SuperParrot Blog September 2024

Hi!

This month, I have met the beautiful Golden Conures at Paradise Park!

Golden Conures (Guaruba guarouba) are a type of parrot which are found in North-Eastern Brazil, South America. As you can see, their feathers are a brilliant shade of yellow with green wing tips.

According to The World Parrot Trust (a charity which supports parrot conservation in the wild and helps owners to look after their pet parrots), the world population of Golden Conures is around only 10,000 – 20,000! The IUCN (The International Union for Conservation of Nature) classifies this species as ‘Vulnerable.’ The population loss in the wild is due to habitat loss and – because they are so beautiful – people want them as pets so lots have been trapped for the pet trade.

In the wild, they like to live in humid (warm and damp) lowland rainforest and eat fruits, seeds, nuts, berries, buds and flowers. They live in groups which can range between three birds and around thirty (that is a lot of family together!).

At Paradise Park, we have a lovely pair of Golden Conures which you can meet in the walled garden. Like all parrots, Golden Conures have feet known as zygodactyl which means that they have four toes – two face forward and two face backward.

Their feet help a lot when they eat as they can hold their food up to their beaks, much like humans do with their hands!

Zygodactylous feet also mean that parrots are very good at climbing tree trunks and branches which is fantastic! If you visit Paradise Park, you will see lots of parrots using their feet to explore their enclosures – we can climb brilliantly as well as fly! What can I say – us parrots are just fantastic!

Thanks for reading!

Until next time,

SuperParrot Xx

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