Puerto Rico parrot in the wild, a male with a scar

            This photo of a Puertorican Parrot male, taken in the wild, possibly documents a behavior that has not been photographed for decades because of the small size of the extant population.  The puertorican parrot pairs, when they are getting ready to nest, start defending a patch of forest from other parrots.  The breeding pair can be very, very aggressive and they kick out of the area all other parrots.  Normally the other parrots leave the area peacefully after the pair makes a display of aggression that includes screaming and posturing, however on occasion the territorial pair can be challenged by interlopers and a fight ensues.  The wound near the eye of this male is similar to wounds seen in captivity as a result of inter-male aggression.  So it is quite possible the male received this wound  in a fight with another male.  The wild population is as of today in the Rio Abajo forest between 34 and 40.  As recently as yesterday, I saw a flock of thirty parrots, almost the entire free population, feasting on the fruit of a single fruit laden forest tree.  So it appears that the population in RA is reaching a size where competition between pairs is starting to show its head.  I do need to add that the Karst Release project personnel has done a magnificent job of installing in the forest plenty of nests for the parrots, so if any pair wants to nest there are many choices available.

If you look closely at the photo you will notice that the parrot is looking straight at the camera, it is biting the branch where it is perching and the pupil of the eye is expanded.  It is likely this action by the parrot was a threat display.  These parrots in the wild will not approach humans and will flee if there is an attempt to get close to them.  However the released birds are familiar with the aviary employees and regard us as a bothersome intrusion rather than as a predator threat.

Taken on: January 14, 2009

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Camera: Canon EOS DIGITAL REBEL XTi, f/5.6, 1/200 sec, 50mm, ISO 400 (more info) (hide info)

Camera:	Canon EOS DIGITAL REBEL XTi
Aperture:	f/5.6
Exposure Time:	0.005 sec (1/200)
Focal Length:	50mm
ISO:	400
Exposure Bias:	0 EV
Flash:	Auto, Fired
Exposure Program:	Program AE
Metering Mode:	Multi-segment
Color Space:	sRGB
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