PARROT FEVER

Have you ever heard of psittacosis?  It's a bacterial infection carried by birds such as parrots, macaws and  other birds that can be transmitted to humans. Back in 1929 a large and highly publicized outbreak of what was then termed "parrot fever" occurred in the US.  It led to greater controls on the import of pet parrots and actually had a hand in creating today's National Institutes of Health..aka the NIH.

No, we are NOT suffering from that malaise, which is treated these days with antibiotics.  However, we are somewhat afflicted with a form of parrot fever that involves chasing down, observing, listening to and photographing the feral populations of parrots that live here in the Rio Grande Valley.

Lilac-crowned Parrot, Brownsville, Texas

I'm sure you've heard of or seen the film The Wild Parrots of Telegraph Hill about the feral parrot populations of San Francisco..but you may not know that many feral populations exist in other states too including southern Texas.  Here in the Rio Grande Valley, three well known populations exist; in Harlingen, McAllen and Brownsville...but there's another big population in Austin, too.

More often than not,   our experiences with parrots have come via a pet shop or zoo or a friend who might have posessed a parrot for decades... unless you've been lucky enough to visit the tropics where they fly and roam in the wild.  My first wild parrot flock sighting was in Panama. Hearing their shrill, grating calls as flocks gathered in the trees, and then seeing this group of intense green birds left me speechless and wanting to see more, more, more!!

Audubon's Carolina Parakeets

 It may be hard to imagine now,  but wild parakeets were once common in the southeastern United States.  The Carolina Parakeet sometimes ranged as far north as Wisconsin and New York.  Their relentless persecution by farmers and those who killed them for their gloriously beautiful feathers led to their demise by 1920.  It's a sad story, that continues today, only this time the hunt is to supply pet shops,

Parrots are incredibly long lived, and very social birds. They have needs and issues, just as you would if you were taken from your family group, your native habitat and put in a cage for years.   It's little wonder people release them. It's a daunting responsibility to care for a social, demanding bird, who, among other things manifests its stress living in captivity by plucking out its own feathers,

One must arrive before dusk in Oliviera Park in Brownsville. You hear them long before you spot them, as they gather in small groups before roosting.The volume builds and they number in the hundreds as they raucously work out their family groupings for the night.

This particular evening, many fed furiously on low hanging tender tree buds.







As the sun sets, we quickly try to figure out how many different species we see. It's a challenge as they move about. Usually there are many Red-crowned, some Lilac-crowned and a just a few of the declining Yellow-headed Parrots.  Once they land in the eucalyptus trees, they blend and meld..but this pair was too busy grooming each other to notice us...and how could you NOT just adore them!! 

Red-crowned Parrot pair

So...our search and fever to find others, including finding the Green Parakeets in Harlingen: part of our bucket list of birding expeditions as we begin March, our last month in the Rio Grande Valley.