'Extinct' parrots make a flying comeback in Brazil

[Judi Lynn]

The Spix macaw, a bird that had once vanished in the wild, is now thriving in its South American homeland after a successful breeding programme

Robin McKie
Sun 10 Jul 2022 05.00 EDT



A pair of Spix's macaws in an aviary in Schöeneiche, eastern Germany. The species
disappeared from the wild more than 20 years ago. Photograph: DPA/AFP/Getty Images

Twenty years ago, the future of the Spix’s macaw could not have looked bleaker. The last member of this distinctive parrot species disappeared from the wild, leaving only a few dozen birds in collectors’ cages across the globe. The prospects for Cyanopsitta spixii were grim, to say the least.

But thanks to a remarkable international rescue project, Spix’s macaws – with their grey heads and vivid blue plumage – have made a stunning comeback. A flock now soars freely over its old homeland in Brazil after being released there a month ago. Later this year, conservationists plan to release more birds, and hope the parrots will start breeding in the wild next spring.

“The project is going extremely well,” said biologist Tom White, of the US Fish and Wildlife Service and a technical adviser to the rescue project. “It’s almost a month since we released the birds and all of them have survived.

“They are acting as a flock; they are staying in the vicinity of their release and they are beginning to sample local vegetation. It’s going as well as it possibly could.”

More:
https://www.theguardian.com/environment/2022/jul/10/extinct-parrots-make-a-flying-comeback-in-brazil

[wendyb-NC]

1. That's the best news

They are really gorgeous creatures. This gives me hope. Thank you, for posting, Judi Lynn.

[Judi Lynn]

5. That color manifestation itself, going from icy blue to a deeper blue is almost etherial!

Surely hope they will come back strong.

Thank you, wendyb-NC.

[Jade Fox]

2. Good to hear.

[Judi Lynn]

6. Yes, for sure. 🦜️

[secondwind]

3. What beautiful birds.......I'm in love....

[Judi Lynn]

7. Hooray! 🦜️

[mopinko]

4. so happy to see this. i remember when they started.

[Judi Lynn]

8. So cool, hearing you already knew about them. Unbearably beautiful. ❤️️

[mopinko]

10. i was heavy into birds back then.

raising budgies, on bird message boards, in a club, even.
jeez that was a long time ago.

[Judi Lynn]

11. Budgies! Precious little beings. Each one has a remarkable personality, too.

Humans aren't worthy of such bright little friends.

It's a real shame more people aren't capable of tuning in to the real wonders sharing the same space at the same time, isn't it?

It had to have been time very well spent.

[mopinko]

12. i see ppl who want big flashy parrots and i think- idiots.

budgies can do anything big birds can do, except get you stitches.
ok, i have a pair of amazons now, and i've had greys. anything bigger than that doesnt belong in a house. but i loved my budgies. hand fed them, and they were the sweetest.

[Judi Lynn]

14. Each budgie seems like a perfect little person with feathers. Wonderful dispositions. Perceptive.

Have admired both kinds of parrots you mentioned for many years, elegant grey parrots and unbelievably striking Amazons.

Hope there are some safe places in the world for both kinds, somehow. They are spectacular.

[Judi Lynn]

9. When I saw these 3 Spix Macaws in this photo I instantly remembered the pre-revolutionary indulgence

of Russian elites of buying and training 3 horses to force to pull their sleighs in the garish "Troika" display! These 3 guys just like to sit together.

[Jade Fox]

13. I keep coming back to look at these beautiful birds....

It's like they have 100 different shades of blue on their bodies.


I think the Dems should make these birds the official bird of the Democratic Party.

[Judi Lynn]

15. Ohhhh! We're on the same wave length about their unique coloration. It actually seems mystical.

I have returned, the last time just today, simply to look at the amazing color. It's in its own zone, almost otherworldly.

So glad to see your comment! 🦜️ ⭐️