Thieves steal parrots from garden

Thieves steal parrots from garden

11:54am Saturday 16th February 2013 in News

An African Grey parrot similar to the ones stolen.

TWO parrots have been stolen from a Hampshire garden.

The birds, both African Greys believed to be about 20 years old, were taken from an aviary in a garden in St Margaret’s Lane, Titchfield between 10pm on Tuesday and 8am on Wednesday .

The parrots are mainly grey with some red tail feathers and one was injured and has a distinctive hole in the top of his beak.

Anyone with information can call PC Ruzewicz at Park Gate police station on 101 or Crimestoppers anonymously on 0800 555 111.

Comments(8)

burgerboy

says…

12:40pm Sat 16 Feb 13

Anybody know what stuffing goes well with parrot.
May be well to look around the polygon area.(;0)
burgerboy

sparkster

says…

4:24pm Sat 16 Feb 13

very funny think of the poor person who they have been stolen from. Hopefully they wont be preyed upon by cats sparrowhawks or anyone else. If it were me i’d be gutted but then we have pet birds and love animals. If people cant show a bit of compassion dont bother posting
sparkster

Malcy

says…

8:25pm Sat 16 Feb 13

African Grays are very smart, the 2nd most talking Parrots and need a lot of care and attention, this or these thieves can only have 2 motives, to keep or sell on, they could of taken the owners best friends, the Parrots will mimick the owners voice and any noises around there home, the owners will be devasted they been stolen, let’s hope they are noisy and irratating to the Thief and somebody reads this and reports to the Police
Malcy

sparkster

says…

10:14pm Sat 16 Feb 13

exactly whoever they belong to maybe on their own and these parrots are their only companions. Parrots are smart, at least you have a heart Malcy. Pity the first poster on this article cant show a bit of compassion instead of crass comments
sparkster

Ginger_cyclist

says…

10:56pm Sat 16 Feb 13

I hope the thieves have their fingers bitten off and end up watching the birds crush their finger bones to dust.
Ginger_cyclist

sparkster

says…

11:40pm Sat 16 Feb 13

here here so do I. We temporarily took in a canary last year, they were securely locked in the shed, some bright spark got in and released them, the idiots had no thought for how the poor souls would fare or the devastation it causes the owner
sparkster

Malcy

says…

11:11am Sun 17 Feb 13

You are right sparkster, looking at the Grammar tells it’s own story, having remarked on it I spelt irritating wrong, I have the Dictionary with me next time, Ginger you that’s more like it Ouch !!
Malcy

Malcy

says…

11:13am Sun 17 Feb 13

I’m having a bad day commenting sorry readers, should of gone to spec savers!!
Malcy

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Parrots stolen from garden aviary

Man starts club to help owners train parrots

SINGAPORE – His eyes dart from left to right as he speaks and his body language says he is ready to spring into action at any moment.

But Mr Daniel Kor Chee Wee, 27, is not a shifty criminal – he’s just looking out for his parrots.

He founded Flightmasters in 2010 to educate pet owners on caring for their parrots. He also trains the birds in different flying styles.

One style, point to point, involves short flights between specific points. Another style, aviary or indoor flying, requires birds to fly in a confined space.

Freestyle means the bird are allowed to fly freely before returning to a designated landing perch, such as the handler’s shoulder.

At liberty is similar to freestyle, except that when called, the birds will return to any spot chosen by the handler. This is an advanced style meant for well-trained birds.

The bird’s owners pay a yearly fee of up to $400 to join the club so that they can train their parrots under Mr Kor’s guidance.

The club’s founder, who started rearing the brightly- coloured birds when he was 14, turned to stroke one parrot and it cooed in appreciation.

Its feathered friends spread their wings and flapped up a dizzying storm of colours as they took flight. Inspired

Smiling, Mr Kor said he was spurred to learn as much as he could about parrots after his second parrot, a Sun Conure called Sunny, died from a heart attack in 2005whenit was four years old.

An improper diet had resulted in obesity, leading to its death.

Cageless Survivors

By Salvatore Angius

Throughout California, I have  filmed thirteen parrot species in over thirty cities to date. Of the  current thirteen species of California naturalized parrot flocks filmed, the largest in both flock member population and  species diversity occurs in various cities throughout California’s San Gabriel Valley. Pictured here are the endangered Red Crowned Amazon parrot, originally from Central Mexico, they have made their homes in our numerous  San Gabriel Valley cities such as Pasadena, Monrovia, Temple City, Arcadia, Rosemead, Duarte,Pomona, Laverne, Covina, West Covina, Azusa and El Monte.

The success that these naturally tropical  birds have to survive many decades in California is astonishing.  Originally from tropical American countries and India, This success stems mainly finding the right  amount of edible, imported landscaping trees and shrubs which are consumed year round.

Another contributing factor to their success is their history. These  parrots were descendants of wild caught birds imported during the seventies/eighties while parrot importation was legal and occurred heavily. In other words, these parrots are a far cry from today’s pet parrots which have been humanly dependent and literally hand raised , thus further dulling these wild survival instincts. Parrots are also noted to learn from other flock members while in their flock, making survival  easier for them as well.

It is still unclear how these birds first arrived in California,  many stories have emerged which include but not limited to: Pet store fires, aviary and circus releases by employees, closing of  a popular theme park in Van Nuys, a truck accident overturning numerous wooden cages full of parrots, even reports of parrots flying out of moving airplanes during transportation. Although it seems that these stories are varied and likely to change in the future,  one thing that is unlikely to change is the consistent and future presence of these remarkable birds.

I continue to search for these flocks and I have publicly uploaded  many of  my  videos which can be seen on a Youtube channel known as Californiaflocks.  My channel’s mission is to raise human awareness and appreciation for the parrots that share our state, while giving viewers insight into the lives  of these exotic beauties  which fly over our heads.

Clever cockatoo invents tools to reach food

This Goffin’s cockatoo named Figaro is believed to be the first parrot ever observed to craft tools for reaching food and other objects.

/

Alice Auersberg

Parrots are not known to use tools in the wild, but scientists say they’ve observed a captive Goffin’s cockatoo named Figaro crafting implements to snatch food that’s just out of reach.

Figaro was spotted playing with a pebble in the aviary where he lives at a research facility near Vienna, and at one point, the bird dropped the stone outside the mesh of his caged enclosure. When he couldn’t reach the pebble with his beak or claw, Figaro grabbed a small stick to fish for the stone, the researchers say. 

“To investigate this further we later placed a nut where the pebble had been and started to film,” said Alice Auersperg of the University of Vienna. “To our astonishment he did not go on searching for a stick but started biting a large splinter out of the aviary beam. He cut it when it was just the appropriate size and shape to serve as a raking tool to obtain the nut. It was already a surprise to see him use a tool, but we certainly did not expect him to make one by himself.”

Auersperg said Figaro successfully got the nut each time they placed it just outside of his reach, and almost every time, he fashioned a new tool or modified an old one to be the right shape and size for the task. [See Photos of the Crafty Cockatoo]

Researchers say it is not clear how Figaro learned to invent tools, but they believe their observations show that large-brained, problem-solving species may have the capacity to make and use tools spontaneously even if they don’t do so habitually.

“Even though Figaro is still alone in the species and among parrots in showing this capacity, his feat demonstrates that tool craftsmanship can emerge from intelligence not-specialized for tool use,” said researcher Alex Kacelnik of Oxford University. “Importantly, after making and using his first tool, Figaro seemed to know exactly what to do, and showed no hesitation in later trials.”

Kacelnik has previously led studies on New Caledonian crows, which are expert tool-makers in the wild and seem to hone their craft by learning from elders. But in one case much like Figaro’s, Kacelnik observed a New Caledonian crow named Betty inventing an unprecedented kind of wire-hooking tool to retrieve out-of-reach food.

“We confess to be still struggling to identify the cognitive operations that make these deeds possible,” Kacelnik said. “Figaro, and his predecessor Betty, may help us unlock many unknowns in the evolution of intelligence.”

The research appears this week in the journal Current Biology.

Follow LiveScience on Twitter @livescience. We’re also on Facebook  Google+.

• Pretty Bird: Images of a Clever Parrot
• Creative Creatures: 10 Animals That Use Tools
• The 5 Smartest Non-Primates on the Planet

Not just a pretty boy: Parrot fashions tool out of stick to retrieve nuts – video

A cockatoo called Figaro has astonished scientists by figuring out how to manufacture and use tools.

It is the first time a parrot has shown this ability. The captive-reared Goffin’s cockatoo uses his bird brain to fashion wooden sticks just the right size and shape for retrieving nuts placed out of his reach.

Austrian animal behaviour experts noticed that Figaro was more than just a pretty boy while observing him playing with a small stone.

Dr Alice Auersperg, from the University of Vienna, said: “At some point he inserted the pebble through the cage mesh, and it fell just outside his reach. After some unsuccessful attempts to reach it with his claw, he fetched a small stick and started fishing for his toy.

“To investigate this further we later placed a nut where the pebble had been and started to film. To our astonishment he did not go on searching for a stick but started biting a large splinter out of the aviary beam. He cut it when it was just the appropriate size and shape to serve as a raking tool to obtain the nut.

“It was already a surprise to see him use a tool, but we certainly did not expect him to make one by himself. From that time on, Figaro was successful on obtaining the nut every single time we placed it there, nearly each time making new tools.

“On one attempt he used an alternative solution, breaking a side arm off a branch and modifying the leftover piece to the appropriate size for raking.”

Figaro shares a large aviary with a group of other Goffin’s cockatoos at a research facility near Vienna, where scientists are studying their intelligence.

A description of his abilities appears in the latest issue of the journal Current Biology.

New Caledonian crows, jays and Kea parrots are all known to use stick tools.

Both crows and jays have been observed constructing tools, but Figaro is the first example of a tool-making parrot.

Professor Alex Kacelnik, from Oxford University, who led previous research on New Caledonian crows and was a member of the team studying Figaro, said: “Figaro shows us that, even when they are not habitual tool-users, members of a species that are curious, good problem-solvers, and large-brained, can sculpt tools out of a shapeless source material to fulfil a novel need.

“Even though Figaro is still alone in the species and among parrots in showing this capacity, his feat demonstrates that tool craftsmanship can emerge from intelligence not-specialized for tool use. Importantly, after making and using his first tool, Figaro seemed to know exactly what to do, and showed no hesitation in later trials.”

Wild Goffin’s cockatoos live in large social groups in tropical forests on the Indonesian Tanimbar islands.

There are no reports of the birds using tools in their natural habitat.

The researchers recorded Figaro making 10 different tools in 10 trials. Nine were manufactured, either from wooden splinters or, in one case, a twig picked up off the aviary floor.

Figaro performed a complex series of operations to modify the branching twig and turn it into a suitable tool.

The scientists wrote in their paper: “The first cut was discarded. He then removed a large side arm from near the twig’s stem by stepping on the stem whilst twisting off the side-arm with his beak.

“Figaro tried the entire side-arm first, but after an unsuccessful insertion attempt shortened the remaining first by a third and finally cut the remaining part in half. He used the resulting.. piece successfully to retrieve the food.”

Two other Goffin’s cockatoos sharing Figaro’s aviary, Pipin and Heidi, were also tested.

Pipin did not try to use tools, but Heidi made some unsuccessful attempts after watching Figaro at work.

Beaky’s bad language is ruffling a few feathers

Comments  | 

Read all comments on this story.

Staff at the RSPCA tell
of Beaky’s colourful language. Video: James Snaith

by Nick Lillitos

There’s no talking behind your back. He gives it to you
straight, up front.

So before you let him in just make sure there are no dinner
guests around.

He might greet them with “f..k you,” or “a…hole” and, if he’s
in a more subdued mood: “Stupid.”

His name is Beaky, an exotic parrot who’s brilliant at
mimicking, picking up words in no time at all. And he’s looking for
a good home.

“He has quite a vocabulary and will certainly be a challenging
house guest,” said RSPCA spokesman Calie Rydings.

Their Leybourne animal centre, West Malling, is looking for
specialist owners to house him, along with one other bird called
Captain Scarlet, a small little creature who loves to whistle. He
is a parrot native to eastern and southern Australia.

“Beaky is an intelligent and playful bird but unfortunately this
talent means that he’s picked up some rather colourful language at
his previous home!”

“He has quite a vocabulary and will certainly be a challenging house guest” – RSPCA spokesman Calie Rydings

His previous owner
suffered from health issues. So Beaky was placed with the
RSPCA.

His species is Chattering Lories, forest-dwelling parrots
endemic in North Maluku, Indonesia.

“Beaky enjoys the company of people although he may bite at
first until he has formed a bond with someone,” says Calie. “He has
always lived in a cage but may adapt to living in an aviary.

“If kept in a cage, he should be allowed out for safe flying
time every day.”

Angelina Lusher, supervisor at the centre, said: “We’ve tried
all our usual contacts to rehome these birds with responsible and
experienced owners, but still need to find them good new
homes.”

“Both are beautiful birds but please only come forward to rehome
them if you do have experience in keeping exotic species like
these.”

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Tending to her flock

BROOKSVILLE

Debbie Stafford realizes that some people might consider her a little crazy — cuckoo, even — for keeping 50 brightly colored, highly vocal parrots at her home.

But to her it’s a passion and a serious business — one that may even be part of her heritage.

Stafford, 56, is descended from Cherokee and Kiowa American Indians, she said. Her Indian name is Many White Feathers, which can be shortened to Feather. For that reason, she’s named her nonprofit parrot rescue, along with her for-profit bird marketing business, Feather to Feather.

In the nonprofit part of her operation, she rescues abandoned birds, trains them to be more sociable and finds homes for them free of charge.

Stafford also markets parrots at bird shows and online. She charges $25 for in-home consultations, and charges clients for retraining their birds at her aviary.

Veterinary technician Lynn Sawyer at Advanced Veterinary Care of Pasco, a certified avian practice in Hudson, said she knows of no one who makes house calls or trains parrots like Stafford does. “She’s an original. She’s one of a kind,” Sawyer said.

Stafford and her husband of 23 years, Bruce, live amid their flock of pets and pets in training in a forested neighborhood off Route 98 north of Brooksville.

In 1997, Debbie Stafford was approached by a friend who had become the owner of two white cockatoos but didn’t know how to raise them.

Stafford didn’t know either, but was determined to teach herself — reading and even watching bird behavior at Tampa’s Lowry Park Zoo.

“I’m the type of person, I read a lot,” she said. “I want to learn everything about (a subject).”

Stafford successfully cared for the fledglings and trained them for human companionship. In payment, the friend gave her one of the cockatoos.

At the time, Bruce Stafford was driving a tractor-trailer and Debbie Stafford rode with him. For seven years the cockatoo, named Sir Lancelot but affectionately called Baby, rode along with them.

But the time came when Debbie Stafford felt Baby needed a feathered friend. Today the bird has 49 friends — cockatoos, cockatiels, mini-macaws, conures — the number fluctuating as eggs hatch, birds are sold, and parrots are rescued and adopted.

She names every bird and knows all of their backgrounds, and even their calls.

Standing outside her house recently, with a red-blue-yellow macaw perched on her shoulder, Stafford cocked her head at bird sounds coming from inside the home behind her.

“That’s Sammy and Baby Blue,” she said.

One of her birds has some local fame.

Oscar, a rescue parrot, is able to see only shadows. Because awareness of vision impairment is one of the missions of Lions Clubs International, the newly organized club in Ridge Manor has chosen Oscar as its mascot.

Stafford attributed Oscar’s poor eyesight to an all-seed diet lacking in fruits, vegetables and vitamins.

“We thought we could get the word out about parrots and feeding,” she said, adding that nutrition can affect human eyesight, too.

The story of Wind Dancer, Stafford’s first rescue parrot, has an even happier ending. Stafford first saw the cockatoo, which was then nearly bald, at a bird show a decade ago. The owner claimed the 4-year-old bird had plucked out his feathers because he was distraught at not having a mate.

But Stafford suspected the real problem was a lack of attention from the owner.

Wind Dance was fitted with a jacket to prevent him from plucking his feathers and given lots of care.

Then, four years after adopting him, she posted a magazine photo of a well-feathered bird near Wind Dancer’s cage. She told the bird: “If you stop plucking your feathers, you’ll be beautiful like the picture.”

In her home two weeks ago, she showed off the snowy, scallop-plumed parrot.

“He hasn’t plucked a feather since,” she said.

She has often encountered caged parrots that scream. Some owners give them food to stop, which Stafford says only encourages them.

“Once they learn to scream, it’s hard to change them.”

But screaming is also a natural reaction to alarm, which can sometimes be eased by slight changes in their surroundings, Stafford said.

Recently, she was called to a home where a parrot had been screeching continuously for about a week.

Stafford looked at the living room where the owner kept the parrot’s cage, and noticed a belt.

She asked, ” ‘How long has that belt been lying across the back of your couch?’ ” she asked the woman.

About a week, the owner answered.

” ‘Your bird thinks it’s a snake and it’s screaming because it’s afraid,’ ” Stafford said.

She moved the belt and the parrot grew quiet.

Stafford advises owners who get a new bird to sit with it, talk and sing to it, and mimic its movements.

Eventually, the bird will understand that the owner can be trusted. Once it looks the owner in the eye, Stafford said, the bird can be brought outside of its cage and handled.

And, in some cases, taught tricks.

As a visitor prepared to leave two weeks ago, Stafford told a Catalina macaw to wave bye-bye.

Sure enough, the bird shifted its weight, lifted one claw, and waved.

Beth Gray can be reached at graybethn@earthlink.net.

Black market in rare birds suspected in northern district

A BLACK market for rare and expensive birds is operating in the northern district, warns Eastwood resident Ian Sheffield president of the Parrot Society of Australia (NSW).

Ten of his exotic birds were stolen from the aviary in the backyard of his Eastwood home while he slept about a month ago.

A pair of breeding Alexandrines, their three baby Alexandrines, one immature male Alexandrine and two breeding pairs of Plum head parrots went missing,

“I was just devastated when I walked outside and they were missing,” he said. “The value of the birds varied, but to me they were priceless.”

The estimated value could exceed $60,000 in the bird’s breeding lifetime,” he said. “The big thing is the dollar value is there because we can’t import them anymore. So we have got to breed good ones from what we have.”

Police are investigating the theft of birds from residential aviaries or cages over the past six months.

Detective Sergeant, Dave Parmeter at Eastwood LAC said they had recovered 14 birds believed to be stolen.

The birds were retrieved from two pet shops, but none of them were Mr Sheffield’s missing parrots.

“We are seeking other victims may not have reported it, and may have just thought their birds escaped,” he said.

Anyone with information about missing bird should contact Eastwood Police on 9858 9299.

Parrot theft rife in Sydney

A lucrative black market in stolen exotic birds probably run by insiders is apparently operating around Sydney, the head of a bird society says.

Commenting as police seized 14 parrots and finches from a property in Sydney, Australian Parrot Society president Ian Sheffield said bird theft was rife around Sydney.

“There’s plenty of it and too much,” Mr Sheffield told AAP.

“The Parrot Society meets once a month and one or two thefts are reported at each meeting.

“And that’s not to mention the numerous bird shops that will also tell you they’ve lost birds.”

He said detectives were “astounded” by the scale of the operation.

Police on Thursday issued an appeal to the owners of the parrots and finches, recovered from a property in Sydney’s north, which they believe were stolen from private aviaries.

The birds include a bright red female eclectus, a male princess parrot and green-cheeked conures.

Mr Sheffield said he had a pair of breeding alexandrine parakeets with a potential breeding value of $65,000 stolen in August.

Also stolen from his Eastwood property were three baby alexandrines, one immature male alexandrine and two breeding pairs of plumhead parrots.

He said detectives dealing with his case were “astounded when they started looking at how many separate incidents there were”.

Mr Sheffield believes the thefts are targeted and carried out by people who understand the bird market.

“Most of them have a fair knowledge of birds to start with, so they know what they’re looking for.”

He did not know where the stolen birds ended up.

Police have appealed for residential aviary owners in Sydney’s northwest who believed their birds had been stolen over the past six months to contact Eastwood Local Command.

Acting Detective Inspector Dave Parmenter told AAP that charges had yet to be laid over the recent seizures, but police were confident of making an arrest soon.

Mr Sheffield said he still held hope that his birds would be recovered.

“I’m hoping the police appeal will jog someone’s memory that’s bought a pair like they’ve described.”