Page 12 - ARUBA TODAY

A12 WORLD NEWS
Wednesday 21 november 2018
Scientists work to save wild Puerto Rican parrot after Maria

By DANICA COTO tipped wings disappeared ry 4 storm that pummeled Puerto Rico, scientists said. lease since there are such
Associated Press when Hurricane Maria hit the U.S. territory in Septem- And while several dozen few birds in the wild they
EL YUNQUE, Puerto Rico Puerto Rico and destroyed ber 2017. Meanwhile, only new parrots have been can interact with, and
(AP) — Biologists are try- their habitat and food 4 of 31 wild birds in a forest born in captivity and in the whether Puerto Rico's dam-
ing to save the last of the sources. in the western town of Mari- wild since Maria, the spe- aged forests can sustain
endangered Puerto Rican In the tropical forest of El cao survived, along with 75 cies is still in danger, ac- them.
parrots after more than half Yunque, only two of the 56 out of 134 wild parrots liv- cording to scientists. One proposal scientists will
the population of the bright wild birds that once lived ing in the Rio Abajo forest "We have a lot of work to consider is whether to cap-
green birds with turquoise- there survived the Catego- in the central mountains of do," said Gustavo Olivieri, ture some of the remaining
parrot recovery program wild parrots in the Rio Aba-
coordinator for Puerto Ri- jo forest and place them
co's Department of Natural in the same cage as birds
Resources. that will be released to the
Federal and local scientists wild, so they can learn to
will meet next month to emulate their social behav-
debate how best to revive ior to ensure their survival,
a species that numbered said Jafet Velez, a wildlife
more than 1 million in the biologist with U.S. Fish &
1800s but dwindled to 13 Wildlife Service.
birds during the 1970s after Scientists are tentatively
decades of forest clearing. planning to release 20 birds
The U.S. and Puerto Rican next year in Rio Abajo.
governments launched a Another proposal is to re-
program in 1972 that even- lease more parrots in Mari-
tually led to the creation cao, which was not as
of three breeding centers. heavily damaged by Ma-
Just weeks before Maria ria.
hit, scientists reported 56 "Our priority now is not re-
wild birds at El Yunque, the production...it's to start re-
highest since the program leasing them," Lopez said,
was launched. adding that breeding cen-
But the population decline ters can hold only so many
is now especially worrisome parrots.
because the parrots that But first, scientists need to
In this Nov. 6, 2018 photo, Puerto Rican parrots huddle in a flight cage at the Iguaca Aviary in vanished from El Yunque make sure the forests can
El Yunque, Puerto Rico, where the U.S. Fish & Wildlife Service runs a parrot recovery program in were some of the last re- offer food and safe shelter.
collaboration with the Forest Service and the Department of Natural and Environmental Resources. maining wild ones, said Jessica Ilse, a forest biolo-
Associated Press Marisel Lopez, who over- gist at el Yunque for the
sees the parrot recovery U.S. Forest Service, said sci-
program at El Yunque for entists are collecting data
the U.S. Fish & Wildlife Ser- about the amount of fruit
vice. falling from trees and the
"It was devastating. After number of leaves shed.
so many years of having She said the canopy still
worked on this project...," has not grown back since
she stopped talking and Maria and warned that in-
sighed. vasive species have taken
The Puerto Rican Amazon root since more sunlight
is Puerto Rico's only remain- now shines through. Ilse
ing native parrot and is one said that many of the large
of roughly 30 species of trees where parrots used
Amazon parrots found in to nest are now gone and
the Americas. noted that it took 14 months
The red-foreheaded birds for El Yunque's canopy to
grow to nearly a foot in close after Hurricane Hugo
length, are known for their hit Puerto Rico in 1989 as a
secrecy and usually mate Category 3 storm.
for life, reproducing once Scientists also are now col-
a year. lecting new data on the
More than 460 birds remain number of predators at El
captive at the breeding Yunque, including el guara-
centers in El Yunque and Rio guao, a red-tailed hawk
Abajo forests, but scientists that hunts Puerto Rico par-
have not released any of rots.
them since Hurricane Ma- Without a canopy and
ria. A third breeding center proper camouflage, wild
in a forest in the western ru- parrots have become an
ral town of Maricao has not easy target.
operated since the storm. Ilse said local and fed-
Scientists are now trying to eral scientists plan to help
determine the best way to the forest recover through
prepare the parrots for re- planting. q