Chestnut-fronted Macaw

Paul Demkovich

We were told that parrots in the wild eat more nuts and seeds than fruits. This diet requires them to also eat clay or wood to help digest the poisons that are in some of the seeds and nuts.

A villager in the Sani Isla community used to hunt parrots and sell them for meat. Then a tree near his home died and the parrots – like this Chestnut-fronted Macaw – started consuming the dead wood. The villager learned that birdwatchers want to see the parrots gathering at his dead tree, so now he welcomes the birds and charges birdwatchers $10 each to see them! He won the lottery and the birds are thriving!