On the top it says, "If you still want a parrot, listen to this!"
I need constant attention:
I am like a 2 year old child. Are you ready for that? You must talk to me and be a constant companion. You must never leave me alone or I may pluck my feathers, chew dangerous things I can reach, or bite.
I may screech:
I make very loud noises. My screech equals the sound of a passing subway train. And I may chatter constantly.
I can be very messy, spilling food and feathers all over the room.
I could live to be forty:
Unlike a two year old, I never "grow up." I may have a lifespan of 40 years. I will always need the same amount of attention and care.
If you get me a mate:
I may no longer be friendly or interested in you. I won't love you anymore, I will love my mate. Or I might hate my mate, and fight.
I may not talk:
Getting a bird to say words takes a lot of time and discipline. Many birds never learn to talk.
What happens when you don't want me anymore?:
WSC's Bronx Zoo gets over 300 phones calls a year from people who don't want to take care of us birds anymore.
The zoo can't possibly take care of all of us, but WSC has helped create Fauna Link-a non-profit organization-to set up breeding pairs and find new homes for a few abandoned birds.
The rest of us are HISTORY!
If you still want to get a parrot, make sure you don't buy one taken from the wild!
Get Captive Bred birds. Why?
Captive bred birds are accustomed to people, so therefore they're:
-easier to train
-healthier than wild birds
-less likely to get or transmit diseases to people and birds.
-accustomed to a captive diet and lifestyle
-have not been stressed with so much shipping and handling
-have not been exposed to many diseases
Before you adopt/buy a bird:
-buy directly from the breeder or get information about the breeder from the seller
-Look for banded birds so you can trace their origins. Closed-ringed or solid bands can only be put on baby birds. This usually indicates that the bird is captive-bred.
-Ask to see the health certificates and insist on getting the origins of all birds. Is it captive-bred? From where? By whom?
Whoooo, all done, that sure was a LOT of typing (lol), but I hope many of you get a lot of information from this. Another thing too, this is not about breeding birds, this is about the wild bird trade. Thank you for reading.
