Africa’s parrots are a unique assemblage of lovebirds, Poicephalus parrots, grey parrots, and Rose-ringed parakeets that have managed to find a home in the forests and savanna of this wild and primordial continent. All species are now under serious threat from escalating trade due to emerging markets in the Far East and habitat loss due to deforestation, agricultural development, climate change, and poor land management practices.
Africa is home to the two most traded birds on earth – the grey parrots and Senegal parrot. To add to the removal of as many as 8 million African parrots from the wild over the last 25 years, Africa’s deforestation rates are twice that of the rest of the world. Our charcoal industry, commercial logging and widespread burning for pastures are cutting down huge numbers of large hardwoods for emerging and established markets.
South Africa has emerged as a global hub for the wild-caught bird trade with traders and importers taking advantage of an advanced avicultural industry in a country with under-resourced enforcement and permit officers. Perceptions need to change, new laws need to be drafted, and the wild-caught bird trade needs to be halted throughout Africa. Read here about the efforts of the World Parrot Trust Africa to halt any further trade and ensure that important parrot populations are adequately protected on a rapidly changing continent…
From National Geographic
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