Learn Some Fun Parrot Facts

This week we are going to explore the colourful world of Parrots. At Birdland Park & Gardens you can come face to face with 16 species of this brainy bird but in the wild, there are around 372 different species! Learn more parrot facts below.

Where do they live?

Parrots can be found on all tropical and subtropical continents and regions including Africa, Australia, Oceania, South and Southeast Asia, Central and South America.

What do they eat?

Parrots eat a mixture of nuts and seeds, as well as flowers, nectar and fruit. Sometimes they also enjoy tucking into small insects.

Fun Parrot Facts

• Many birds grip food in their feet, but only Parrots can hold their food up to their beaks whilst they eat. This is similar to the way humans eat with their hands.
• The smallest parrot is the buff-faced pygmy parrot, which is only about 3 inches.
• Many species are monogamous and spend their lives with only one mate.
• Ringneck Parakeets have established themselves and are breeding in parts of the UK

Parrots are sociable creatures and sometimes they like to help the Keepers on their daily rounds at the park!

Parrot Craft

Create your own paper parrot at home with this colourful craft idea.

You will need:

• A selection of coloured paper
• Scissor and glue
• Black felt tip

Fold a piece of coloured paper in half. Using a pencil draw your parrot’s body outline and cut it out. This creates two identical bodies. Next, take a yellow or orange piece of paper and fold it in half. On this, draw the outline of the beak and cut it out. This will again create two identical pieces. Now using a white piece of paper, fold it in half, then draw and cut out an eyeball. This will create two eyes but you will need to draw the eye detail onto the reverse of the paper. Now its time to glue all the beak, eyes and the two bodies together. When glueing the bodies together leave the base section unstuck so you can add in the tail feathers.

To create the tail feathers cut a stripe out of each different coloured piece of paper and glue them neatly in between the bodies.

Repeat this process but with shorter stripes for the wings on each side of the parrot!

Thanks to Farjana’s craft for the idea – check out the video here:

Endangered Species

As part of the new Pandemonium of Parrots area, Birdland and the World Parrot Trust is raising awareness and funds for one of the most endangered species of parrots – the Scarlet Macaw.

Birdland Manager Simon Blackwell said: “We’re very pleased to be able to support such a worthy cause here at Birdland.

“The conservation work the World Parrot Trust undertakes is vital in raising awareness about the risks faced by all parrot species in the wild which include loss of habitat and capture for the illegal trade in wild birds.”

“The additional aviaries which have been constructed here are already home to a pandemonium of parrots, the collective term for a group of the birds, and they’ve settled in really well,” he added.

Visit Our Parrots Virtually!

Watch our Head Keeper, Alistair Keen as he live-streams from the new Pandemonium of Parrots area and you can learn about more amazing parrot facts.