When Steve and I went to the Jackson County Fair a couple of weeks ago, we made sure to see the bird show there. It turned out to be an excellent, educational and very fun show with an emphasis on parrot and bird education and conservation. This charismatic man is the one behind it all, Chris Biro, and he has spent over 20 years traveling around the country doing The Pirate's Parrot Show to teach people more about parrots and to raise funds for conservation efforts.

The bird Chris is holding is the endangered and breathtakingly beautiful Hyacinth Macaw. These birds come mainly from Brazil, Bolivia and Paraguay, and are the largest parrot in the world. Due to the pet trade and habitat loss, they are endangered in the wild. Many cattle ranchers in their home range now protect these amazing birds from poaching, and bans on commercial export is also having an effect, but the high price tag of these macaws ($7,000-15,000) continues to tempt people to capture and try to sell wild-caught birds. Eco-tourism is teaching native people to understand why they must protect these parrots and this is making an impact, slow but sure.

If you would like to know more about Hyacinth macaws, Wiki has a page here: Wiki: Hyacinth Macaw

If you would like to know about Chris Biro's wonderful parrot conservation organization, please visit Bird Recovery International