I thought that last month’s (May) magazine had a good mixture of practical articles for all branches of parrot-keeping from pet parrots and children, through the diet of wild Military macaws, with considerable scientific support, to the breeding of ever-popular grass parakeets in captivity, and a single-species in-depth description of the Meyer’s parrot. Well done to all involved! I am quite sure that many of our members have built up a wealth of experience in keeping their chosen species of parrot – whether it be in a breeding collection or as a family pet. Why not share those experiences and write an article for this magazine? Other readers will enjoy reading it, and you will pass on some valuable tips and ideas, as well as having pride in seeing your name in print!
As Adam Mogg wrote in his article about the Rare & Normal Parakeet Special Interest Group, the breeding of these birds is very much subject to the vagaries of British weather. 2020 had a hot, dry spring, while this year saw a very dry March and April, followed now by a very wet, cold May. This affects not only the breeding or otherwise of our birds, but also the native birds and plants. Tree peonies in our garden are flowering a full month later than they did last year. On my morning woodland dog walk, the delicate perfume of bluebells has now been overwhelmed by the brash, poundland scent of cow parsley. Similarly, the native bird song is drowned out by the raucous cacophony of the dozens of feral ring-necked parakeets that nest in these trees. It is still a wonderful experience to see parrots flying free in England, though.
There are two questions uppermost in members’ minds when they approach our office or individual trustees for answers. The first is – will we be holding a show at Stafford County Showground in July or October? Regrettably, we have agreed that staging an event in July is too soon to be wise, with restrictions likely still to be in place, and logistics too complex. However, we are still hopeful that both the National Exhibition in October and The December ‘Help the Birdkeepers’ show will go ahead. Trial events are taking place at Stafford this month, as well as several national gatherings. Feedback from these will allow us to confirm the next step. This is all, of course, subject to what happens with the current concern over the highly contagious Indian variant of the Covid virus. It is undoubtedly a dynamic, fluid situation.
The second big issue is the difficulty of importing or exporting birds between the United Kingdom and the European Union since Brexit. Just like the fishing fraternity on both sides of the English Channel have found, the procedure is now much more complex, with more paperwork, certification, licensed premises, and probable quarantine all involved. Even the movement of a handful of pet birds is affected. This undoubtedly means buying, selling or exchanging birds with fellow breeders on the continent will be far more difficult than it has been in the past. Organisations like the PSUK, CASC, SUN are all involved in lobbying Defra in an attempt to facilitate improvements for hobbyist keepers of not only birds, but reptiles, amphibians and fish. It is an uphill battle, since there is a strongly-voiced lobby against the keeping of ‘exotic’ species in general, which has also affected major zoological collections.
Meanwhile, the effect will be to increase the value of UK-bred birds, and hopefully raise the quality of their care: people will always make more effort over something that hits their wallet!