The Avicultural Society

AN HISTORICAL REVIEW OF PARROTS BRED IN ZOOS IN THE USA

By Joseph H. Lindholm III
First Published in The Avicultural Magazine Vol. 105 No. 4
Copyright © 1999 Avicultural Society, Published with Permission

Compiling records of Wild Birds Bred in Captivity in the Eastern United States , Beebe and Crandall (1909) were aware of only four taxa of parrots reproduced at that time. The first breedings of the Cockatiel Nymphicus hollandicus and Black-cheeked Lovebird Agapornis nigrigenis (misattributed as the Masked Lovebird A. personata ) were achieved by private aviculturists. The Budgerigar Melopsittacus undulatus is credited to the New York Zoological Park. The final species was the Carolina Parrakeet Conuropsis carolinensis , for which Beebe and Crandall (1909) provide the record of "one bird... hatched from an egg which had been placed under a Turtle Dove" on September 9^th, 1885 at the Philadelphia Zoological Garden.

While the Carolina Parrakeet was bred repeatedly in Germany as early as 1881 (Hopkinson, 1926; Kolar, 1972), I am aware of only two other North American facilities breeding this species. The Smithsonian ornithologist, Robert Ridgeway maintained a pair, collected in Florida in 1896, in his house. Several young were hatched of which one, produced in 1902, and partly hand-raised due to parental neglect, died in the possession of the malacologist, Paul Bartsch in 1914 (Bartsch, 1957; Peterson, 1957).

The Cincinnati Zoo purchased 16, collected in Florida in 1886 (Fuller 1987; Ehrlinger, 1993). Ehrlinger (1993) records that "a number... were hatched and raised... Generally, however, the birds were inattentive parents and often tossed their eggs out of their nests". By 1917 only a single pair of Cincinnati's birds (both from the original shipment) was still alive. The female died late that year. The male, the last in captivity, died on February 21^st, 1918. A pair from the 1886 group was given to the New York Zoological Park in 1911, but both were dead in less than two years (Bridges, 1974).

When Crandall (1927) produced a second revision of the 1909 list, there was only a single parrot species to add to the original four: the Peach-faced Lovebird A. roseicollis , credited to the New York Zoological Park. By that time there were a number of comprehensive parrot collections in zoos in the USA, but reproduction was almost non-existent. In its first 40 years, from 1888 through 1928, the National Zoological Park obtained 104 taxa of parrots (Mann, 1930a), yet total parrot breeding results for this period amounted to only five Budgerigars (Mann, 1930h).

San Diego Zoological Garden

Crandall (1930) was able to add a further 11 species of parrots in his final revision of Records of Birds Bred in Captivity in the United States . All had been hatched from 1926 through 1929. Ten of these first breedings in the USA were the achievements of private aviculturists. The record for Swainson's Lorikeet Trichoglossus haematodus moluccanus was credited to the San Diego Zoo.

Founded with exhibits remaining from the 1916 Panama Pacific Exposition, and relocated to its present site in 1922, the San Diego Zoological Garden had, by the late 1920s, attained the status it has held ever since as having one of the world's leading parrot collections. Through 1929, 60 taxa were obtained (Dolan and Moran, 1970). In 1925 and 1927, exchange shipments arrived from Australian zoos. A collection of lories and lorikeets was received from the Surabaya Zoo in 1929. Various species were presented by military personnel in Central America. Belle Benchley (1930a), Executive Secretary of the Zoological Society of San Diego, wrote: "The bird collection at the zoological garden. more particularly the parrot group, is now so large that it has been decided to center our efforts upon adding only the very rare, or the especially beautiful or spectacular, to this group".

Through 1930, 14 species were hatched at the San Diego Zoo (Dolan and Moran, 1970). While many of the records for this period and the early 1930s appear to have been lost, there exists very interesting documentation. Belle Benchley, Director of the San Diego Zoo from 1941 through 1953, is best remembered for her work with primates. However, I was informed by K.C. Lint (Curator of Birds from 1946 through 1976) that she was a highly competent aviculturist, personally caring for many of the birds during the Second World War.

From 1929 through 1932 she contributed a number of notes and articles to Aviculture , the journal of the Avicultural Society of America. These included detailed discussions of the breeding of Edward's Lorikeet T. h. capistratus in 1931 (Benchley 1932c), Red-sided Eclectus Eclectus roratus polychloros in 1929 (Benchley 1929a & b, 1930a) and Blue-winged Grass Parrakeet Neophema chrysostoma n 1930 (Benchley, 1930b), as well as, in 1931 hybrids between the now severely endangered Red and Blue Lory Eos h. histrio and Eastern Violet-necked Lory E. s. squamata (Benchley 1932a&b). Accounts of two unsuccessful nestings of the Purple-crowned Lorikeet Glossopsitta porphvrocephala in 1930 and 1931 (Benchley 1930b, 1932a), where in both cases eggs were eaten near hatching, are most interesting. These are apparently the only Western Hemisphere breeding attempts for this species on record; they were alluded to by Rosemary Low (1977) who was aware of no details.

Of particular interest in these Aviculture articles are statements of collection policy at that time. Regarding the Eos hybrid, Mrs Benchley (1932a) wrote: "The San Diego Zoo does not exhibit hybrid species nor freaks of any kind. We will probably send it, therefore, to some one of the aviculturists who is interested in carrying out such experiments". (The only parrot specifically noted by Delacour (1937) in his discussion of a 1936 visit to San Diego was "a hybrid E. histrio x E. hornea".

Prior to eventual success with this species, Benchley (1929b) noted"...the failure of our Blue-wing Grass Parrots to make any serious attempt to breed. These latter have been in the garden now for two years and they will be sent to Dr Patrick, who has been doing such interesting things with some of the rare parrots in the breeding way. In a large public collection the chances for breeding are less and the time of the bird man has to be devoted to a large extent to the routine cleaning and caring for the collection. Primarily, the object of a zoological garden is to maintain a comprehensive and interesting exhibit from the standpoint of public interest. Few visitors truly appreciate the rarity of a Blue-wing Grass Parrot and find the Red-rump or Chattering Lory in the adjoining cages much handsomer and more fascinating. On the other hand, those directly responsible for the development and maintenance of the zoo could not keep their interest at the necessary standard nor their zeal sufficiently intense to offset the drudgery of the hard work if it were not for the opportunity offered in such a sphere to contribute towards the scientific knowledge of the world and to do their share towards the preservation of the disappearing species".

As it happened, only one of the two pairs of Blue-winged Grass Parrakeets imported in 1927 was sent to Dr Leon Patrick in 1929 (Benchley, 1930b). Dr Patrick, of Orange, California, was one of the pioneers in what was to become the widespread propagation of Australian parrots in southern California. Prestwich (1930) cited Dr Patrick as "... the first American to make a serious attempt to save some of the fast disappearing species of Australian parrakeets (sic), and it is mainly through his untiring efforts that others have become interested; and what was considered a doubtful experiment three years ago now gives promise of success. In 1928 he successfully bred and brought to maturity one of the most difficult species - the Pileated Parrakeet Purpureicephalus spurius - as well as some Blue-winged Grass Parrakeets". Throughout its history the San Diego Zoo has continued to maintain a close relationship with private aviculturists.

Belle Benchley (1932a) observed: "We have been unusually busy this year due to doubling up on work and sometimes I wonder that we have done as well as we have. We have about 68 species of the parrot family in almost as many cages. As our cages are large, it means a lot of work just taking care of that part mechanically without the fussing necessary for little birds". The year 1932 nearly proved disastrous. In August the San Diego County Tax Assessor attempted to auction off the holdings of the Zoological Society, including all animals, to collect $6,358 in back taxes. The auction was thwarted by local police officers who announced that the 200 potential bidders would be prohibited from removing animals from the premises (Morgan, 1990). Despite general depression conditions, the resulting public outcry led to an unambiguous tax-exempt status for the society and in 1934 a property tax levy of two cents per every hundred dollars. That year the zoo's holdings included 11 taxa of lories and lorikeets, 10 of cockatoos and eight of conures among the extensive parrot collection (Benchley, 1934).

By March 1^st, 1951, 140 parrot taxa had been maintained at one time or another at San Diego and 69 were present at that date (Stott, 1951). Ken Stott Jr. (1951) then General Curator, listed 35 taxa of parrots hatched to that point, as well as five hybrids. Two species stand out in this list for sustained propagation. Leadbeater's Cockatoo Cacatua leadbeateri commenced breeding in 1935, and roughly 30 were reared to maturity by 1951 when three generations were represented in the collection. A single pair of Southern Bare-eyed Cockatoo C. s. sanguinea , which produced its first chick in 1929, had hatched "approximately 50" by 1951. Dolan and Moran (1970) document hatchings every year from 1933 through 1953, which produced at least 44, as well as 12 hatched from 1955 through 1960, again without missing a year, and single specimens hatched in 1964 and 1966.

By the end of 1968 the historical total of parrot taxa hatched at San Diego Zoo had grown to 69. As of December 31^st, 1968 176 taxa of parrots were present (Dolan and Moran, 1970), while the total number of bird taxa at the zoo was 1,076. The year-end total for bird taxa peaked on December 31^st, 1969 with 1,126 (represented by 3,465 specimens). The total number of birds raised to maturity in 1970 (as reported to the International Zoo Yearbook ) was 101 of 34 taxa (Lindholm, 1993). Eighty-three of these birds were parrots, representing 25 taxa, all Old World. Of these, 29 were lories or lorikeets, representing 10 taxa.

For several years in the early I 970s, roughly 200 taxa of parrots were held at the San Diego Zoo and parrots - especially lories and lorikeets, Australian endemics, and Psittacula species - continued to predominate in the annual tallies of birds bred. As will be discussed later, this situation would be altered by the mid-1980s.

Chicago Zoological Park

Prior to the 1960s, only one other "mainstream" zoo in the USA accomplished a significant record of parrot breeding. Opened to the public in 1934, the Chicago Zoological Park (always known more popularly as the Brookfield Zoo) acquired that year "the greater part of the collection of the Taronga Zoological Park in Sydney... shipped in one huge boat-load" (Plath, 1935). Purchased for $11,000, the shipment consisted of 98 mammals, 746 birds and 32 reptiles (Ross, 1997). The Australian specimens made up the greater part of Brookfield's bird collection for some years.

The psittacosis scare, then being widespread, special arrangements were made to quarantine the Australian parrots at Brookfield with the result that the Perching Bird House and the Parrot House were not opened to the public until early 1935. The latter structure was unique in American zoos. While San Diego maintained extensive series of outdoor parrot exhibits, and a number of other zoos' bird houses (most notably Seattle's built in the postwar 1940s) (Hill, 1953) included separate parrot halls, only the Chicago Zoological Park constructed a building with indoor exhibits devoted entirely to parrots.

At its opening the Parrot House held 41 taxa of parrots distributed among 35 aviaries. All but 12 were Australian (Plath, 1935). With individuals scattered among other locations in the zoo, the total number of parrot specimens was 259. By 1937 the total number of aviaries in the Parrot House had been reduced, by amalgamation, to 23. The number of taxa had grown to 52 (Plath, 1937). Up to this time no successful reproductions had occurred, although eggs had been laid by Swainson's Lorikeets, Black Lories Chalcopsitta a. atra and Bourke's Parrakeets N. bourkii .

Karl Plath, Brookfield Zoo's Curator of Birds from 1935 through 1961, had long before his appointment been one of America's leading private aviculturists (Prestwich, 1930). A Chicago draper, he had by 1929 achieved the first breedings in the USA of Nyasa Lovebird A. lilianae and Green-rumped Parrotlet Forpus passerinus (Crandall, 1930).

In 1938, a long-planned series of off-exhibit outdoor breeding runs was constructed and stocked on June 5th of that year. Plath (1939) provides a summary of that first breeding season: seven species, all Australian, were hatched. The highlight was the first breeding in the USA of the Princess Parrot Polytelis alexandrae (from a pair which arrived in Chicago on July 14^th, 1938 - one of three pairs which marked the species' first importation into North America). By 1950 the original 12 runs had been increased to 23 and an additional large Australian shipment had arrived in 1949. Plath (1950) listed 29 pairs representing 20 species, as well as two hybrid pairs, which he set up for that season. At this time Brookfield maintained 53 taxa of parrots. Plath (1951) enumerated all parrots fully reared there from 1938 through mid-1951.

Aside from 109 Budgerigars, there were 175 specimens representing 13 taxa. Outstanding among these records were 36 Australian King Parrots Alisterus scapularis , 35 Swainson's Lorikeets, 27 Princess Parrots, 21 Bourke's Parrakeets and 18 Crimson-winged Parrots Aprosmictus erythropterus . In addition, an indoor exhibit aviary in the Parrot House was the site of the first captive breeding of Goldie's Lorikeet T goldiei in 1951.

In 1959, Brooklfield's off-exhibit parrot breeding facility was demolished to make way for the Seven Seas Dolphinarium. Small (1970) lists all parrot breeding at the zoo up to that point. By 1959 49 Swainson's Lorikeets had been raised, together with 28 Princess Parrots and 26 Crimson-winged Parrots. In the Parrot House the number of Goldie's Lorikeets raised had risen to 11. The total number of parrot taxa raised from 1938 through 1959 totaled 19 (Small, 1970).

Small (1970) gives a detailed account of the breeding programme which commenced on public display in the Parrot House following the loss of the off-exhibit runs. From 1962 through 1969, 135 parrots of 10 taxa (plus two hybrids) were raised. Chief among these were 65 Nyasa Lovebirds (48 had been raised in the off-exhibit runs from 1951 through 1959). Other significant Parrot House rearings included a further 19 Swainson's Lorikeets, 13 Hawk- headed Parrots Deroptyus accipitrinus and 11 hybrid Scarlet Ara macao x Blue and Gold Macaws A. ararauna (one of which was hand-raised from the egg).

In 1970 the Parrot House was converted to studio space for the zoo's Design Department (Ross, 1997). Some of the inhabitants were accommodated in the Perching Bird House and other exhibits, but the greater portion of the parrot collection was dispersed. A pair of Hyacinth Macaws Anodorhynchus hyacinthinus , which had hatched a chick that lived only two days in 1969, was sold to Ralph Small, Parrot House keeper since 1961. The first fully successful breeding of this species took place in his basement in 1971 (Prestwich, 1971; Low, 1980). This was followed by five more through 1973 (Low, 1980). The first successful zoo breeding in the USA did not occur until 1975 (Brookfield's unsuccessful 1969 breeding was not reported to the International Zoo Yearbook ).

A male Lear's Macaw A. leari , estimated to have hatched in 1946, was loaned to the San Diego Zoo in 1970 where it died in 1978 (W. Schulenburg pers. comm.). The female with which it had been paired, property of the Los Angeles Zoo, was eventually sent to Busch Gardens, Tampa.

A St. Vincent Amazon Amazona guildingii , loaned to the Houston Zoo, died there some time before 1972 in "an abortive attempt to sex it by cloacal examination" (Berry, 1981).

Brookfield's role as a major breeder was thus ended, although a number of species continued to breed - most notably Nyasa Lovebirds of which 108 hatched and 101 were reared from 1970 through 1987, according to international Zoo Yearbook submissions.

Parrot Jungle and Catalina Bird Park

Two privately owned tourist facilities achieved noteworthy parrot breedings before the 1950s.

Opened in 1936, Parrot Jungle in south Miami, Florida has been one of the least documented bird collections open to the public in the USA. Since Volume 35 of the international Zoo Yearbook there have been no submissions to its breeding records or directory of institutions. Since 1991, endangered and threatened taxa havc been listed by ISIS .

The park was established by Austrian-born Franz Scherr with 25 macaws purchased from a Laredo (Texas) dealer. As of 1992, a Military Macaw A. militaris from this consignment was still alive (Clubb and Clubb. 1992). From the beginning a number of macaws were at liberty, conditioned to return to a night house. Birds which formed pairs could be confined in compartments in this facility. The system has been described in detail (Low, 1980; Clubb and Clubb, 1992). Breeding commenced in 1940 with the hatching of hybrid Scarlet x Blue and Gold Macaws. Through 1991, at least 257 macaws were hatched at Parrot Jungle from a total of 52 founders (Clubb and Clubb, 1992). While many were hybrids between Scarlet and Blue and Gold, Military or Buffon's Macaws A. ambigua , a number of pure Scarlet and Blue and Gold Macaws were also reared. Five generations of Scarlet and hybrid macaws have been produced.

Hybrids between Scarlet and Blue and Gold Macaws are popularly known, at least to American aviculturists, as Catalina Macaws, in homage to the otherwise largely forgotten Catalina Bird Park on Santa Catalina Island off the coast of California, near Los Angeles. This collection was sold in its entirety to the newly relocated Los Angeles Zoo in 1966.

One of the few published accounts of the collection is that of Jean Delacour (1937) from which the following is extracted: "Catalina Island is... the property of the Wrigley family (of chewing gum fame) who have developed it into a pleasure resort. The late Mr Wrigley, who was a keen bird fancier, combined his tastes with his interests, and created the bird park both for his amusement and as an attraction to visitors. Since his death it has been maintained mostly for the second reason... It is a walled-in enclosure, with a large and high round-shaped flying cage in front and several paths with rows of aviaries. At the back there is roomy breeding accommodation. The collection of birds is large and general, and contains very good things. There are... a large number of parrots and many small birds, including birds of paradise. Many birds breed, and I noticed some curious hybrids: two beautiful macaw's (Blue and Yellow x Red and Blue), a lovely apricot colour underneath, pale greenish blue above, much prettier than either parent, some lories Eos borneo x Trichoglossus moluccanus, and Mikado x Swinhoe's Pheasants...". The first hybrid macaws hatched at Catalina Bird Park in 1931 (Low, 1980).

Busch Gardens

It is interesting to note that while the Catalina Bird Park grew through the interests of the chewing gum manufacturer, William Wrigley, the bird gardens established by a brewer, the late August A. Busch Jr., President and Chairman of Anheuscr-Busch Inc from 1946 to 1975, evolved into a major animal collection here in the USA.

In 1959 when a Busch brewery was built in Tampa, Florida, a series of aviaries was established adjacent to that building. Busch Gardens was initially free to the public. Over the next decade a mammal collection was also developed there. By the end of 1970 the park had expanded to nearly 300 acres (approx. 121 hectares), of which the original bird gardens and brewery comprised only a small corner.

By December 1970 there were 722 mammals of 121 species and 1,841 birds of 372 species (Lucas and Duplaix-Hall. 1972). The park had become a major Florida tourist attraction with a commensurate admission charge. By the late 1990s Busch Entertainment Corporation had acquired the four Seaworld Parks as well as a number of other facilities in various states, becoming the second largest theme park owner-operator in the world, right behind the Walt Disney Company (Anon. 1994). It should be noted that in the mid- 1990s the Tampa Brewery, now closed, continued to produce nearly three million barrels of Budweiser lager annually (Anon. 1994).

In the midst of all this, Busch Gardens has produced an outstanding number of parrots. The parrot collection began with a large shipment of Australian species procured from August Busch's friend, Roland Lindemann, President and Founder of the Catskill Game Farm (Marvin Jones pers. comm.). At that time, commercial export of Australian birds was still permitted. Busch Gardens contributions to the International Zoo Yearbook's breeding records commence in 1963. Through 1994, there were only four years (1969, 1982, 1986 and 1988) when records were not received. The IZY listing for Busch Gardens has always been simply "Tampa USA". The municipally-owned Lowry Park Zoo, obscure until the 1980s, is listed as "Tampa LP". During the 1970s, Busch Gardens were operated in Van Nuys, California and Houston, Texas but were eventually closed, the California facility to make room for a brewery expansion. Over the years covered through Volume 37 of the IZY, the breeding of 105 taxa was recorded, a Western Hemisphere record exceeded only by the San Diego Zoo ( Table 2 ).

Most of this propagation took place in an extensive off-exhibit facility of suspended cages. The hatching of such prodigious numbers of birds as 616 Sun Conures Aratinga solstitialis , 403 Jendaya Conures A. jandaya , 420 Blue and Gold Macaws (71 hatched in 1994), 211 Scarlet Macaws (32 hatched in 1994) and 51 Green-winged Macaws Ara chloroptera) ( Table 3 ), was motivated in part by the desire to saturate private aviculture with captive-bred birds, thus reducing the demand for imported specimens. Michael Wells, Busch Gardens' Curator of Birds, informed me that many of these were acquired directly by breeders, becoming a major component of the North American captive population. Of particular interest over this period is the full rearing of 151 endangered Golden Conures A. guarouba and 135 vulnerable Golden-capped Conures A. auricapilla .

Since the passage of the 1992 Wild Bird Conservation Act ended the commercial importation of parrots into the USA in 1993, Busch Gardens has greatly reduced its parrot breeding efforts. The large off-exhibit breeding facility has been discontinued.

As of mid-1998, the parrot collection consisted of 60 taxa. Among institutions open to the public in the USA, this number was exceeded only by Parrot Jungle with roughly 70 taxa. The ISIS Bird Abstract for December 31^st, 1997 lists six taxa hatched at Busch Gardens that year: one Forsten's Lorikeet T. h. forsteni , three Scarlet Macaws, two Red-cheeked Macaws A. rubrogenys , 10 Golden Conures, one Green-thighed Caique Pionites l. leucogaster and one Blue-fronted Amazon Amazona aestiva .

1959 - 1972

From data collected by the editors of the International Zoo Yearbook , it can be seen that the 1960s saw a dramatic and steady growth in parrot breeding in zoos in the USA ( Table 1 ). Aside from the aforementioned institutions, few American public collections did much of significance in the 1950s. There is very little documentation. An exception is the Tracy Aviary in Salt Lake City, Utah. Opened in 1939, this municipally operated collection had, by the 1940s, assembled a "particularly interesting" collection of parrots (Delacour, 1947). When the captive reproduction of Leadbeater's Cockatoos was still an unusual occurrence, an account of Tracy Aviary's initial success with this species was published (Wilson, 1952). One of the very few public collections devoted to birds (Lindholm, 1990), Tracy Aviary ranks among the top nine institutions in the USA submitting records to the IZY for the number of taxa bred, with a total of 20 (Table 2).

Four zoos in the USA reported parrot breedings to the International Zoo Yearbook for its inaugural volume for 1959. A total of 20 species was bred, mostly by San Diego Zoo. From 1959 through 1968, 35 collections reported breedings with a total of 78 taxa listed (Table 1). Until 1966, the number of reporting institutions never exceeded nine but that year it rose to 13 - a figure below which it has never dropped since. The number of taxa produced each yeas remained below 40 until 1969 when 49 were hatched (33 being recorded for 1968). Only once, when 48 taxa were reported for 1972, have there been fewer than 52 taxa bred in any subsequent year (Table 1).

There are a number of clearly identifiable contributing factors to the increase in zoo propagation in the USA in the 1960s. In 1959, Australia prohibited the commercial export of birds. While zoos were allowed to receive captive-bred specimens under special permit, this was a complicated process. On the other hand private aviculturists, especially in California, made serious efforts to establish Australian species as self-sustaining populations, becoming quite successful with some of the grass parrakeets and rosellas. At any rate, between the overall decreased availability of Australian parrots and the increased production of some species in the private sector, a variety of Australian endemics were bred in zoos in the USA during the 1960s.

Another influence was the change in Indonesian export policies following the overthrow of the Sukarno government in 1965. Prior to this, export of wildlife appears to have been strictly regulated. For example, San Diego Zoo was allowed to import only two pairs of Rothschild's Mynahs Leucopsar rothschildi under special permit in 1961 (Lint et al. 1990; Lindholm ,1996). However, by the end of the decade hundreds of these birds were being exported each year. Apparently, the infamous President Sukarno held a personal aversion to the animal trade (Ryhiner and Mannix, 1958). In the mid and late 1960s, large numbers of Lesser Sunda and Moluccan parrots entered the international market and a number of these were bred in American zoos at this time (Table 3).

Although Brazil prohibited bird exports after 1967, South American imports in general, as well as those from India and Thailand, were arriving in the USA at peak levels in the 1960s, resulting in such species as the Nanday Conure Nandayus nenday and various Psittacula parrakeets being bred in American zoos during this period.

There were some efforts towards breeding endangered taxa. San Diego achieved the first captive breeding of Thick-billed Parrot Rhynchopsitta pachyrhyncha in 1965 (Lint, 1966), an event greeted with much fanfare including an Edward H. Bean award from the American Zoo and Aquarium Association. This success was very shortly followed by Los Angeles Zoo and the Arizona-Sonora Desert Museum. San Diego bred the Scarlet-chested Grass Parrakeet N. splendida in 1966, the first zoo success in the USA, while Busch Gardens and the Woodland Park Zoo, Seattle hatched Turquoisine Grass Parrakeets N. puichella before either species had become commonplace in aviculture.

On the whole, however, breeding results were not consistent. From Table 3 it can be seen that many species hatched in the 1960s were produced only sporadically. Parrot exhibits in zoos in the USA often tended towards multi-species displays containing whatever birds the opportunity might present. At a time when enormous numbers of Asian and Neotropical birds arrived in the USA in continuous importations, there was little impetus for zoos to make any serious attempt to breed parrots.

This situation was suddenly altered in 1972 when, in response to outbreaks of Newcastle disease in 1971, the United States Government imposed a year-long moratorium on bird imports followed by strict quarantine requirements for all subsequent importations. The resulting dramatic increase in bird prices had a profound effect on private and zoo aviculture.

1973 - 1993

From 1959 through 1972, 51 zoos in the USA reported breeding a total of 110 taxa of parrots (Table 1). From 1973 through 1994, a further 71 institutions reported breedings to the IZY and 93 additional parrot taxa were recorded. In 1972, 24 institutions reported parrot breedings with 48 taxa recorded. In 1973, the number of institutions fell to 17 but 55 taxa were produced. In 1974, the number of reporting institutions again stood at 24. Over the next two decades this number fairly steadily increased to double. On the other hand, the annual total of taxa has been more erratic (Table 1).

While the 1970s saw the closing of the Indian and Thai commercial bird trades, continuing expansion of the Indonesian market significantly affected American zoo collections. Prior to the late 1970s, many New Guinea parrots were available only through special export from Papua New Guinea. For some years the only Pesquet's Parrots Psittrichas fulgidus , Stella's Lorikeet Charmosyna papou goliathina and fig parrots in North America were at San Diego, exported from Papua through the efforts of Sir Edward Hallstrom. The arrival of these and other taxa as commercial importations from Irian Jaya, commencing in 1978, was unexpected. The effect on American zoo parrot breeding was soon apparent. In 1979 alone, the first hatchings of Duivenbode's Lory C. duivenbodei , Stella's Lorikeet and Pesquet's Parrot took place, all followed by a number of further successes (Table 3).

Just before Goldie's Lorikeets became commercially available, San Diego Zoo received a pair in 1976, with a shipment of birds of paradise from the Baiyer River Sanctuary in Papua, through the special arrangements of K. C. Lint. This pair produced a chick in 1978 (Low, 1980), the first in the USA since the last had hatched at Brookfield (from parents obtained from Sir Edward Haistrom) before 1959. It is startling to note that this species became the second most abundantly produced lory or lorikeet (after Swainson's Lorikeet) in the 1959-94 IZY listings (Table 3). Unlike a number of other Indonesian imports, it continues to flourish in zoos in the USA. ISIS reports that in 1997, 18 hatched at San Diego Zoo, and one at Kansas City. At the same time, this species has gone from being non-existent in American private aviculture in 1977, to being considered a "beginner's" lorikeet. While the Green-naped Lorikeet T. h. haematodus was bred in zoos here as early as 1975 (Table 3), perhaps from Moluccan specimens, it was a rare bird in the USA until the Irian Jaya shipments became frequent at the end of the 1970s. By the late 1980s this taxa was a standard pet store bird, as well as becoming a mainstay of the public feeding enclosures for lorikeets which came into vogue in American zoos in the 1980s. From having a comparatively short zoo history in the USA, it has been a particularly prolific race of T. haematodus , and has eclipsed all others at present. ISIS reports that in 1997 a total of 12 was produced between Mesker Park Zoo, in Evansville, San Antonio Zoo, Tracy Aviary and Reid Park Zoo, in Tucson. Otherwise, only single specimens of T. h. forsteni and T. h. rubritorquis were hatched at Busch Gardens and San Diego Zoo, respectively, while two T. h. moluccanus were hatched at the Roger Williams Park Zoo in Providence.

At the same time a great range of parrots from elsewhere in Indonesia were imported into the USA in large quantities. The exploitation of such species as Black-winged Lory E. cyanogenia , Blue-streaked Lory E. reticulata and Goffin's Cockatoo C. goffini , Umbrella Cockatoo C. alba , Salmon-crested Cockatoo C. moluccensis and Lesser Sulphur-crested Cockatoo C. sulphurea , resulted in great concern for the status of these species, none of which had been considered in jeopardy before the 1970s. The Salmon-crested Cockatoo, in particular, experienced so precipitous a decline that in 1988 the Fauna Preservation Society declared it one of the 10 animals and plants in greatest danger of extinction.

This led to its placement on Appendix I of CITES, thus prohibiting commercial trade. Up to when this ban went into effect in late 1989, thousands continued to be trapped annually, and large shipments entered American importers' stations until that date. Most of these birds were acquired by private breeders. While it seems anomalous that, as of 1998, captive-bred Salmon-crested Cockatoos were routinely offered on breeder's price lists at significantly lower prices than Galahs Eolophus roseicapillus and a fraction of the price of the traditionally more easily bred Leadbeater's Cockatoo, this is hopefully indicative of healthy current levels of captive breeding. Rosemary Low (1997), however, warns "the Molucean Cockatoo is an example of a species which will die out in aviculture in the USA if breeders persist in hand-rearing all the young. Breeding successes with hand-reared males are almost non-existent". While ISIS indicates that 119 specimens were distributed among 52 zoos in the USA at the end of 1997, no breedings appear to have taken place that year. On the other hand, over the 37 years covered by the IZY breeding records (Table 3), the 77 Salmon-crested Cockatoos hatched (with 51 surviving), make it the third most prolific Cockatoo (after the Galah and Leadbeater's Cockatoo) in zoos in the USA, while the number of participating collections (14) ranks only behind the 20 for the Galah.

At the same time that this exploitation of Indonesian parrots was proceeding at full blast, similarly disturbing developments took place in South America. Although several countries, most notably Brazil, in 1967, had prohibited the commercial export of birds, by the 1980s others began large-scale exportation of species with little or no avicultural history. Two Bolivian endemics appeared for the first time in the 1970s. The Blue-throated or Caninde Macaw A. glaucogularis was an enigma, with no clear understanding of its range or taxonomic status when Forshaw (1973) published his monograph. By the late 1970s, living specimens had arrived in both Europe and America. In 1981, it is estimated eleven per cent of the wild population was collected for export (Low, 1984).

The Red-cheeked Macaw had long been "one of the least known of all South American parrots" (Forshaw, 1973). In 1973 the first captive specimens were exported. By the early 1980s when the species began to appear in American zoos, hundreds were exported annually, from a population estimated at between 3,000 to 5,000 (Low, 1984).

Though certainly not a threatened or little-known species, the Sun Conure was, for most of this century, an extreme avicultural rarity, despite being one of the first New World parrots hatched in captivity in 1883 (Hopkinson, 1926). I know of none in American zoos prior to the 1970s. Commercial imports from Guyana and Surinam began in that decade. Zoo breedings in the USA commenced in 1975, when it was hatched in Denver, and have continued every year since then. The 1,214 birds (of which only 126 failed to survive) bred among 23 zoos from 1975 through 1994, make this the most prolific parrot taxon in zoos in the USA, as recorded in Volumes 1-35 of the International Zoo Yearbook (Table 3). Only the Cockatiel, Peach- faced Lovebird, Blue and Gold, and Scarlet Macaws were produced by more zoos in the USA over this 36 year period. This explosive production has had a definite effect on the zoo propagation of other parrots, especially New World species. Formerly commonly-bred species such as Jandaya and Nanday Conures, the Orange-fronted or "Halfmoon" Conure A. canicularis and Patagonian Conure Cyanoliseus patagonus all appear to have been displaced by Sun Conures (Table 3).

It was only to be expected that such widespread commercial exploitation of wild parrots would lead to legislative restrictions. In 1992, the United States Government passed the Wild Bird Conservation Act which went into effect a year later. This prohibited the commercial importation of all bird taxa listed on any appendix of CITES, with the exception of "gamebirds". As almost all parrots had been placed on CITES Appendix II (requiring documentation of international shipments) in 1981, the commercial shipment of wild-caught parrots to the USA effectively ended in 1993. Allowance was made for special importation by zoos and breeding consortiums, but the application process is lengthy, and arrangements for importation and quarantine, without the infrastructure of the commercial importers can be most complicated.

While the 1992 Wild Bird Conservation Act's prohibition of commercial parrot shipments acted as another impetus towards zoo parrot breedings, at the same time other factors had already facilitated such programmes. A major innovation was the provision of various techniques for sexing monomorphic birds. In the early 1980s, these were still in development, but by the end of that decade surgical laparoscopy had become routine, and such non-invasive procedures as the analysis of blood-feathers were widely available.

In particular, this led to a dramatic increase in zoo macaw breedings. From 1959 through 1968, only four collections in the USA reported hatchings of Blue and Gold Macaws to the International Zoo Yearbook . No hatchings occurred from 1960 through 1963. 01 the 18 chicks hatched in that decade, 13 were produced at Busch Gardens. In this same period, Scarlet Macaws were only bred in 1968, three being hatched at Busch Gardens. For the total period 1959 through 1994, the IZY records 1,014 Blue and Gold Macaws hatched among 47 zoos in the USA (Table 3), the largest number of institutions recorded for any parrot. The total for Scarlet Macaws is 612 among 28 zoos, putting this species in second place among parrots for the number of institutions breeding it. No Green-winged Macaws hatched in zoos in the USA prior to 1979. From that year through 1994, 188 were hatched among 16 zoos. Another result of the ability to determine the sex of macaws was the cessation of production of hybrids in American zoos after 1985 (Table 3).

The increase in breedings of macaws - as well as Cockatoos, Eclectus, Amazons and other species - in the 1980s coincided with a dramatic expansion of private sector breedings, resulting in an American cottage industry producing hand-raised pet birds. By the late 1980s this led to a near saturation of the pet market which, in turn, resulted in a reduced emphasis on parrot breeding by a number of zoos. Several that had achieved consistent success in breeding parrots, such as Brownsville, Cincinnati, Fort Worth, Houston, Los Angeles and Oklahoma City (Table 2), have since reduced their parrot collections and shifted their emphasis towards propagating hornbills, owls or other birds less likely to be worked with by private aviculturists.

Other institutions, while continuing to specialize in parrots, have refined their collections. At the time the Newcastle disease importation ban went into effect in 1972, there were approximately 200 taxa of parrots at the San Diego Zoo. From 1976, when Arthur Risser succeeded K.C. Lint as Curator of Birds, the encyclopedic "stamp collection" aspect was de-emphasized. Aviaries full of mixed species groups were phased out, with many surplus species being transferred to breeding situations elsewhere. While there remained a focus on lories and lorikeets, Neotropical species and cockatoos, which had not bred for some years, were again the target of propagation.

As with other zoos, a new emphasis was placed on softbills in the late 1980s, especially following James Dolan's appointment as Collections Director in 1986. As Assistant Curator of Birds in the 1960s he did much to expand the parrot collection to its peak numbers, concentrating especially on Pacific species. In the 1980s, however, exhibits of the more aviculturally familiar taxa were replaced with extensive series of fruit pigeons, hornbills, cotingas and laughing thrushes. At the same time, unusual parrot taxa continued to be added and bred. As noted earlier, the total number of parrot taxa bred at San Diego from the 1920s through 1968 came to 69 (Dolan and Moran, 1970). Over the 36 years covered by International Zoo Yearbook breeding records, 1984 was the only year the San Diego Zoo failed to submit statistics. Considering the magnitude of the collection, it is not surprising that occasional omissions should have occurred. The breeding of Green-winged King Parrots Alisterus chloropterus callopterus in 1967 and 1968 (Dolan and Moran, 1970) does not appear in the IZY records. The total number of parrot taxa reported to the IZY as having hatched at the San Diego Zoo from 1959 through 1994 is 125 (Table 2), by far the largest for a collection in the USA in that period. As of December 31^st , 1997, ISIS indicated 50 taxa of parrots at San Diego with 15 hatched that year, among them 10 taxa of lories and lorikeets including a Purple-naped Lory Lorius domicellus and 13 Blue-crowned Lories Vini australis , two Pesquet's Parrots and six Cuban Amazons A. leucocephala.

Breeding Programmes for Threatened Parrots

The 1970s and '80s saw various attempts at establishing programmes for parrot taxa of conservation concern. While the aforementioned loan of Lear's Macaws from Brookfield and Los Angeles to San Diego in 1970 did not result in breeding, the subsequent loan of a bird from Parrot Jungle to Busch Gardens did produce the first captive-bred chicks (Low, 1984 and Bish, 1985), although at present only female Lear's Macaws remain in the USA at Busch Gardens. Co-operation between the Bronx, National, Brookfield and Houston zoos led to the first captive breeding of the St. Vincent Amazon A. guildingii in 1972 (Berry, 1981). While there have not been further zoo successes through 1998, there exists an AZA Species Survival Plan for this bird, actively concentrating on work with captive specimens in St. Vincent and field research (Bruning, 1996). The San Diego Zoo embarked on a breeding programme for the Tahiti Lory V. peruviana with smuggled birds seized by the US Government in 1978 (Low, 1984).

Despite the production of an impressive number of birds (68 hatched over a 13 year period from 1978 through 1995 (Table 3), the captive population has remained small, ISIS listing nine specimens at San Diego Zoo and one at the San Diego Wild Animal Park as of December 31^st, 1997, with none hatched that year. "Salmonella, sarcocystis, a variety of bacterial infections and incompatibility have all been challenges" (Schulenburg, 1997). On the other hand the work undertaken with this species has led to the Zoological Society of San Diego's involvement in a variety of projects concerned with Vini lories in French Polynesia.

While the New York Zoological Society (now the Wildlife Conservation Society) had not previously devoted major efforts to propagating parrots, remarkable successes were achieved following the establishment of the Wildlife Survival Centre on St. Catherine's Island, off the coast of Georgia, in 1974.

The first parrots bred there were Leadbeater's Cockatoos in 1978. From Table 3 it can be seen that the centre (listed by the International Zoo Yearbook as "NY Bronx SCWCC") had, far and away, led in US zoo production of Leadbeater's Cockatoos, Pesquet's Parrots, Blue-throated and Red-checked Macaws. In addition, significant work has been done there with Palm Cockatoos Probosciger aterrimus and Yellow-shouldered Amazons A. barbadensis.

A 1980's innovation was US administered studbooks for threatened parrots. The confiscation by the US Fish and Wildlife Service of over 100 Palm Cockatoos in 1983 (Young, 1986) led to the formation of a zoo consortium and resulting studbook. (US Government confiscations had a pronounced effect on zoo parrot breeding. Many of the Eclectus produced from the 1980s onward were descendents of seized birds and most of the Australian endemics hatched at Los Angeles in this period were of similar origins). A Palm Cockatoo AZA Species Survival Programme subsequently developed.

Following imposition of the Newcastle disease ban and subsequent quarantine, the bird collection at the Sacramento Zoo in California became focused on parrot propagation, resulting in the zoo becoming a leading institution in such efforts (Table 2). Four Thick-billed Parrots were acquired in 1975 and breeding commenced in 1977. Over the period covered by Volumes 1 - 35 of the IZY Sacramento, hatched 43, failing to raise only three, over 13 years, making it the most successful propagator of this species among the 11 collections in the USA listed as having hatched it (Table 3). Susan Healy, long-time Bird Supervisor at Sacramento, began preparing data for a regional studbook in 1984, publishing the first edition in 1988 (Healy, 1998), the same year that the American Zoo and Aquarium Association approved a Species Survival Programme for Thick-hills. She has been the SSP Coordinator ever since. Because this is the only extant parrot species with a historical range in the continental USA, there has been great interest both in preserving the remaining Mexican populations and reintroducing it to former habitats in the USA, although involved attempts at the latter have met with little success so far (Snyder et al. 1994). Thus this SSP is heavily involved in in situ projects (Healy, 1998).

The first edition of the Golden Conure regional studbook was published in 1990 (Lieberman. 1993), while a regional one for Hyacinth Macaw appeared that same year. Both are notable for their attempts to include private aviculturists. As of April 8^th, 1998, there existed AZA approved studbooks for 12 species of parrots (Boyd, 1998). In addition to the previously mentioned Species Survival Plans for Palm Cockatoo, Thick- billed Parrot and St. Vincent Amazon, there is a newly established one for the Red-browed Amazon A. rhodocorytha , a species held almost entirely in private aviculture but managed through the Palm Beach Zoo. In addition, an AZA-recognised Breeding Consortium was organised for the Cuban Amazon following a government seizure of illegally imported birds (Boyd, 1998).

Parrot Taxon Advisory Group

With such programmes established it was natural that when, the American Zoo and Aquarium Association instituted Taxon Advisory Groups in 1991, an inaugural one was formed for parrots.

From its inception, the Parrot TAG has taken private aviculture very much into consideration. Parrots represent a unique set of taxa that differ fundamentally from other animals under AZA administration. Foremost, they are found in greater numbers and diversity outside AZA collections, yet have a very broad appeal for exhibits, research and conservation perspectives for AZA member institutions. The disproportionate representation of parrots in private hands imposes many management considerations unique to this group. The TAG is taking a leadership role in establishing methods to collaborate with private individuals and their organisations. Additionally, the Parrot TAG has the opportunity to he formative in scope by overseeing private/public co-operation in newly managed programmes and in the development of many more such programmes (Bruning, 1997).

The initial Chairman of the Parrot TAG was Alan Leiberman, Curator of Birds at the San Diego Zoo. Following his move to Hawaii to direct the Peregrine Fund's Hawaii Endangered Species Programme, the Chair was assumed by Dr Donald Bruning, Chairman of the Department of Ornithology, the Wildlife Conservation Society/Bronx Zoo. At the AZA National Conference in Seattle in 1995, Dr Bruning oversaw the formation of subgroups representing various taxonomic divisions. As of 1998, there are 11 sub-groups, each with its Chair and/or Vice-Chair, and a panel of advisors drawn from both the zoo community and private aviculture (Bruning 1997). February 13^th-16^th, 1997, 14 members of the TAG met at White Oak Plantation in Florida to draft a North American Regional Collection Plan to serve as a guideline for parrot aviculture in American zoos. The mission statement of this plan is as follows (Bruning, 1997):

1. Promoting excellence in parrot husbandry and management
2. Creating links between the zoological, avicultural and conservation communities
3. Preserving and restoring parrots and their habitat
4. Studying parrot populations and biology
5. Educating people about parrots
6. Opposing trade in wild-caught parrots

The Regional Collection Plan recommendations for lories and lorikeets include the designation of the Collared Lory Phigys solitarius as a candidate for a Population Management Plan to ensure a zoo-based, self-sustaining captive population. The Tahiti Lory was designated a Model Population for research purposes to hopefully eventually develop into a PMP. The Blue-crowned Lory and Iris Lorikeet Trichoglossus iris are presently species to be phased-in to collections in the USA with the goal of creating PMPs. In situ efforts were recommended for V. ultramarinus and V. kuhli .

Stable Population status (implying a less urgent status than that for PMP species, with more reliance on private aviculture as a source for zoo specimens) was recommended for the Red Lory Eos bornea , Blue-streaked Lory, Chattering Lory Lorius garrulus , Purple-naped Lory and Dusky Lory Pseudeos fuscata , although with provision that the two Lorius species might be upgraded to PMP status. Educational/Display status was recommended for Goldie's Lorikeet and all forms of Rainbow Lorikeets ( T. haematodus ), on the understanding that zoos may procure specimens from private aviculture and need not devote efforts to maintaining a zoo-based population. All other species of lories and lorikeets were not recommended for management, or suggested for display purposes only, pending further discussion.

Seven taxa of Indonesian Cacatua are recommended for Population Management Plans with an emphasis on parent-rearing. In situ, efforts and involvement in private aviculture programmes are also suggested. While there are presently few Red-vented Cockatoos C. haematuropygia in zoos in the USA, this critically endangered Philippine endemic is recommended to be phased into a PMP with in situ programmes as well. Australian species are largely de-emphasized. The Galah, which has been bred more often than any other cockatoo in American zoos (Table 3), is recommended to be phased-out to make space for conservation-significant taxa. Of the Australian members of Cacatua , only Leadbeater's Cockatoo is recommended for management, and that only at Stable Population level. The Gang Gang Callocephalon fimbriatum and an undesignated taxon of Calyptorhynchus are suggested as model populations to be maintained for study by a small number of zoos. As part of the on-going Species Survival Plan for Palm Cockatoos, an investigation of subspecies determination through DNA analysis is urged, together with field work. For practical purposes, the Kea Nestor notabilis is considered, in the Regional Collection Plan, under the Cockatoo sub-group and is recommended as a Stable Population of 20 or 30 specimens to be held by about a dozen North American zoos (Bruning, 1997).

As can be seen from Table 3, there has been a long-standing problem with Eclectus management in zoos in the USA with many collections of breeding birds of undesignated or misidentified races. The Regional Collection Plan recommends for Population Management Plans only clearly identified specimens of the North Moluccan E. roratus vosmaeri and Solomon Island E. r. solomonensis races.

Two genera which have no reproductive history in zoos here are recommended for being phased-in as Model Populations: both the Great-billed Tanygnathus megalorhynchus and Muller's Parrots T. sumatranus , and an undesignated species of Racket-tailed Parrot Prioniturus spp. Although three species of fig parrots have been bred in zoos in the USA (Table 3), following their commercial availability from Indonesia commencing in the late 1970s, since the passage of the Wild Bird Conservation Act zoo stocks have declined to near-extinction. Only a single Edward's Fig Parrot Psittaculirostris edwardsii was hatched in an American zoo in 1997, at San Diego. TAG proposals for fig parrots include the initiation of a "private sector studbook", in situ studies, the designation of Model Population status for any species available to zoos, with an emphasis on Edward's Fig Parrot. A special importation, under the provisions of the Wild Bird Conservation Act, in conjunction with private aviculturists, is advised.

Another parrot commercially available from Indonesian New Guinea, which showed promise as a zoo-propagated species only to falter, is the Pesquet's or Vulturine Parrot. Prior to its appearance in commercial shipments in the late 1970s it had been represented in American aviculture by a handful of birds obtained at various times by the San Diego and Bronx Zoos. As can he seen from Table 3, four collections hatched this species over an 11-year period. There was much initial difficulty in rearing chicks but eventual success was achieved with 27 specimens reared at that time. However, no further hatchings occurred until San Diego again succeeded in 1997. There are plans to import both captive-bred and wild-caught currently captive specimens. TAG recommendations include an internationally- managed Population Management Plan for this threatened bird as well as in situ work.

A model programme for about 30 specimens of a race of the Shining Parrot Prosopeia tabuensis , to be phased-in, is also proposed. The TAG also suggests model populations, with a studbook, for two races of Green-winged King Parrot A. c. chloropterus and A. c. mozkowskii , as well as a PMP for Amboina King Parrots A. amboinensis.

It is recommended that the remaining Australian King Parrots in zoos in the USA be phased out. This is the case for most Australian endemics, except where specimens (to be obtained from private aviculture) may be needed for display in Australian-themed exhibits. At any rate, breeding programmes are not encouraged. Exceptions are the Turquoisine and Scarlet-chested Grass Parrakeets, for which stable zoo populations are suggested, as there is concern that the populations in private aviculture are becoming saturated with mutations. All three species of Polytelis are recommended as stable populations for display. Finally, the Hooded Parakeet Psephotus chrysopterygius is suggested as a possible candidate for a Population Management Plan, pending investigations as to the purity of the existing population in the USA (Bruning, 1997).

While it is recommended that the Long-tailed Parakeet Psittacula longicauda , of which ISIS listed three specimens in two institutions in the USA on December 31^st, 1997, be eventually phased-in as a model population, the Derbyan Parakeet P. derbiana is designated only for education and display. Because of its usefulness insoftbill communities, the Blue-crowned Hanging Parrot Loriculus galgulus is recommended to be managed for display purposes as a Population Management Plan, with a studbook, with the zoo population to be held at 120. If a hanging parrot of greater conservation concern should become available, then it might replace L. galgulus.

A studbook is suggested for the Black-cheeked Lovebird Agapornis nigrigenis designated for a PMP. Fischer's Lovebird A. fischeri , which appears to have suffered recently from trapping for export, is recommended for a Stable Population, but only if it can be determined that zoos hold genetically pure stock (much of the aviary strains here being contaminated with Masked Lovebird genes). A studbook is recommended for both Vasa Parrots Coracopsis spp. On the other hand, zoos in the USA are urged not to breed African Grey Parrots Psittacus erithacus , but to maintain them only for display and education purposes, as there are large numbers bred annually by private aviculturists.

The Hyacinth Macaw is recommended for a SSP. Blue-throated and Red-checked Macaws are suggested for immediate Population Management Plan status, while Buffon's Macaw Ara ambigua , Yellow-collared Macaw A. auricollis and Illiger's Macaw A. macarana may eventually follow. The Chestnut-fronted Macaw A. severa and Military Macaw are recommended as model populations. The question of whether there are recognizable races of the Scarlet Macaw will be investigated. This species is designated for Stable Population status, with eventually fewer numbers in zoos than at present. The Blue and Gold Macaw, bred by more zoos in the USA than any other parrot, and exceeded in numbers hatched only by the Sun Conure (Table 3), is listed for eventual phasing-out, along with the Green-winged Macaw, both to be replaced by conservation-priority macaws.

The Sun Conure is recommended as a Display Population, with breeding severely curtailed. The Thick-billed Parrot's intensive SSP programme will, of course, continue, while the Golden Conure will be managed under a PMP. Model Population status is recommended for the Blue-headed Conure A. acuticauda , a species almost unknown in aviculture until it was imported in quantity during the 1980s, and the Painted Conure Pyrrhura p. picta , produced in numbers by San Antonio Zoo until 1993 (Table 3) but not recently. None of the other conures are suggested for any sort of zoo breeding programme. In situ projects are recommended for the Orange-fronted or Halfmoon Conure Aratinga canicularis eburnirostrum , Hispaniolan Conure A. chloroptera and Golden-capped Conure. The Nanday Conure, Patagonian Conure Cyanoliseus patagonus and Monk Parrot Myiopsitta monachus are all listed for eventual phasing-out. Other species of conures may be considered for zoo programmes if the TAG is so advised by private aviculturists.

A model population of one or two species of Forpus parrotlets is recommended, in co-ordination with private aviculture. Any zoo programmes for Pionus species await advice from aviculturists. Both species of caiques Pionites spp. are suggested as exhibit populations. The Hawk-headed Parrot Deroptyus accipitrinus , for which a studbook has already been published (Rhoades, 1992), is designated for a PMP.

Population Management Plan status is recommended for the Yellow-shouldered Amazon Amazona barbadensis , Bodin's Amazon A. festiva bodini , Cuban Amazon, Vinaceous Amazon A. vinacea , Green-checked Amazon A. viridigenalis and Yellow-headed Amazon A. oratrix , with an investigation of the taxonomy of the last species. Stable Population status is suggested for the White-fronted Amazon A. albifrons , Yellow-cheeked Amazon A. a. autumnalis , Mealy Amazon A. farinosa , Finsch's Amazon A. finschi , Yellow-naped Amazon A. auropalliata and Yellow-crowned Amazon A. ochrocephala , again with an investigation of the taxonomy of captive specimens of the last species. Model Population status is suggested for the Black-billed Amazon A. agilis , Yellow-billed Amazon A. collaria , Festive Amazon A. f. festiva , Tucuman Amazon A. tucumana and Hispaniolan Amazon A. ventralis . SSP status will continue for the St. Vincent and Red-browed Amazons. A phase-in programme, eventually resulting in a PMP is suggested for the Blue-checked Amazon A. dufresniana . On the other hand, phase-out programmes are recommended for the Blue-fronted Amazon and Orange-winged Amazon A. amazonica .

The Regional Collection Plan for parrots is intended to be flexible, reflecting changes in conservation status and aviculture. It is thus planned that participants will meet regularly to review and consider recommendations. By co-ordinating efforts with American private aviculturists, instead of duplicating them, and focusing their own unique resources on in situ projects and the propagation of taxa not readily available to, or impractical for, private aviculture, with attendant research, zoos in the USA will have a positive effect through their parrot programmes.

Acknowledgements

I am indebted to Marvin Jones, Registrar Emeritus for the Zoological Society of San Diego, for providing me with an abundance of historical materials, as well as stimulating discussion and general encouragement on this paper. I am also most grateful to Christopher Brown, Curator of Birds, Fort Worth Zoological Park. Dr Donald Bruning, Chairman/Curator of Ornithology, Bronx Zoo/Wildlife Conservation Park and Chairman AZA Parrot TAG, Linda Coates, Librarian, Zoological Society of San Diego, Rebecca Dellinger, Registrar, Fort Worth Zoological Park, Arthur Douglas FZS, Susan Healy, Manager/Birds, Sacramento Zoo and SSP Co-ordinator for Thick-billed Parrots, Liz Hudson, Assistant Curator of Mammals. Fort Worth Zoological Park, Steve Johnson, Archivist/Librarian, Bronx Zoo/Wildlife Conservation Park, Natalie Mashburn, Mammal Keeper, Fort Worth Zoological Park. Annabel Ross. Registrar, Fort Worth Zoological Park, Carol Scheitlin, Registrar, Busch Gardens, Wayne Schulenburg, Animal Care Manager/Birds, San Diego Zoological Garden, Dr Christine Sheppard, Curator of Birds, Bronx Zoo/Wildlife Conservation Park, Dale Thompson. Editor-in-Chief, AFA Watchhird , Michael Wells, Curator of Birds, Busch Gardens, and Dr Robert Wiese, Assistant Director of Collections, Fort Worth Zoological Park, for providing materials and information.

Also my special thanks to Frank and Meg Woolham for their help in preparing the manuscript and to our Hon. Editor for finding space to publish it.