Genome sequencing may shed light on parrots` longevity and intelligence

Washington: Researchers at Texas A and M University have successfully sequenced the complete genome of a Scarlet macaw for the first time.

This is a groundbreaking move that could provide new insight into avian evolution, biology and conservation.

The team was led by Drs. Christopher Seabury and Ian Tizard at the Schubot Exotic Bird Health Center in the College of Veterinary Medicine and Biomedical Sciences at Texas A ‘n’ M.

Macaws are found in tropical Central and South America, from southern Mexico to northern Argentina. Trapping of the birds for the pet trade, plus loss of habitat due to deforestation in their native lands, has severely decreased their numbers since the 1960s.

There are 23 species of macaws, and some of these have already become extinct while others are endangered.

Macaws can live 50 to 75 years and often outlive their owners.

“They are considered to be among the most intelligent of all birds and also one of the most affectionate – it is believed they are sensitive to human emotions,” stated Tizard.

The bird selected for the sequencing was a female named “Neblina” who lives in the Blank Park Zoo in Des Moines, Iowa. Neblina is believed to be from Brazil. She was confiscated during a raid on illegally imported exotic birds by the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service in 1995.

Tizard said that a blood sample was taken from Neblina, DNA was extracted for sequencing, and after a series of steps, the sequence of the genome was assembled by Seabury and his team.

“The final analysis showed that there are about one billion DNA bases in the genome, which is about one-third of that found in mammals,” Tizard explained.

“Birds have much less DNA than mammals primarily because they do not possess nearly as much repetitive DNA,” he noted.

The final completed genome demonstrates some similarities to that of the chicken.

“But there are significant differences at both the genome and biological level,” he added.

For example, “Macaws can fly great distances, while chickens can’t. In addition, brain development and volume are very different in macaws, which is unsurprising since they are very intelligent birds compared to chickens. Likewise, macaws can live many years, while chickens usually do not, and therefore, our macaw genome sequence may help shed light on the genetic factors that influence longevity and intelligence.”

Tizard noted that a Scarlet macaw was selected for the first such sequencing of its type because Texas A ‘n’M researchers have been studying the bird for many years. Working primarily at the Tambopata Research Center in Peru, Texas A ‘n’ M bird experts have been investigating macaw diseases, behaviour and genetics.

“We now have the ability to initiate large-scale, genome-wide approaches for population and phylogeography studies,” explained Seabury, who is a collaborator of Donald Brightsmith, director of the Tambopata Macaw Research Project in Peru.

Seabury and Brightsmith added that the array of research possibilities regarding the Scarlet Macaw has now been significantly broadened by this research initiative.

Their work is published in the current issue of the open access and peer-reviewed scientific journal PLOS ONE.

ANI

Genome sequencing may shed light on parrots’ longevity and intelligence

Washington, May 14 (ANI): Researchers at Texas A and M University have successfully sequenced the complete genome of a Scarlet macaw for the first time.

Their work is published in the current issue of the open access and peer-reviewed scientific journal PLOS ONE. (ANI)

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Genome sequencing may shed light on parrots’ longevity and intelligence

Washington: Researchers at Texas A and M University have successfully sequenced the complete genome of a Scarlet macaw for the first time.

This is a groundbreaking move that could provide new insight into avian evolution, biology and conservation.

The team was led by Drs. Christopher Seabury and Ian Tizard at the Schubot Exotic Bird Health Center in the College of Veterinary Medicine and Biomedical Sciences at Texas A ‘n’ M.

Macaws are found in tropical Central and South America, from southern Mexico to northern Argentina. Trapping of the birds for the pet trade, plus loss of habitat due to deforestation in their native lands, has severely decreased their numbers since the 1960s.

There are 23 species of macaws, and some of these have already become extinct while others are endangered.

Macaws can live 50 to 75 years and often outlive their owners.

“They are considered to be among the most intelligent of all birds and also one of the most affectionate – it is believed they are sensitive to human emotions,” stated Tizard.

The bird selected for the sequencing was a female named “Neblina” who lives in the Blank Park Zoo in Des Moines, Iowa. Neblina is believed to be from Brazil. She was confiscated during a raid on illegally imported exotic birds by the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service in 1995.

Tizard said that a blood sample was taken from Neblina, DNA was extracted for sequencing, and after a series of steps, the sequence of the genome was assembled by Seabury and his team.

“The final analysis showed that there are about one billion DNA bases in the genome, which is about one-third of that found in mammals,” Tizard explained.

“Birds have much less DNA than mammals primarily because they do not possess nearly as much repetitive DNA,” he noted.

The final completed genome demonstrates some similarities to that of the chicken.

“But there are significant differences at both the genome and biological level,” he added.

For example, “Macaws can fly great distances, while chickens can’t. In addition, brain development and volume are very different in macaws, which is unsurprising since they are very intelligent birds compared to chickens. Likewise, macaws can live many years, while chickens usually do not, and therefore, our macaw genome sequence may help shed light on the genetic factors that influence longevity and intelligence.”

Tizard noted that a Scarlet macaw was selected for the first such sequencing of its type because Texas A ‘n’M researchers have been studying the bird for many years. Working primarily at the Tambopata Research Center in Peru, Texas A ‘n’ M bird experts have been investigating macaw diseases, behaviour and genetics.

“We now have the ability to initiate large-scale, genome-wide approaches for population and phylogeography studies,” explained Seabury, who is a collaborator of Donald Brightsmith, director of the Tambopata Macaw Research Project in Peru.

Seabury and Brightsmith added that the array of research possibilities regarding the Scarlet Macaw has now been significantly broadened by this research initiative.

Their work is published in the current issue of the open access and peer-reviewed scientific journal PLOS ONE.

ANI

Parrots Glued to Trees Will Fly Free in Rainforest

Justice was served in the West African rainforest recently when 14 African Grey Parrots were confiscated from the grip of a smuggler headed for Nigeria. The birds’ capture from the rainforest canopy symbolizes the brutality of the exotic bird trade here, yet their recovery sends perhaps a more profound message about the priceless contributions of wildlife rehabilitators who seize every opportunity to help.

In order to trap the parrots in Cameroon’s Korup National Park, the smuggler smeared glue on branches high in the canopy and placed a “bait” parrot on one branch to attract other birds. After trapping several parrots in the glue, the smuggler used his machete to cut all of the parrots’ primary feather (or flight feathers) to prevent them from flying away.

One of the parrots is examined under anesthesia.

“These feathers were some of the worst that our vet team has ever seen and it was clear that the parrots had been held captive for some time,” explains Ainare Idoiaga of the Limbe Wildlife Centre. “During the health checks our vet team pulled out the feather shafts of all damaged primary feathers. This stimulates new feather growth, more than waiting for them to molt naturally which takes up to two years to complete.”

The parrots were in a state of terror when they arrived at the Limbe Wildlife Centre and the team worked very quickly, placing the birds under anesthesia to perform treatment with the least degree of stress. And though those first couple days were very tense for the parrots, it wasn’t long before they began to understand that they were safe.

They Are Singing Again!

The parrots have settled in and will enter flight cages once feather re-growth is underway.

“The first day they arrived they were very quiet, but now they fill our quarantine area with song,” Ainare said hopefully. “The parrots are in the quarantine cages so that way we can keep a close eye on them as they begin to heal. Once the primary feathers begin to grow again and the parrots can land softly on the ground, we will move them to our flight cage. Finally, when the parrots are capable of flying the long distances necessary for migration, they will be released.”

Enjoy more photos from the Limbe Wildlife Centre here.

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Hundreds of Parrots Fly Free!

On a Wing and a Prayer

Exotic bird trade going unchecked

Updated

November 17, 2012 19:17:13

Photo:
These are x-rays of wildlife (lizards) being smuggled in suitcases. (Australian Customs Service)

The illegal trade of birds into and out of Australia is going virtually unchecked, with two sweeping government investigations failing to prosecute the smugglers they identified.

The investigations revealed the role of sophisticated networks of criminals trading eggs of native parrots with those of exotic parrots from South Africa, Singapore and the Philippines.

But despite having some of the toughest penalties in the world for wildlife crime, up to 10 years in jail and $100,000 fines, the alleged perpetrators were not even charged.

The previous national manager of investigations with the Australian Customs Service says that is because wildlife investigations are poorly resourced.

Richard Janeczko, who retired from Customs in 2009, says the illegal trade in birds is alive and well.

But he says the lack of prosecutions is because of the poor quality of evidence obtained during the investigations.

“I believe with a bit more resources effort and equipment those people could be successfully prosecuted,” he said.

“There’s no point in having all those great penalties without anyone who’s actually going to find the crime, do the paperwork, take them to court and prosecute people.”

Photo:
These pigeons were being smuggled in this man’s tights. (Australian Customs Service)

Species extinction

The two investigations were carried out between 2004 and 2009 and involved state and federal authorities.

Their failure has seen the illegal trade in birds expand and the traders become more brazen.

Mr Janeczko says if nothing changes, some of Australia’s most unique wildlife could become extinct if diseases are introduced with the exotic wildlife.

“I think these animals will die out,” he said.

“If you look at things that happened to some Australian animals, including the Tasmanian devils, that’s a good example about introduction of diseases by wildlife smugglers.

“It can wipe out a whole range of animals and once they’re gone you can’t bring them back.”

An example of the dangers was documented last year when two diseased pigeons were smuggled into Australia.

They carried the highly infectious and deadly paramyxovirus, which spread in pigeons throughout Victoria and NSW.

The disease was finally controlled and contained to pigeons, but it created a huge scare because of fears it could mutate and infect chickens.

Photo:
A blue-fronted amazon (Amazona aestiva)

A similar incident involving exotic parrots was not made public.

Background Briefing has learned a smuggled exotic parrot introduced the proventricular dilatation disease (PDD) to Australia back in 2003.

PDD is a serious problem in a number of other countries but had been controlled in Australia.

“[PDD] is a huge problem in North America and through Europe, and this disease is endemic in a lot of the critically endangered parrots and a lot of the conservation programs are in place to save those birds,” said veterinarian Dr Adrian Gallagher, who diagnosed six infected birds at his Brisbane clinic.

“The disease emerged in Australia in around 2003 and there was a cluster of cases around south-east Queensland and northern New South Wales.”

Quarantines unenforced

When the first PDD case presented at Dr Gallagher’s clinic, he says he immediately imposed quarantine conditions on the bird owner’s aviaries.

However, because PDD is not officially recognised as infectious in Australia, the quarantine request could not be enforced.

Dr Gallagher says the client subsequently sold all of his bird collection before it could be determined how many were diseased.

Apart from another five unrelated cases, Dr Gallagher has not diagnosed PDD at his clinic again.

Daniel Gowland, whose family runs research and breeding facilities for parrots near Queanbeyan, says he has contacted government departments several times about his concerns about the illegal trade.

But he says his concerns fall on deaf ears.

“It would appear that there is nobody doing anything about the legal trade in animals,” Mr Gowland said.

In a written statement sent to Background Briefing, Federal Environment Minister Tony Burke said his department regularly receives and assesses allegations of wildlife crime.

The statement said in some cases those tip-offs led to seizures.

The full report by Hagar Cohen can be heard on Radio National’s Background Briefing on Sunday morning.

Topics:
birds,
crime

First posted

November 17, 2012 19:12:46

Destined for Rainbow Springs

NEW ADVENTURE: Long time bird expert, Murray Powell, donated one of his scarlet macaw to Rainbow Springs.

He is big, scarlet and likes to make a lot of noise – meet the latest Hamiltonian destined to make it big.

The scarlet macaw has left his home destined for Rainbow Springs at Rotorua, where he will star in its free flight bird show.

He will not feel alone in his new neighbourhood with a few Eclectus Parrots from Hamilton Zoo also making the trip to Rotorua.

The three-year-old macaw was yesterday collected from the home of his ”dad” Murray Powell, the man who founded the zoo.

Mr Powell now has an exotic bird aviary on his property, and the macaw was born and hand-reared there.

”I’m his dad, and his mum, and it’s always sad to see one of the kids go,” Mr Powell said.

”But the life he is going to, well he is going to enjoy the hell out of it.”

That life will see him eventually star alongside Richie the macaw in the Rainbow Springs free flight bird show.

The macaw will perform each day to 400 people, said Rainbow Springs’ Kelly-Anne Banks.

”How soon it takes for him to be ready really depends on the bird.”

The macaw  would love his new home because the species is highly intelligent and craves companionship, Mr Powell said.

”This type of bird, he loves the attention, loves being around humans,” he said.

”A lot of people have parrots and leave for work at 7am and don’t get home past 5pm and that’s where the birds come unstuck.

”It’s hard to say goodbye to this little one but I know he is going to the best place for him, being able to show off every day in front of  all those people, he’s going to be famous.”

Once the macaw settles in at Rainbow Springs  the Wildlife and Presentations manager, Mark Paterson, will work with him and train him, getting him more used to being handled before he takes part in the show.

The macaw will fly across the auditorium, giving the public a rare chance to see bird.

The macaw is one of the world’s largest species of parrots and can live for up to 50 years in captivity.

– © Fairfax NZ News

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$1700 parrot stolen from North Dallas pet store

Dallas police are searching for a woman who was caught on video walking out of a pet store with a $1,700 parrot on her shoulder.

The woman didn’t pay for the exotic bird, but did leave her purse behind, the general manager of the store said.

The theft happened Thursday at Petland on Preston Road and was captured on the store’s surveillance tape.

Chris Brauer, general manager of Petland, said the culprit is a woman who regularly visits the store to look at the birds. She walked in around 7 p.m., he said, and then walked out with the bright red parrot when the clerk’s back was turned.

The clerk didn’t realize the bird was gone until about 30 minutes later, Brauer said.

On Friday, a man came in the store and said he was there to pick up the woman’s purse, Brauer said. Employees called police, who questioned the man and were able to narrow down a suspect, according to a police report. The woman remains at-large Saturday afternoon.

Brauer said he is hopeful that the parrot, which is called a  Solomon Island Eclectuswill return, but worries that its personality will be irrevocably damaged if it is held in unsafe conditions too long. Parrots do not handle change well, so

The customer in pink walks out of the store while a clerk’s back is turned.

the bird could become upset if it is moved around often, he said. Prior to being stolen, the bird was friendly, he said.

“I have employees that are really bonded with this bird,” he said.

The store is considering offering a reward for its safe return. In the meantime, employees ask that anyone with information call Dallas police at 214-670-8333.

‘God’s little ambassadors’: Birds and the people who love them

Let’s get a parrot, Sherryl Cox told her husband.

Ernie Cox had bought a parrot before, for his daughter during his first marriage.

It was a Quaker, a medium-sized green parrot that never won over his ex-wife or son.

But Ernie kind of liked that bird.

So yeah, let’s get a parrot, he replied to Sherryl.

This is their second marriage, after all. Their kids from the previous marriages are grown, so they do what they want this go-round: travel, dress up for Renaissance fairs, buy parrots.

Except the first one died. Then they saw an ad for a parrot in need of a good home: a 4-year-old green-cheeked conure they named Jasper. They drove across several states to pick up the bird and bring it home.

Now Jasper snuggles in Ernie’s shirt at night. She dances. She squeezes Ernie’s hand when she needs to use the bathroom (in the toilet). She rules the roost.

But she’s not the only one.

After Jasper came Kasha, a sassy cinnamon-cheeked conure who will snuggle anyone (even giggling, nervous newspaper reporters).

“Two is our limit,” they said.

It wasn’t.

Then came Sweet P, a Quaker parrot. And Juno, a parakeet. (Bird people call them budgies.)

Their birds’ massive cages consume much of the space in Ernie and Sherryl’s tidy apartment living room. The parrots have perches high in the living room, on the front porch, in the shower.

Sherryl Cox’s daughter-in-law called her “a bird lady” in a Facebook post.

“I said, ‘It’s OK you called me that. It’s better than an old cat lady.’ ”

Bird bonding

There are dog people, there are cat people – and then there are bird people.

Twice a year, Tulsa’s bird people gather for the Oklahoma Avicultural Society’s exotic bird fair.

License plates in the parking lot revealed folks came from as far as Colorado for this fall’s show, to peek at the pink parakeets, hunt for bargains on banana chips and possibly splurge on a $600 cage.

In the corner of the former Church of Christ-turned event center hosting this year’s fair, an alpha cockatoo shrieked. He was mad. Some gawkers had gotten a little too close for comfort with their iPhones.

Across the room, a calmer cockatoo canoodled with a prospective buyer while the breeder shared this selling point: You can shower with it.

“Would you like a shower?” She asks the bird as it nuzzled her.

In an adjacent room where merchants sold gourmet treats, homemade toys and denim applique shirts featuring prints of feathered friends, a lady dressed in leggings and a purple T-shirt cut right to the chase. Her shirt read: “crazy bird lady.”

A progression

Maureen Horton and Joyce Legere had a table of conures perched at the Avicultural Society fair, but it was nothing compared to the booth they run Friday through Sunday at the Great American Flea Market on Admiral Boulevard.

There, the two women support their Gifted Wings Ministry pet-assisted therapy and bird rescue by selling bird supplies and finding proper homes for birds in need.

People are typically drawn in by the sight of Callie, their “spokesbird.” Callie is a calico macaw, a hybrid, who does tricks and has an impressive vocabulary. She is not for sale.

“We don’t allow impulse buys,” Horton said. “We’re not going to sell a cockatoo to somebody if it’s their first bird.”

The bigger the bird, generally, the more expensive, time-consuming and challenging it is to care for, Horton said.

A good first bird for someone, depending on the age of the caretaker and time they can devote, might be a cockatiel or a budgie.

You do not start with a Callie.

“They go on YouTube and see these phenomenal birds, and then they come in and expect to get a bird to walk, talk and buy groceries,” Horton said. “There’s training involved.”

Horton and Legere started with two English budgies, and the passion for feathered friends grew from there.

Their flock now includes 80 birds and a $3,000 food bill.

“Once somebody becomes a bird person, there’s a natural progression,” Horton said. Which usually leads to more birds, bigger cages, and bigger bills for food and veterinary care.

Through Gifted Wings, they take their friendliest birds to visit seniors at assisted living centers, disabled people in group homes and women living at domestic violence shelters.

“We consider the birds to be God’s little ambassadors,” Horton said. “We wanted to reach those marginalized people. The birds, they’ve drawn people out of themselves.”

Even those who may not have known they were bird people.

Avicultural meetings

The Oklahoma Avicultural Society meets the fourth Sunday of each month at the Hardesty Regional Library, 8316 E. 93rd St., from 1:30 p.m. to 4 p.m. The group hosts bird fairs every spring and fall. Learn more at tulsaworld.com/OAS

Original Print Headline: Bird people

Bird people follow annual fairs

Let’s get a parrot, Sherryl Cox told her husband.

Ernie Cox had bought a parrot before, for his daughter during his first marriage.

It was a Quaker, a medium-sized green parrot that never won over his ex-wife or son.

But Ernie kind of liked that bird.

So yeah, let’s get a parrot, he replied to Sherryl.

This is their second marriage, after all. Their kids from the previous marriages are grown, so they do what they want this go-round: travel, dress up for Renaissance fairs, buy parrots.

Except the first one died. Then they saw an ad for a parrot in need of a good home: a 4-year-old green-cheeked conure they named Jasper. They drove across several states to pick up the bird and bring it home.

Now Jasper snuggles in Ernie’s shirt at night. She dances. She squeezes Ernie’s hand when she needs to use the bathroom (in the toilet). She rules the roost.

But she’s not the only one.

After Jasper came Kasha, a sassy cinnamon-cheeked conure who will snuggle anyone (even giggling, nervous newspaper reporters).

“Two is our limit,” they said.

It wasn’t.

Then came Sweet P, a Quaker parrot. And Juno, a parakeet. (Bird people call them budgies.)

Their birds’ massive cages consume much of the space in Ernie and Sherryl’s tidy apartment living room. The parrots have perches high in the living room, on the front porch, in the shower.

Sherryl Cox’s daughter-in-law called her “a bird lady” in a Facebook post.

“I said, ‘It’s OK you called me that. It’s better than an old cat lady.’ ”

Bird bonding

There are dog people, there are cat people – and then there are bird people.

Twice a year, Tulsa’s bird people gather for the Oklahoma Avicultural Society’s exotic bird fair.

License plates in the parking lot revealed folks came from as far as Colorado for this fall’s show, to peek at the pink parakeets, hunt for bargains on banana chips and possibly splurge on a $600 cage.

In the corner of the former Church of Christ-turned event center hosting this year’s fair, an alpha cockatoo shrieked. He was mad. Some gawkers had gotten a little too close for comfort with their iPhones.

Across the room, a calmer cockatoo canoodled with a prospective buyer while the breeder shared this selling point: You can shower with it.

“Would you like a shower?” She asks the bird as it nuzzled her.

In an adjacent room where merchants sold gourmet treats, homemade toys and denim applique shirts featuring prints of feathered friends, a lady dressed in leggings and a purple T-shirt cut right to the chase. Her shirt read: “crazy bird lady.”

A progression

Maureen Horton and Joyce Legere had a table of conures perched at the Avicultural Society fair, but it was nothing compared to the booth they run Friday through Sunday at the Great American Flea Market on Admiral Boulevard.

There, the two women support their Gifted Wings Ministry pet-assisted therapy and bird rescue by selling bird supplies and finding proper homes for birds in need.

People are typically drawn in by the sight of Callie, their “spokesbird.” Callie is a calico macaw, a hybrid, who does tricks and has an impressive vocabulary. She is not for sale.

“We don’t allow impulse buys,” Horton said. “We’re not going to sell a cockatoo to somebody if it’s their first bird.”

The bigger the bird, generally, the more expensive, time-consuming and challenging it is to care for, Horton said.

A good first bird for someone, depending on the age of the caretaker and time they can devote, might be a cockatiel or a budgie.

You do not start with a Callie.

“They go on YouTube and see these phenomenal birds, and then they come in and expect to get a bird to walk, talk and buy groceries,” Horton said. “There’s training involved.”

Horton and Legere started with two English budgies, and the passion for feathered friends grew from there.

Their flock now includes 80 birds and a $3,000 food bill.

“Once somebody becomes a bird person, there’s a natural progression,” Horton said. Which usually leads to more birds, bigger cages, and bigger bills for food and veterinary care.

Through Gifted Wings, they take their friendliest birds to visit seniors at assisted living centers, disabled people in group homes and women living at domestic violence shelters.

“We consider the birds to be God’s little ambassadors,” Horton said. “We wanted to reach those marginalized people. The birds, they’ve drawn people out of themselves.”

Even those who may not have known they were bird people.

Avicultural meetings

The Oklahoma Avicultural Society meets the fourth Sunday of each month at the Hardesty Regional Library, 8316 E. 93rd St., from 1:30 p.m. to 4 p.m. The group hosts bird fairs every spring and fall. Learn more at tulsaworld.com/OAS

Original Print Headline: Bird people

Parrot Island recovers from fire threat

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The birds of Parrot Island are recuperating after a stressful last few days when flames encroached upon their dwelling.

Ray Parkes, owner of the exotic bird sanctuary, said events unfolded quickly Sunday night.

“We were in the house and my wife said she thought she could smell smoke,” said Parkes.

“I looked out the window and saw the smoke, so I drove down to Star Place and there was a policeman already there. I said, ‘Is it going to be bad?’ He said, ‘I think so.’”

Parkes headed back to Parrot Island. Family and friends helped he and his wife Valerie seal up the parrot house to prevent smoke from getting in.

“There was no time to get them out and with the amount of smoke that was around, it wouldn’t be good for them to come out and breathe in that smoke.”

Parkes said the parrot house is not surrounded by trees. It has a metal roof, metal sides and metal on the walls inside; therefore, he was optimistic that the fire wouldn’t get too close to the building.

As an extra precaution, he put a few sprinklers on to dampen the ground surrounding the building.

When Parkes was ordered to evacuate, he was upset and didn’t want to leave the previously abandoned exotic birds he had helped rescue.

He wasn’t the only one concerned about the situation.

Parrot Island was flooded with e-mails and phone calls from those concerned about the birds. Parkes said people from as far away as Calgary were offering their assistance.

“My wife and I were overwhelmed with the support.”

The evacuation order was reduced to an alert for Parrot Island Tuesday, so Parkes was permitted to come back and look after his birds.

The exotic bird sanctuary, located on MacKinnon Road, takes in abandoned parrots from throughout Canada and attempts to find them a home with a suitable owner.

According to Parkes, Parrot Island is not a profitable business. If it weren’t for donations, it would be difficult for he and his wife to keep the sanctuary running.

“Our mandate here at Parrot Island is to educate people, mostly children. These birds should be left in the wild where they’re supposed to be. If we can educate another generation…maybe we can save some from becoming extinct.”

Parkes will reopen the sanctuary Friday. He kept it closed during the week to give the birds time to get back into their routines.

He said he’s very appreciative of the work done by crews battling the blaze.

“The RCMP, the firefighters and the pilots of the planes and helicopters did a marvelous job.”

Parkes said he plans to get rid of some of the trees on his property to create a fire break in case another blaze starts in his neighbourhood in the future.

wpaterson@kelownacapnews.com