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LOCAL Wednesday 7 May 2025

Soaring through the blue skies

Birds of Aruba

(Oranjestad)—Aruba’s na- often flying away at the
ture is very diverse and is sign of any threat. They use
home to several beauti- termite nests for breeding
ful and majestic wildlife. spots and feed mostly on
Among these is the bright seeds from the Kwihi tree,
Trupial, whose angelic Divi Divi tree and fruits.
voice is always heard with Photo Credit: Daniel Ruben
the rising sun; the cud- Gonzalez duces a rattling, screaming
dly parakeet, always in sound, throwing its head
company of another, and Warawara back onto its back while
the majestic Warawara, sunrise, this beloved song- The Warawara or Caracara calling.
a mighty bird that can be bird likes to wake up with Prikichi (parakeet) is one of the biggest birds While these birds are a
seen soaring in the clear a tune. But don’t let their The Brown-throated Prikichi found in the Aruban mondi. beautiful sight to behold,
blue skies. angelic songs fools you; the (Aratinga pertinax) be- At a heigh of 41 to 60 cm, it is very important to keep
Trupial can be a bit aggres- came the national bird of their wingspan can mea- your distance and respect
Trupial sive towards any threat, Aruba back in 2015, at the sure up to 125 cm. Known their habitats. This is how we
Icterus icterus, or known lo- protective over their nest- request of Aruba Birdlife as the “garbage man”, this protect our wildlife. By ad-
cally as the Venezuelan or ing spots—nesting spots Conservation. The bright bird of prey mostly feeds miring the beauty of Aruba
Orange Troupial, is a striking they most likely stole from green, adorable parakeet on dead animals. Its coat is in a safe and respectful
songbird whose bright or- other birds. Trupials can usually flies in flock of 30 dark brown, with a cream- manner, we can do our
ange feathers can be spot- be seen regularly, often in or more, but its population colored neck, orange part in protecting our sa-
ted from a far distance. trees or on top of a cactus. has been declining since face, thick beak and long cred nature.q
Known to be the first bird Photo Credit: Daniel Ruben the 2010s. Prikichis are a legs. The Warawara prefers
to sing at the first sign of Gonzalez shier breed than the trupial, to build its nest in the mid- Photo Credit: Aruba Birdlife
Conservation
dle of tall cacti and pro-

Lend a helping hand
Aruba Doet 2025: Aruba’s biggest volunteering event!

The beautiful white-sanded CEDE Aruba, in collaboration Oranje Fonds, along with sands of people volunteering ander and Queen Máxima
beaches, the amazing luxuri- with the Oranje Fonds, will be thousands of social orga- in various projects around the are the royal patrons of this
ous resorts and the mouth- organizing Aruba Doet for nizations and partners like island. In 2024, 3,500 people fund. Visit www.oranjefonds.
watering choice of restaurant the 14th consecutive year. CEDE Aruba, organizes the volunteered in 172 projects nl for more information. CEDE
dishes are a huge attraction This is another opportunity largest volunteer action in on Aruba. Naturally, in 2025, Aruba is an organization that
of Aruba that make up for for social organizations to the Kingdom. they aim to have even more provides support for devel-
a fantastic vacation. If you carry out work or organize people actively participat- opment and co-financing of
would like to add a little lo- social activities for their spe- Volunteers are the driving ing during the days of Aruba programs and projects in the
cal connection to that, next cific groups with the help of force behind many social Doet. social sector. These programs
weekend is yours. The big- volunteers. organizations. With Aruba and projects are introduced
gest volunteer event ARUBA Doet, CEDE Aruba and the The Oranje Fonds is the larg- and implemented by non-
DOET will take place next ARUBA DOET started in Oranje Fonds demonstrate est fund in the social sector governmental organizations
week Friday and Saturday, 2013 under the initiative of how important active citi- and represents the best of (NGOs). In Aruba, there are
May 16th and 17th 2025. You the Oranje Fonds. Under zenship is for the community. the Kingdom. Each year, many NGOs working to im-
are most welcome to join names like NL Doet, Aruba Furthermore, ARUBA DOET the Oranje Fonds invests prove social facilities for the
and roll up your sleeves to- Doet, Bon Doet, Cura Doet, contributes to the positive approximately €30 million community. CEDE Aruba as-
gether with the locals to cre- Statia Doet, Saba Doet, and image of volunteer work in organizations and initia- sists NGOs with the devel-
ate some happiness on One SMX Doet, these six initiatives and illustrates how fulfilling tives that strengthen social opment and financing of
Happy Island…Just by doing. spotlight volunteer work and it can be. ties in the Netherlands and various sustainable projects.
encourage everyone to lend the Caribbean part of the Visit www.cedearuba.org for
a hand for a day. Thus, the Since 2021, they had thou- Kingdom. King Willem-Alex- more information.q