They're endangered

[Farlie]

Poor guys. The pet triad has striped them bare. Estimated number remaining is around 2,500. Over the past 20 years their popularity has continually grown to become endangered.

 

[.........]

Poor guys. The pet triad has striped them bare. Estimated number remaining is around 2,500. Over the past 20 years their popularity has continually grown to become endangered.

View attachment 394969

Very sad. They make good pets, but that's no excuse to make them endangered in the wild..

 

[BirdG1rl]

That’s so sad. You’ll find that the pet industry has endangered lots of parrot species.

 

[Wardy]

The countrys of origins need to do more to protect these species.

Whilst this is a fish Yellow tangs are now banned for collection in the wild this has been a bog standard fish in the aquarium trade for as long as i can remember.
The fact they can no longer be collected has meant two things the quantity in the wild is now increasing.
Tank bred yellow tangs are now becoming more available.
Imo its the govts of the origin countrys that need to stop this the pet trade is a business and have shareholders etc. to satisfy whilst what they are doing is morally wrong they arent doing anything criminal.

 

[April]

That's so upsetting to know especially since so many of them are in rescues and being rehomed all the time. Poor Sunnies their beauty has in part lead to their over abundance in the pet trade.

 

[fashionfobie]

The pet trade puts pressure on parrots, but as does agriculture. It is a difficult issue with no easy fix.

Poverty, political unrest and food shortages are real problems in this world. Parrots are wrapped up in a wide array of these issues. Least us not forget there were native Carolina parakeets, which have been long extinct in the US because they ate crops and were viewed as pests. Complex stuff. Though I do very much so agree that it is sad.

 

[Sparkles99]

Why Carolina parakeets went extinct is very complex. I did a book review on a book that examined it, "The Carolina Parakeet: Glimpses of a vanished bird". It was very good. Multiple factors: egg collectors, nest & specimen collectors, agricultural pest, habitat segregation into little patches, them being poisonous to eat due to diet, communal roosting, nest hole competition, etc. The pet trade was actually not really a factor, which highlights fashionfobie's point about these issues being tied to other issues, both human & wild.

Apparently the budgie was declining in numbers in Australia in the late 1800s, so the government banned all export, & had the resources & inclination to enforce it. Budgies bounded back, but not every bird gets a second chance. Sun conures are gorgeous. I believe they & golden conures vie for prettiest conure. Unfortunately it hasn't done either any good. True confession: after my initial desire for an Amazon, at 7 years old, my more mature self zeroed in on those two. Thankfully, the internet existed by then & I could make an informed decision about not getting any of these. Part of why I chose budgies is because they've least concern status (not endangered).

 

[javi]

At the last Parrot Festival seminar I attended a friend of mine did a lecture on this subject. It is very interesting. No one even thought to track their range or numbers because they were thought to be plentiful. Now all is not lost for sun conures as they are bred in great numbers in captivity meaning that they can be reintroduced into the wild and the genetic diversity spread through all the countries that keep them is also great. So this should be a species that will not go extinct.

 

[Farlie]

Absolutely beautiful bird.
Carolina Parakeet

 

[fashionfobie]

Part of why I chose budgies is because they've least concern status (not endangered).

This is great. I too get all species that are in least concern status. I think it is a good goal. Do mind that of the 350 or so parrot species not all have good studies to back up population numbers and/or trends of decline. We can only make the best informed choice we can.

That said there are parrots who are born in captivity already, and they deserve just as must protection and love. It wouldn't be feasible to return those birds to their native ecologies. There is also a risk that today's least concerns species are at risk of gaining popularity which could cause more wild captures etc. I am not sure humans are great at learning from mistakes of the past... we seem to keep making them.

 

[camelotshadow]

In order to reintroduce a species back into the wild there has to be a suitable place for them to repopulate.
They face the same & even more problems than the ones that are dwindling now as the trees are cut down &
people inhabit the areas they once called home.

 

[SumitaSinh]

Same thing happening to Alexander and muchtache parrots in India... That's why, in my country,it's not legal to keep them as pets... But illegal pet trades are dangerous. Derby's parakeet s are difficult to breed in captivity also