Sep-Oct 2015, Volume 25 Issue 5

Belonging to the Neophema Genus this small, but to some, dully coloured parrot has many attributes which make it a good choice when contemplating additions to your collection. In particular I would recommend younger or novice enthusiasts consider keeping this bird or perhaps those who live in suburbia who have small spaces to allocate to their birds and perhaps noise adverse neighbours!

My eyes flash open to a cacophony of screeches and roars bellowing through my window. My mind slowly catches up to my senses and I realise, that I am no longer surrounded by the comforts of Australia; rather I have woken up in the heart of the Amazon Basin. I draw back the mosquito net over my bed and greet the boisterous Howler monkeys outside my window that had the nerve to wake me up before my alarm. Despite the rude awakening, I am soon on my way to the most extensively studied clay-lick in South America. By 5:00am I am sitting with a group of international volunteers and researchers, contemplating how ten-year old me would have never believed that I would one day live out my childhood fantasy – to escape to the Amazon jungle and work with macaws

Announcing Parrots 2016 (P2016) the next instalment in Australia’s most highly regarded avicultural convention. Parrots 2016, the Parrot Society of Australia’s 9th international biennial convention, continues the theme of “Raising the Perch in Avicultural Education” with a lecture program designed to appeal to the widest audience of bird enthusiasts, topics of both interest and educational value are on offer. The comprehensive programme offers approximately 22 sessions to choose from over the weekend and is the only convention in Australasia catering to parrot breeders, veterinary staff, pet shop employees, companion parrot owners, zookeepers, young bird keepers and conservationists alike.