In my last update I wrote about the details of the very important Annual Bonaire Parrot count as well as some of the other jobs I had tried to cram into two hectic weeks on the island. This posting will focus more on the birds and the fabulous experiences I had seeing them in their winter flocks.
Seeing the parrots in their off season was a magnificent experience for me. I had heard of (relatively) large winter flocks (100+ birds) but I hadn’t really thought what that would be like to see. Well, in truth, it isn’t just the seeing. That doesn’t describe it enough. There is just so much going on and so much noise too.
I would be at a roost before dawn. The birds woke up pretty much at 0632 or a minute or two either side. By 0640 some would be flying and by 0700 (probably) or 0715 (definitely) the roost was empty. After that I’d get myself to one of the major feeding areas for my regular Amazon parrot fix. Birds would be everywhere and there would be so much going on there is no way one person could see it all. I was juggling with four pieces of equipment to try and follow and record mere fractions of what I was seeing. I’d have my binoculars, of course, then I would have my photographic camera but I also had the project’s video camera so I would be trying to get some footage on that. Then if I thought I saw a bird with rings I’d try and get the scope on them to have a closer look. It was of course too much. There was a crazy amount of activity and I couldn’t help but laugh at the whole situation.
Within the flocks it appeared that pairs would stick together. Those good ol’ monogamous birds, Rowan will be pleased. I got to see two birds that I took to be a pair, and one (the male?) was feeding the other (the female?). It could have also been an adult feeding a fairly mature chick but my gut feeling was that that wasn’t the case. There would be other pairs interacting too. They would be preening each other and in that moment it was all nice and sweet, ah! But these are Amazons and a second later they would be at war! They’d be hitting each other’s beaks, putting their feet up, grabbing each other and even knocking themselves off perches. It was highly entertaining but pure madness.
By far the best experience I had was one evening as the birds finished their business at the feeding area and were about to move off to the roost. This particular location is a former fruit plantation with a bunch of mango and other trees. Te main area for the parrots is maybe 100m by 30m. I guess there were over 100 birds and there was the usual amount of chaos and noise, with parrot’s babbling and wereing all over the place. Then in a second the whole place went silent. After a moment of surprise I realised someone had seen something and they didn’t like it. I looked up to the sky and there, sure enough, was huge falcon, a Peregrine! In the next moment one and then all the parrots together, left the area to the west. Over one hundred parrots screaming their alarm and flying off. It was amazing and certainly something I will never forget.
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