tried and true avicultural technique, The Echo Bouncing Back has also heen employed hy utilizing captive Indian Ringnecks as egg incu­ by Tom Marshall, Leesburg, Virginia hators and/or surrogate parents. This Herculean effort hy the World Parrot TluSt, the Mauritian Government, ntil 1662 the tiny island of ago speciation. Though clustered, they and the Jersey Wildlife Preservation Mauritius, lying in the vastness stand separate, providing a balance Trust Society under the guidance ofCal:! U of the Indian Ocean ahout 450 between isolation and colonization Jones has managed to halt the Echo's miles east of Madagascar, was the that allows populations to segregate decline with successes in captive home ofthe world's most famous dead and diverge. The Echo Parakeet hreeding. bird-the Dodo. The Dodo, which has emerged as a distinct tnetnber of the It is difficult to descrihe the differ­ become for many the symhol for Psittacula genus. ence hetween the Echo Parakeet and extinction, is gone forever, but Joseph Forshaw, the eIninent its close relative, the Indian Ring­ Mauritius is' still home to the desperate­ ornithologist and a leading authority necked Parakeet. The Echo has heen ly rare Echo Parakeet (Psittacula echo). on parrots, stated in the third edition of j isolated on its island hon1e for a suffi­ Portuguese sailors first reached the PARROTS OF THE WORLD that, "tragi­ cient period of tilne to evolve its dis­ island of Mauritius in 1507. The islands cally, the Echo Parakeet a.k.a. the tinct for111 and feathering; its unique of Reunion and Rodriguez complete Mauritius Parakeet, is the most endan­ social interaction and hreeding hehav­ the archipelago known as the gered of all parrots, and iInminent iors, and the particular tnanner in MascareneS-SOlne 500 miles east of extinction seelns inevitable. Effolts to which it relates to its environment. Madagascar. With the arrival of other save the species through captive The Mauritius hird, according to Europeans, the Mascarene Islands breeding have been unsuccessful, and Rosen1ary Low in her landmark hook, have lost at least 14 bird species with­ in 1984 the total population was esti­ ENDANGERED PARROTS, is much larg­ in the past three centuries. mated to he less than ten, and proba­ er in body size-ahout 25% larger and Of the 14 species of birds lost froIn bly no tnore than five hirds." heavier. The plutnage also differs sig­ the Mascarenes, a total of seven were Since that book was published, nificantly. On the Echo, the shade of parrot species. Only the Echo Parakeet however, progress has heen tnade on green throughout is 1l1uch darker than of Mauritius has survived to the pre­ Mauritius on behalf of its endemic par­ the apple green of the Ringneck. Male sent day. rot and 1996 was a banner year for Echos have pronounced hlue margins Psittacula fanciers would he palticu­ breeding this chunky cousin of the to the feathers of the crown, extending larly interested to know of the Reunion Indian Ring-necked Parakeet (P. to the nape and to a lesser degree to Island Ringneck (Psittacula eques) , a krameri). The overall total for 1996 the tnantle. In addition, the male SpOtts close ally of the Echo Parakeet, which was 24 sUlviving chicks, hringing the a definite yellow line beneath the permanently dropped out of Sight total wild/captive population of Echo black throat. The bill coloration differs around the year 1734. Also of interest is Parakeets to an estimated 85 to 90 in that the female's beak is entirely Newton's Parakeet (Psittacula excu!) birds. Conservationists with an avicul­ hlack. In males the upper mandible is formerly on the island of Rodriguez, tural hent on Mauritius are supporting red like that of the Ringneck. Whereas which presumably existed in a green the practice of captive and wild popu­ the Echo is a higger hird, its tail is not morph form and a hlue morph form lations that are managed as one, with as long as that of the Ringneck. until it disappeared in 1875. regular flow of partly wild and partly Another characteristic which sets the Deep-water volcanic archipelagos, captive Echo Parakeets helping to sup­ Echo apart from the Ringneck is its such as the Mascarenes, tend to offer port the genetic integrity of the world louder voice which differs in pitch, the right physical spacing for archipel- population. In addition, fostering, a cadence and stridence. It is also less vocal than the Ringneck. "Quality Leg Ballds Will, A Worldwide Repulatioll!" The Echo's habitat is different as well. It stays in the forest and upland PARROT BA DS' COCKATIEL BANDS • LOVEBIRD BANDS • PARAKEET BANDS Since scrub rather than open country fre­ CA ARY BANDS • FINCH BANDS • STAINLESS STEEL FEEDING NEEDLES 1978 ALL SIZES PLASTIC BANDS· FEEDING SYRINGES' CLAW SCISSORS quented by Ringnecks. Therefore, the BAND CUITERS • PIPEITES • NETS two allied species, one native, the other introduced, do not seem to be in Closed direct competition with each other. Month "New" of July Refreshingly, the Echo Parakeet, unlike Stainless Steel Send self addressed stamped the flighty Ringneck, shows little fear Parrot Bands envelope for brochure! of man and can be approached to L & M Bird Leg Bands within 10-16 feet hefore it takes flight. P.O. Box 2943 • San Bernardino, CA 92406 Dept: AP ~,,,J'g:t:,,,,. The World Parrot Trust (WPT) has Phone: (909) 882-4649 • Fax (909) 882-5231 heen given the opportunity to offer Monday thru Friday 8:00 a.m. to 4:00 p.m. (Pacific Time) • E-mail: [email protected] five adult wild pairs for adoption . 42 September/October 1997 CI'J .=:::l e ~ lJ ~ Q) .c. t- o >­ CI'J Q) t :::lo U oCI'J (5 a...c. Two male Echo Parakeets in the 'luild. A wild Echo Parakeet enjoying life. World Parrot Trust, U.S.A. in care. of Cynthia Webh P.O. Box 341141 Memphis, TN 381844. References Budiansky. Stephen. 'Nature's Keepers: The ew Science of Nature Management. ,. New York: The Free Pres' 1995. Forshaw, Joseph. Parrots of the World (3rd ed) ew South Wales: Lansdowne Editions, 1989. Greenwood, Andrew. "Echo Parakeet Season 1996---Progress." WPT PsittaScene, 1997 IX (no. 1),10. HUlne. Julian. "The Parrots of the Mascarenes." WPTP,,'ittaScene 1996 VIII (no. 1) 10-lL L()w~ Rosemary. Endangered Parrots. London: Blanford, 1994. Qualnmen. David. The S()n{~ (~r the Dodo. ew York: Scribner. 1996. + A wildpair qfEcho Parakeets with the male feeding the.female. (they'll ren1ain in the wild however). Each pair is already named, and all are closely monitored throughout the hreeding season. The cost of each adoption will he $1500. You will receive a special certificate and WPT will undertake to keep you informed ahout the progres of your birds. You will have the satisfaction of knowing that you are helping this magnificent conservation achievelnent hy Carl Jones and his dedicated team of con­ servationists and aviculturists in This.feeding station provides supplemental.foodfor birds that have been released into the wild. Mauritius. If interested, pleas contact: Tim Lovegrove makes sure there is enough.food . afa WATeRBIRD 43.