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| SCIENTIFIC
CLASSIFICATION |
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| COMMON
NAME: |
African
gray parrot |
| KINGDOM: |
Animalia |
| PHYLUM: |
Chordata |
| CLASS: |
Aves |
| ORDER: |
Psittaciformes |
| FAMILY: |
Psittacidae
(true parrots) |
| GENUS
SPECIES: |
Psittacus
(parrot) erithacus (a solitary bird which
can be taught to speak) |
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| DESCRIPTION: |
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| MALE |
The
male African gray looks similar to the female, but
becomes darker with age. |
| FEMALE |
Females
have a pale gray crown with dark gray edges (giving
a scaly look), a gray body and scarlet tail feathers.
The skin around the eye is naked and the beak is
black. |
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| SIZE: |
Approximately
33 cm (13.2 in.) |
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| WEIGHT: |
Approximately
400 g (14 oz.) |
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| DIET: |
Includes
fruit, seeds, buds, nectar, and pollen; occasionally
insects or other meat will be eaten |
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| INCUBATION: |
28 days |
| CLUTCH
SIZE |
2-4
eggs |
| FLEDGING
DURATION |
12 weeks |
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| SEXUAL
MATURITY: |
4-7
years |
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| POPULATION: |
GLOBAL |
Unknown |
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| STATUS: |
IUCN |
Not
listed |
| CITES |
Appendix
II |
| USFWS |
Not
listed |
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| 1. |
The
African gray parrot is monogamous, nesting solitarily
in a tree with a hole for her eggs. |
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| 2. |
One defense mechanism is fluffing up to look larger
and biting. |
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| 3. |
The African gray is considered to be one of the
most accomplished mimics. Parrots, when raised by
humans, show an amazing ability to mimic people
and noisy objects, but in the wild they have never
been observed mimicking. |
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| 4. |
One
of the most famous African grays is Alex. Dr. Irene
Pepperberg has studied animal behavior and animal-human
communications since 1977. She currently works with
3 African gray parrots. Alex - the oldest - can
count, identify objects, shapes, colors, and materials,
knows the concepts of same and different, and even
tells the lab assistants what to do in order to
modify his environment! |
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| 5. |
Because
large parrots live so long, and may outlive their
owners, it is often necessary for owners to put
the birds in their wills. |
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The
parrot plays an important role in its habitat
by helping to propagate the forest. Because not
all of the seeds consumed are digested, many are
passed in the bird's guano over new areas of the
forest. Some species eat nectar and are important
in the pollination of many species of plants in
the tropical forests.
Irene
Pepperberg's work with Alex has sparked new studies
suggesting parrot intelligence parallels that
of chimpanzees and dolphins unlike many other
bird species. Currently, The Alex Foundation is
conducting research in various regions of Africa
to fully comprehend the abilities, adaptations,
and pressures facing African grays in the wild.
Unfortunately,
the African gray parrot has become popular in
the pet trade due to their attractive colors and
unbelievable talent to mimic sounds and words.
Due to such a large demand, baby grays are being
stolen from the wild to supply the demand.
The
U.S. Wild Bird Act forbids the commercial import
of any bird listed by CITES which includes most
parrots - endangered or threatened.
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|
|
Forshaw, J.M. Parrots of the World. New Jersey.
T.F.H. Publications Inc. 1978. |
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|
Marrison, C. and A. Greensmith. Birds of the
World. New York: Dorling Kindersley, Inc.
1993.
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| Parker,
Sybil P. (ed.). Grzimek's Animal Life Encyclopedia.
Birds II. Vol. 8. New York: Van Nostrand Reinhold
Co., 1972. |
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| Perrins,
C. (ed.). The Encyclopedia of Birds. New
York: Facts on File Publications. 1985. |
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| http://www.alexfoundation.org/research/index.html |
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