On Saturday, April 14, I spent a number of hours photographing the daily goings-on of the staff and volunteers, the many new signs and posters that are up with information about how to keep a parrot happy and healthy (provided by Phoenix Landing), and most importantly of all, some of the many feathered residents.
I will admit that my heart was stolen by Tilly, a sweet Congo African Grey with only a few feathers left, who came to the Refuge in January. You can read about her story here. I was pleased to see a few red tail feathers peeking out! She’s a feisty, happy, bright little bird. I just wanted to snuffle her fluff!
Please enjoy a “day in the life” of the Refuge. I did!
The birds!
There were many rustic tree stands and branches throughout the Refuge to give the birds some natural chewing “toys” (in addition to the many cardboard boxes they also enjoy destroying). The staff made the tree-perches and chew-branches from trees cut down out the back. The birds obviously enjoyed them very much: there were many chew marks to be seen.
The Blue and Gold Macaw in some of the photos was endearing: he’s alteast 60 years old. When I first spotted him, he was snoozing on a cage towards the back; then I saw him snacking on a strawberry on the floor; finally he was towards the front having a snooze on top of another cage. He was able to do whatever he wanted, whenever he wanted.
I brought chop sticks with me; Tilly quite liked hers until she gave it up to sample a bean, and then snack on some broccoli. It was also good to see Lucky Loo, who was being kept company by her new friend, Nelson, a 40+ year old wild-caught Amazon. I found Batman being a naughty monkey-bird pulling paper from under Caesar’s cage. Caesar was oblivious, contentedly talking to himself above.
Some visitors to the Refuge also agreed to pose for photos with birds they had met. Brianne, a young lady from Edmonton, told me she always makes time to visit the Refuge. She hopes to bring more awareness to people in Edmonton about the plight of parrots, and of the Refuge.
60 photos – 3 pages
Other photos from the day:
