Saving wildlife and habitats. nº83 December 2006

Transcription

1 Saving wildlife and habitats nº83 December 2006 The newsletter of Loro Parque Fundación Nº 83 - December 2006

2 The newsletter of Loro Parque Fundación Nº December 2006 Message from the Founder Cyanopsitta is printed using environment friendly, recycled, woodfree coated paper: Symbol Freelife Satin, FEDRIGONI Index Message from the founder...2 The Loro Parque Foundation will give 700,000 to conservation in A successful VI International Parrot Convention...4 Loro Parque News...7 Meeting point...8 LPF and NABU sign partnership agreement...10 LPF Annual Report Technological advances for environmental education...15 News on the captive management of the Lear s Macaw...16 Lear s Macaws, Licuri Palms and People...18 LPF News...21 Frontcover: Lear s Macaw (Anodorhynchus leari) Editorial office: Loro Parque S.A Puerto de la Cruz Tenerife, Islas Canarias. Spain Tel.: Fax: loroparque@loroparque.com dir.general@loroparque-fundacion.org Editorial Consultant: Rosemary Low Editorial Commitee: Dr. Javier Almunia, Inge Feier, Wolfgang Kiessling, Pedro Sancho, Matthias Reinschmidt, Marion Krüger y Prof. David Waugh Visit our websites: Membership: Become a member of Loro Parque Fundación to support us in our activities. You will then receive our trimestral newsletter Cyanopsitta, as well as a supporter s card during the validity of your membership and a visit to our breeding centre. The current annual membership fees are: Adults...100,00 Children...50,00 Please send us your membership subscription by mail, fax or , or call us, and we will sign you up immediately. Bank account: BBVA, Puerto de la Cruz Cuenta: IBAN:...ES BIC:... BBVAESMM Depósito legal: TF-1643/2003 My dear friends, we come to the end of another year, and a truly extraordinary one for Loro Parque. The arrival of our four wonderful Orcas in February was an event noticed worldwide, and since then we have been forging ahead, almost without taking a breath. Our second event with global reach was the VI International Parrot Convention. For me it was a special pleasure to greet old friends and acquaintances again, as well as to make new ones, and to know that everybody went home with another little piece of Tenerife in their hearts. I am pleased to say that it was a well-attended and successful event, which continues to attract influential interest, such as this year with the CITES Secretary- General, Dr Willem Wijnstekers. Furthermore, the formalization of a partnership between the Loro Parque Fundación and NABU, the BirdLife International partner for Germany also demonstrates the recognition which exists for our foundation within the international conservation world. Building on the existing professional portfolio of conservation projects, the LPF Advisory Board, meeting immediately after the Convention, decided to support some additional projects. As a confident sign that the LPF remains the leading parrot conservation organisation, the Board voted a record amount, 700,000 euros, to support conservation activities in Your support very much helps us to achieve this level of activity, and we were again delighted that some of our major donors could join our annual meeting to see at first hand what is being done. I was also fortunate to have a direct experience of what the LPF does in the field, by visiting the wonderful area in Brazil where the Lear s Macaws live in the wild. We must never let these marvellous natural treasures be destroyed, never to be seen again. Recognition for our efforts to protect the environment are coming from many different directions, as the prizes we have received this year attest. Not only do I receive these awards with great pleasure, but they also spur me and my team to make even greater efforts, not only for the environment, but also for quality. The latter has also been very wellrecognised this year, not least by the visitors of utmost distinction who have visited Loro Parque and stayed at the Hotel Botanico, including no less than the Spanish Monarchs. All these different events and perspectives of life come together as a desire to live in a more sustainable way, with a greater enjoyment of the nature around us. This is especially so at this festive time of year, and so I wish all of you the best of festivities, and I thank you wholeheartedly for your continuing support. Wolfgang Kiessling President, Loro Parque Fundación 2 Nº 83 - December 2006

3 Saving wildlife and habitats The Loro Parque Foundation will give 700,000 to conservation in 2007 In the eleventh annual meeting of the Board of Advisors and Trustees of the Loro Parque Foundation (LPF), held in Loro Parque on the 2nd and 3rd of October 2006, there was a unanimous decision to contribute 700,000 euros in 2007 to conservation projects worldwide, as well as locally in the Canary Islands. This decision to increase by 7.9% from the previous year was not only due to the feel-good factor of having just closed a successful International Parrot Convention, but also to the solid achievements of the foundation. As in all other years, the principal support from Loro Parque will help the LPF to maintain the breeding programmes which it conducts in its breeding centre at La Vera, Tenerife. It will also permit the LPF to reassure its members and other supporters, that 100% of their financial contributions are directed to the conservation activities, and are a real investment for the environment. The state of the LPF s finances was central to the discussions and decisions of the Board about the different activities of the foundation. With yet another year of increase of the financial reserves, the LPF maintains its confidence to provide the record funding for projects in the next year. The substantial increases in donations from sponsors, members and other supporters, more than off-set the reduced revenue from sales of surplus parrots partly caused by recent restrictions related to avian flu in other countries. The breeding results in the LPF s breeding centre continue to be excellent, and any remaining obstacles on the transfer of birds are soon expected to be resolved. The 20 LPF field projects active around the world in 2006 have attained exceptional results in the conservation of threatened parrots and their habitats, and a considerable part of the funding for 2007 will be to support the continuation of 15 of the major projects. The key to achieve long-lasting conservation gains is long-term support. Thus, the LPF projects continue to show themselves as innovative and reliable models for helping to conserve biodiversity through the positive engagement of local people for the long-term safe-guarding of this natural heritage. An additional five field projects will be initiated in In relation to the activities of the LPF in research, training and education in 2006, all these areas had great deal of positive collaboration in the Canary Islands, Spain, other countries in Europe and further afield. There is a strong expansion of the education programme in relation to the arrival of the four Orcas (Orcinus orca) to Loro Parque. Thus, the LPF contributed significant effort to the design and construction of the new learning area associated with the Orca facility, the Aula del Mar (Classroom of the sea). The area is designed for all visitors to the park, but also includes a separate classroom where school groups and other children can learn about the environment and about the use of computers at the same time. In 2007 the LPF will also support collaborative research with four universities on aspects of the Orcas to promote their conservation, as well as research to help stranded turtles. Now habitual at the annual meeting of the LPF, representatives of some of the major sponsoring companies were present, and later had the opportunity to visit the breeding centre of the foundation to see the unique parrot collection. LPF President, Mr Wolfgang Kiessling with Advisors and sponsors Nº 83 - December

4 The newsletter of Loro Parque Fundación A successful VI International Parrot Convention by Tony Pittman A colourful welcome to the International Convention The VI International Parrot Convention took place from 27 th to 30 th September in Puerto de la Cruz, Tenerife. Organised by Loro Parque and the Loro Parque Foundation and held every four years, like the Olympics it has become the premier event worldwide for a wide range of parrot enthusiasts from dedicated field-workers to breeders and pet-owners. This year there were approximately 800 participants from 43 countries. Over three days there was a series of presentations from prominent experts of all kinds, but it was noticeable to those who have attended all the conventions, since the first in 1986, how the emphasis has changed from mainly avicultural topics to conservation. This is almost certainly due to the conservation activities of Loro Parque Foundation, which now span the globe, and the dramatic growth in the last decade of projects in countries where parrots are endemic. The presentations were held in the mornings. and the afternoons were left free to visit the breeding centre, Loro Parque with its new attractions, or the town. In the evenings there was food and entertainment at various locations, where participants could relax and socialise. After the opening presentation on the first morning by Rosemary Low, Matthias Reinschmidt, Loro Parque Fundación Curator, talked on New techniques of parrot breeding Matthias has been curator for more than five years and has been responsible for the breeding of some 1,200 to 1,500 young every year. However despite this conspicuous success he has been investigating the reasons why certain species of parrot do not readily breed and finding ways of solving the problems discovered. His presentation was rewarded with third place for best speaker, voted on by the participants at the end of the convention. He was followed by Greg Matuzak talking on the successful re-introduction of Scarlet Macaws (Ara macao) in Costa Rica, and then by Cristina Yumi Miyaki from São Paulo, Brazil with an erudite discourse on how DNA analysis in parrots can assist in conservation in the wild and in aviculture. Many years ago Cristina was involved in analysis of blood samples taken from young Hyacinthine Macaws (Anodoryhnchus hyacinthinus) bred in the wild in the Pantanal and monitored by Neiva Guedes and her team at the Projeto Arara Azul. She also talked on her work there, as well as the important DNA analysis of the captive Lear s Macaw (Anodorhynchus leari) population in Brazil. Cristina examined the egg produced by the last Spix s macaw in the wild, which mated with a female 4 Nº 83 - December 2006

5 Saving wildlife and habitats Illiger s Macaw (Primolius maracana), and discovered that the embryo in the egg was a hybrid. Her research is still in its infancy compared to similar work in mammals, but undoubtedly will make a considerable contribution to parrot conservation in the future. She was followed by Don Brightsmith, who is well-known for his work at Tambopata in Peru, who talked on the annual cycle driven by the flowering and fruiting of trees on which the influenza by wild birds. The enclosures are very different to those encountered at the last convention in 2002 and a huge improvement on those encountered at the first in1986. I liked in particular the Eclectus Aviary and the very large aviary for the cockatoos, as well as the enclosures for the small conures and the keas. Rafael was followed by Bennett Hennessey talking on work in conserving the Blue-throated Macaw (Ara glaucogularis) in Bolivia. Despite many successes this work remains difficult. The species, which has an estimated population of individuals, remains highly endangered and much still needs to be done to cultivate and educate local farmers. Bennett told me afterwards just how sensitive this species is to intrusion and how careful one must be with eco-tourist activities. Then Peter Widmann related his experiences in trying to protect the Philippine Cockatoo (Cacatua haematuropygia) in the Philippines and especially on the island of Palawan, where poaching activities pose a particular problem. Nigel Collar from Birdlife International then gave a very informative and thoroughly researched presentation on the history of parrot re-introduction with its successes as well as failures and presented perspectives for the future. Bennett Hennessey of Armonía, Bolivia spoke about conservation of the Blue-throated Macaw macaws there feed. He also discoursed on the pattern of use of the famous clay licks by a diverse range of parrots and showed how high usage correlated with the breeding season. This is an important topic and other field-workers are conducting similar surveys in various areas throughout the world for other species of parrot. Peter Odekerken from Australia spoke on lories with a series of magnificent photographs and made an appeal to keep and breed the rarest species in captivity to ensure the future of those species. He also appealed to aviculturists not to hybridise different species and to endeavour to maintain genetic purity. Then there was a idiosyncratic presentation by Rick Jordan with his interesting views on the application of his observations in aviculture to assist conservation biologists in release programmes for psittacines, and the session finished with a well-received video on parrots in the wild by Mark Stafford from the USA. The second day began with a presentation by Rafael Zamora Padron, Loro Parque Fundación Assistant Curator, on environmental enrichment methods for keeping parrots. This is undoubtedly a topic which should be focussed on at future conventions. By walking around the breeding centre at La Vera and Loro Parque itself one could clearly see that the ideas expounded on by Rafael have been put into practice, despite the limitations caused by the temporary measures taken against the possible spread of avian Barbara Heidenreich spoke next on training birds for medical and husbandry behaviours to reduce stress. This presentation was different to the rest in that it touched upon pet birds, and afterwards it was apparent that a number of the participants did not share A smiling welcome from the Convention hostesses her views on animal training or had misgivings about them. These methods seem to be favoured in American zoos and animal parks. I visited the National Aquarium in Baltimore recently and saw for myself how the keepers there train marine mammals to accept handling. This is another topic which will surely be more prominent at future conventions. Willem Wijnstekers, Secretary General of CITES, then read Nº 83 - December

6 The newsletter of Loro Parque Fundación a statement on that organisation and its policies. This was followed by a short presentation by Dr Ramon Porta from Spain on avian influenza, and finally another short video of parrots in the wild by Mark Stafford. The presentations on the final third day were very informative, starting with João Cabral from Portugal on the successful establishment of a viable colony of Red-capped Parrots (Pionopsitta pileata), followed by Mark Ziembicki from Australia on the status and challenges facing parrots in the south Pacific. Paul Salaman then talked optimistically on the work of Fundacion ProAves in Colombia, particularly the very successful activities relating to the Yellow-eared Parrot (Ognorhynchus icterotis), whose numbers have risen from 81 to 656 in seven years. His very encouraging presentation won second place in the best speaker award. Mr Kiessling thanks all participants for a successful Convention A full convention hall The convention was once again a very enjoyable occasion allowing participants to learn more about conserving and keeping parrots as well as providing great opportunity to get to know new people with similar interests, meet up with friends from distant climes, foster existing contacts as well as gossip and exchange views and opinions. The evening functions were also very enjoyable, particularly the trip to the south of the island to see the site of Siam Park, the new water park of the Loro Parque group being constructed there, and to be entertained by an amazing performance of flamenco dancing, which was more an exciting synthesis of ballet and river dance than traditional flamenco. All participants had free entry to Loro Parque where they were able to admire the large new aviaries built for cockatoos and small conures as well as see the new orca show. See you there again in 2010! Ed. Tony Pittman was the UK organiser for the Convention, and we thank him for this article. Lorenzo Crosta from Italy, formerly veterinary director at Loro Parque, spoke next on neonatology (i.e. care of young birds) in parrots followed by Carlos Manderscheid, the only speaker in French, from Luxemburg, who discoursed on the management of a private parrot collection and its diseases. Then Dr Jon Paul Rodriquez from Venezuela took us back to conservation by speaking on the parrots of the Margarita Island, just off the coast of Venezuela, and the work being done there to protect them and educate the local human population. Karl-Heinz Lambert from Germany, who travels around the globe photographing and filming parrots, showed us some of his best work and thereby won the top position in the best speaker award. Finally David Waugh, Director of the Loro Parque Foundation, detailed the work of the foundation and pointed out that 100% of all donations goes towards projects, the costs of the operation being absorbed by Loro Parque. Since 1994 when the foundation was set up more than US$ 4 million has been used to support conservation projects. After David s closing speech, Mark Stafford presented another short video of parrots in the wild. A very appropriae cake to celebrate The printed proceedings with all the presentations can be bought from Loro Parque. You can for further details to dir.general@loroparque-fundacion.org or call them on or fax Nº 83 - December 2006

7 Saving wildlife and habitats Loro Parque News The Monarchs of Spain in the Hotel Botánico Don Juan Carlos y Doña Sofía meet Mr and Mrs Kiessling In the most extensive official visit that they have made to the Canary Islands, their Majesties King Don Juan Carlos and Doña Sofía of Spain honoured the Hotel Botanico with their stay between the 22 and 24 of November. The trip of their Majesties incorporated the seven islands and served to commemorate the one hundred years of the first visit of a monarch to the Canary Islands, the one that the grandfather of Don Juan Carlos, Alfonso XIII, made in 1906 sealing to an indissoluble bond between the Crown and the Islands. During these days, the Royals have been received in the seven Islands...and the Hotel Botánico wins the TUI Environmental Champion prize The 27 of September 2006, in the seat of the Government of the Canary Islands in Santa Cruz de Tenerife, the Hotel Botanico was one of the ten Canarian hotels that received the appraised award TUI Environmental Champion (Unwelt Champion) for fulfilling in exemplary way environmental management through aspects such as the use of alternative energies, saving of resources, good management of waste, and the use of native flora in the gardens. In the act, presided over by the Councillor for Tourism of the Canary Islands Government, Manuel Fajardo Feo, Mr. Kiessling, proprietor of the hotel, received the prize from Dr Wolf Iwand, Director of Medio Ambiente TUI.... and the Teide de Oro 2006 prize for Loro Parque The prize Teide de Oro 2006 was awarded to Loro Parque by Radio ClubTenerife, of channel SER, on 14 of September in a ceremony held in the Palace of the island government of Tenerife. The prize awards those people and institutions of which the Canarians feel deeply proud, and recognizes Loro Parque as company and park of top category at international level, as well as for its commitment to the environment. Nº 83 - December

8 The newsletter of Loro Parque Fundación Meeting point Forgotten kids in LORO PARQUE It has already become a tradition in Tenerife to invite children from the ethnic group Sahauris to visit the island every summer. The kids, whose tribe have been refugees living in the desert of West Africa for 30 years, are staying just now with host families and are spoiled all of the time. One part of the extensive daily programme was the visit to LORO PARQUE, to see animals which they didn t even know existed, to see exotic plants and to smell their flowers all these have given special moments for the youngsters. But without doubt, the most fun they had during the visit was on the roller coaster ride and it was almost impossible to get them off it. These idyllic days on the island and the visit to LORO PARQUE were unique in their lives, and will remain in their memories forever. The Mayor of La Laguna visits Loro Parque The Mayor of La Laguna, Ana Oramas, used one of the last public holidays (fiestas) for a visit to Loro Parque with all her family. It was a day without any politics and it was a pleasure to see the kids with big eyes and smiling faces when they saw the penguins toddling on the icebergs, the funny sea lions and the enormous and impressive orcas. For Ana Oramas it was a day especially for relaxing in this oasis of exotic flora and fauna. Emma Suárez and Caco Senante visit LORO PARQUE Whilst they are shooting a film about the famous surrealist Oscar Domínguez in the Canarias, the actors Emma Suárez and Caco Senante, well-known singer of the song Mojo picón, and some young players from Madrid took a day off to visit LORO PARQUE. Together they had a lot of fun during the different shows, were enthusiastic about the rich colouring of the numerous birds and, the highlight of their visit, the powerful orcas who s strength and intelligence left them dumbfounded. Even the Argentinian rock singer Andy Chango, who normally is surrounded by much louder sounds, could not hide his emotion and was raving about a wonderful day in an unique park. 8 Nº 83 - December 2006

9 Saving wildlife and habitats An extended family discovers LORO PARQUE To see families in LORO PARQUE, is very normal. Families with 13 kids is definitely not. The family Weinzierl from Germany visited the park with eleven of their children, who are between 9 months and 22 years old. At the moment the members of this family are spending the first holiday ever in their lives and are accompanied and being filmed by a team from the German television RTL. With enthusiasm and deep emotion all of them enjoyed the different attractions of the park and attempted a small journey around the world at the same time: from the Pueblo Thai, the entrance to the park, over the antarctic Planet Penguin to the vastness of the oceans with their gigantic inhabitants, the Orcas. These had such an impact on the family that even some hidden tears were seen. A screening of this excursion of the family Weinzierl will be shown in different programs of RTL, e.g. Explosiv and Explosiv Weekend. Russian Ambassador visits Loro Parque The Ambassador of the Russian Federation in Madrid, Alexander I. Kuznetsov, and his wife Katerina visited Tenerife for two days, and of course they could not miss a visit to Loro Parque. The Kuznetsovs expressed enthusiasm for the many attractions the park offers. They were especially impressed with the grace, power and playfulness of the orcas, but were also fascinated with the almost human mannerisms of the gorillas, admired the colony of penguins enjoying the snow on the huge iceberg, and were impressed by the ample education and information offered by Loro Parque. It was our first, but for sure not our last visit to this fantastic park emphasised Mr. Kuznetsov at the end of his visit. The Electric Light Orchestra Part II in Loro Parque After two excellent and sold out concerts in the Auditorium of Tenerife the members of the famous group The Electric Light Orchestra Part II visited Loro Parque to relax. They were so impressed by all the attractions that they stayed more hours in the park than planned. The meeting with the Skyla Family, the four Orcas, was especially exciting for them, and the musicians were really surprised by the playfulness and inquisitiveness of the animals. Nº 83 - December

10 The newsletter of Loro Parque Fundación LPF and NABU sign partnership agreement The 29th of September was a memorable day in Tenerife when the President of the Loro Parque Fundación (LPF), Mr Wolfgang Kiessling, and the Chairman of the NAture and Biodiversity Union (NABU), Mr Olaf Tschimpke, signed a joint declaration for collaboration. The joint declaration states: NABU and LPF hereby agree to establish a close cooperation and partnership on the basis of the following statements: 1. LPF and NABU respect the objectives of the other party respectively to nature and species conservation and nature and species conservation. Zoos acting as centres of environmental education hereby form an essential supporting pillar for environmental education. Against this background LPF and NABU call their members, member groups and colleague institutions for reinforced cooperation between zoos and aquaria and appropriate governmental and nongovernmental entities. The Local Agenda 21 may hereby serve as an adequate frame. 3. NABU and LPF will cooperate to combine ex-situ conservation measures (e.g. within the bounds of the European Breeding Programmes) with species and habitat conservation measures on site (in-situ). As part of the cooperation, NABU and LPF will agree on the inclusion of flagship-species for conservation activities and determined projects. Mr Wolfgang Kieslign and Mr Olaf Tschimpke sign the agreement environmental education. Both parties state explicitly the need of scientific captive animal management on the basis of the World Zoo and Aquarium Conservation Strategy of the World Associations of Zoos and Aquariums (WAZA) and of the Conservation Breeding Specialist Group of the IUCN-Species Survival Commission. NABU and LPF plead for forms of animal husbandry which are appropriate to the species and respect animal welfare. 2. The great potential for environmental education that zoos and aquaria feature by having worldwide at least 600 million visitors per year, offers the unique chance to sensitise people from all classes for action for and goals of 4. NABU and LPF approve an effective species protection legislation on the basis of the CITES agreement and the EU-wide and nationally applying species protection laws. They endorse the adequate execution of the species protection law. Furthermore they plead for stopping the import of animals from the wild, as far as those run contrary to requirements of animal welfare and maxims of sustainable use of natural resources. NABU is the BirdLife International partner for Germany, working for the protection of biological diversity, especially in Germany, but also in other parts of the world. NABU tries to inspire people to engage themselves in the protection of nature and thereby contribute to the benefit of society. It has more than 400,000 members supporting its conservation efforts. The LPF and NABU can collaborate in many positive ways, but especially in the combined support for projects to protect threatened species and areas of high biodiversity in the tropics. Heike Finke, NABU Council member also present at the signing ceremony in Tenerife, is already involved in existing international projects of NABU and will be the liaison person with the LPF for the development of new projects. 10 Nº 83 - December 2006

11 Loro Parque Fundación Saving wildlife and habitatsannual Report 2005 Loro Parque Fundación Annual Report 2005 Who are we and what do we do? The Loro Parque Fundación (LPF) is a non-profit, non-governmental organisation legally registered with the Ministry of Education and Science of the Government of Spain since It has its headquarters at Loro Parque, a first class zoological collection in Tenerife, the Canary Islands, Spain. It operates on an international basis to conserve threatened species and their habitats, through education, applied research, responsible breeding programmes, and community-based conservation activities that use these species as ambassadors for nature. The LPF conducts field projects to help improve the conservation status and management of wild populations of threatened parrots. These in situ projects incorporate applied research, protection measures, the participation of local communities, as well as environmental education and sustainable development programmes. The LPF owns the world s largest and most diverse parrot collection that has ever existed, which it uses as a complementary conservation tool. Professional captive management provides the opportunity to maintain viable populations in captivity as a safeguard against the extinction of endangered species in the wild. The collection is an important resource for parrot reintroduction programmes, as well as for a strong research programme directed at constantly improving parrot husbandry and welfare. The first focus of LPF is on parrots. These birds are found throughout the tropical regions, where biodiversity is highest and where loss of natural habitat is rapid. The parrot family has the highest number of threatened species. Moreover, because of their beautiful colours and appealing behaviour, parrots are effective emblems to increase support from local rural communities and attract vital aid necessary for environmental and economic improvements. The LPF also acts to protect the marine environment, especially using cetaceans as ambassadors of the oceans. Who supports us? Our Principal Sponsor: Part of the parrot collection is exhibited in Loro Parque, and by developing the educational programmes that use the park s animal collection as a major resource for environmental education, LPF plays an important role in increasing the awareness about the need to protect parrots, cetaceans and biodiversity in general. Our Main Sponsors: The LPF can protect parrots, cetaceans, and many other species and natural places due to the generous support of many organisations and individuals. The LPF greatly thanks its members, sponsors, project funding partners and all other supporters for helping it to protect some of the world s natural treasures. Because Loro Parque continues generously to cover the LPF overheads, 100% of all other support received was directly destined for our projects. Nº 83 - December

12 Loro Parque Fundación The newsletter of Loro Parque Fundación Annual Report : Another year of solid achievements for conservation Conservation management In 2005 the LPF was able to pledge 500,000 euros to projects, an increase of 10.9% on the previous year, and the number of projects supported also increased from 14 to 20. In each project and country, the LPF worked in close collaboration with its local partners, and with the communities of people living where the projects take place. By means of its direct support to in-country projects in 2005 the LPF improved the conservation prospects for 24 species of parrots threatened with extinction and their natural habitats. Conserving threatened parrots in Colombia communities, and information bill-boards were installed on major roads. In Dumaran Island law enforcement wardens were trained and the awareness campaign reached at least 3,000 students from 25 schools. The number of cockatoos was stable at 30 birds. Direct project funding until ,278 Spix s Macaw Recovery Programme, Brazil Fundación ProAves, Colombian partner of LPF, continued its trail-blazing conservation work with several highly threatened parrot species of the Colombian Andes. The Yellow-eared Parrot (Ognorhynchus icterotis) wild population remained above 600 birds, with good breeding results. Negotiations started to acquire a vital 90 hectare area of land to become the only protected area for this species. Also in the Cordillera Central of the Andes, excellent results continued from the use of nest-boxes by Fuertes s parrot (Hapalopsittaca fuertesi) and Golden-plumed Parakeets (Leptosittaca branickii). This type of management continues within the El Mirador reserve, protected by ProAves. Project Pyrrhura was also started as an additional project to save three species of this genus: Flame-winged Parakeet (P. calliptera), Santa Marta Parakeet (P. viridicata) and Sinú Parakeet (P. subandina). ProAves is searching for the latter species, only known from 17 museum specimens. P. calliptera from the eastern Andes, evidently lacking nest holes, immediately started breeding in the first nest-boxes installed by ProAves. Direct project funding until ,859 Philippine Cockatoo Conservation Programme, Philippines In its stronghold of Rasa Island, Palawan, the population of the Philippine Cockatoo (Cacatua haematuropygia) continued to remain at almost 100 birds, young birds dispersing to the mainland. Eco-tourism infrastructure was improved and preparations continued to create a biodiversity learning centre. The project distributed wildlife13,000 posters, activity books and fact-sheets to local schools and A successful meeting for the future of the Spix s Macaw (Cyanopsitta spixii) took place in Brasilia in November, hosted by IBAMA, the Brazilian Government environmental agency. The LPF and other holders of this species outside of Brazil attended, as well as the CITES authorities of Brazil and Germany. A major result was a policy change by the Brazilian Government, which will help the acquisition of more birds into the managed captive population. In the LPF breeding centre, the adult female Spix s Macaw laid a fertile egg on Christmas Day, which resulted in another healthy chick. Direct project funding until ,147 Conservation Programme, Bolivia The field surveys conducted by project partner Armonía covered more than 100 sites and the wild population of Bluethroated Macaws (Ara glaucogularis) was estimated between 200 and 250 birds. A monitored wild nest was successful, and a pair also occupied one of 30 nest-boxes installed. Armonía worked closely with local law enforcement agencies to help prevent illegal trade of this species. Direct project funding until ,034 Phu Khieo Wildlife Sanctuary, Thailand In collaboration with the Thailand Department of National Parks, and the organisation RARE, in March the LPF conducted a training course in Social Marketing and Environmental Education for forest officers from Thailand s protected areas. The course was held at Huai Kum Wildlife Conservation Development and Extension Centre next to Phu Khieo W.S. The directors were Paul Butler of RARE and Kriangsak Chaturasuksakul, Superintendent of Huai Kum who, funded by LPF, previously trained at the Durrell Institute of Conservation and Ecology, University of Kent. Direct project funding until , Nº 83 - December 2006

13 Loro Parque Fundación Saving wildlife and habitatsannual Report 2005 Additional projects included nest monitoring and an environmental education programme for the Red-tailed Amazon (Amazona brasiliensis) in Paraná, Brazil; conservation of endemic parrots in Tanimbar, Indonesia; protecting threatened parrots of Margarita Island, Venezuela; the St Vincent Parrot (Amazona guildingii) in St Vincent and the Alder Amazon (Amazona tucumana) in Argentina; ecology study of reintroduced Scarlet Macaws (Ara macao) in Costa Rica, and endemic parrots in central Cuba. Following an LPF-BirdLife project, the Indonesian Government declared the Aketajawe-Lolobata National Park in Halmahera. Cumulative direct funding for conservation and research until ,856,629 In November the LPF hosted a workshop on cetaceans, with participation from CITES Spain, researchers of several universities and SeaWorld. Captive management The avian flu in other parts of the world caused the LPF to take precautions to minimise the risk to its parrot collection. Even so the collection could still produce 1,247 ringed chicks from 171 different species and subspecies. Due to uncertainty about international transfers of birds, the collection grew to almost 3,800 parrots. However, this did not affect the breeding of the more unusual or challenging species, such as Plumcrowned Parrots (Pionus tumultuosus), Papuan Lorikeets (Charmosyna papou), Plum-headed Lorikeets (Oreopsittacus arfaki) and Palm Cockatoos (Probosciger aterrimus). The LPF continued its participation in 29 Endangered Species Programmes (EEP) and European and International studbooks (I/ESB), being coordinator of six of these programmes. The sale of captive bred parrots provided income for conservation work, and helped to reduce capture of wild parrots. During the year, the new clinic opened in December 2004 functioned extremely well. The support of Loro Parque to cover the collection management costs was very much appreciated. Research and spreading expertise Using the parrot collection, collaborative research was undertaken with the universities of Munich, Leipzig and Glasgow, and 61 interns received training in our facilities. The LPF continuously published scientific and general information about parrots and conservation by means of its quarterly newsletter, Cyanopsitta, and articles in specialist journals and magazines. It ran two successful Germanlanguage workshops for 51 parrot breeders from Germany and Switzerland. LPF staff also presented information about conservation and captive breeding at several conferences. Environmental education 2005 saw a concerted effort to design and begin to construct the education area Aula del Mar (Classroom of the Sea) associated with the with new exhibit for Orcas (Orcinus orca). At the same time, all existing materials of the Classroom of the Sea education package were made available on the LPF website, and the Weeks of the Sea project continued in the schools. Building on the success of previous workshops, an education workshop about penguins was added to our range of activities, as were the guided visits of Loro Parque for the schools. Other happenings We bid farewell to Honorary Vice-President Dr Joachim Steinbacher, who died in July, and welcomed Dr Wolfgang Grummt in his place. The LPF contributed to the new World Zoo and Aquarium Conservation Strategy, and provided support for the development of the web-based Zoological Information Management System (ZIMS) for animal records, as well as for the new Chair-person of the Species Survival Commission of the IUCN. The LPF received warm endorsement from the Convention on Biological Diversity. It also gained two more prizes for its conservation efforts: the Golden Microphone from Radio CLM, and Best institution in Defence of nature from the magazine Viajes y Turismo (Voyages and Tourism). WHO S WHO IN THE LORO PARQUE FUNDACIÓN President Wolfgang Kiessling, General Director, Loro Parque S.A. Honorary Vice-President Dr Wolfgang Grummt - Animal Park Friedrichsfelde, Berlin, Germany Board of Advisors: Dr Tomás de Azcárate y Bang - Head of Sustainable Development, Ministry of Environment, Canary Islands, Spain Dr Susan L Clubb - Avian Veterinarian, Hurricane Aviaries, USA Dr Nigel J Collar- Leventis Fellow in Conservation Biology, Cambridge University, BirdLife International, England Dr Wolf Michael Iwand - Director, Department of Corporate Environmental Management, Tui AG, Germany Povl Jorgensen - Aviculturist, Denmark Dr Ian R Swingland - Emeritus Professor Conservation Biology; Founder, Durrell Institute of Conservation and Ecology, England Dr Jorgen B Thomsen - Senior Vice-President, Conservation International; Executive Director, Critical Ecosystems Partnership Fund, USA Roland Wirth - President and Founder, Zoological Society for the Conservation of Species and Populations, Germany Board of Trustees Wolfgang Kiessling, Brigitte Kiessling, Christoph Kiessling, Isabell Kiessling, Antonio Caseras Staff Dr David Waugh, Director, Inge Feier, Director of External Affairs and Media, Dr Javier Almunia, Deputy Director, Matthias Reinschmidt, Curator of Birds, Dr Lorenzo Crosta, Dr Annett Häbich, Dr Sara Capelli, Veterinary Department, Ruth Batista, Education Department, Birgit Veenker, Secretary Nº 83 - December

14 Loro Parque Fundación The newsletter of Loro Parque Fundación Annual Report 2005 Statement of Financial Activities 2005 Income 2005 ( ) 2004 ( ) Diff. (%) A Donations Loro Parque: Conservation and breeding activities 410, , B Donations Loro Parque: breeding centre improvements 35,085 49, D Net sales of surplus parrots for conservation benefit 185, , E Net sales of promotional items for conservation benefit 365, , F Donations from sponsors, members, founders, other income 603, , G Bank interest 75,000 71, TOTAL INCOME 1,675,676 1,619, Expenditure 2005 ( ) 2004 ( ) Diff. (%) H Support to education, research and conservation projects 395, , I Conservation, breeding, education and research costs: personnel and administration 690, , J Depreciation 71, , L Tax expenditure 25, , TOTAL EXPENDITURE 1,182, , RESULT 492, , Income F 36% E 22% G 4% A 25% B 2% C 0% D 11% Balance Sheet 2005 Assets 2005 ( ) 2004 ( ) Diff. (%) Land, buildings, machinery, other fixed assets 996,012 1,066,924 Parrot collection (original value) 555, ,996 Financial assets and merchandise stocks 5,384,846 4,866,370 K J 2% 6% H 33% Expenditure TOTAL ASSETS 6,936,854 6,489,291 Funds 2005 ( ) 2004 ( ) I 59% Social fund (capital) 1,360, ,599 General funds 5,505,685 5,423, Transitory funds 70, ,865 TOTAL FUNDS 6,936,854 6,489, Loro Parque Fundación, Avda. Loro Parque, Puerto de la Cruz, Tenerife, Canary Islands, Spain T: F: E: dir.general@loroparque-fundacion.org URL: Charity registered with the Ministry of Education and Science, Madrid, Spain: TNF 264, 12 December Nº 83 - December 2006

15 Saving wildlife and habitats Technological advances for environmental education The Classroom of the Cetaceans (el Aula de los Cetáceos), a room full of computers created for environmental education activities using new technologies, was officially inaugurated at the same time as the presentation of the Educational Projects of Loro Parque Fundación for the school year. Although the classroom has been available to all the visitors to Loro Parque since the opening of OrcaOcean (and already it has been used by more than 3,500 people between August and November), from October the schools have begun to use it. It has shown itself to be a truly pioneering educational resource, allowing the educators of the LPF to work on different aspects of nature conservation, with groups of 30 students. In this way, we have reinforced our communication tools to make students more aware of the environmental problems which some species face, and the role of zoos in the conservation of nature. At the moment the users of the Classroom of the Cetaceans have four educational programmes. The first is a simple painting game by means of which the smallest children can colour different animals. In another game they must lead a turtle to lay eggs to the beach by avoiding the dangers that face it in the sea (plastic refuse, oil slicks or fish with hooks). A further game introduces to the users the form in which censuses of parrots are carried out, to evaluate their conservation status. Finally, an amusing test on orcas, in which Skyla helps to discover the answers behind an ink-stain by means of her system of echo-location. The educational programmes are completed and have been translated into three languages so that they can be used by all visitors to loro Parque. In the coming months the contents of the classroom will be expanded, with new educational programmes and adding more functions to the existing ones, so as to allow interaction between all users in the room. Finally, the Department of Education of the Loro Parque Fundación has initiated contacts with the people in charge of the new technologies programme of the Education Council of the Canary Islands Government to take our environmental project to all the Education Centres in the Canary Islands. Thus, during the next trimestre, technical mechanisms will be established so that any Educative Centre can be connected by means of the Internet to the activities of the classroom, and thus give a greater dimension to the education and awareness activities of the Loro Parque Fundación. A second opportunity for marine turtles to be returned to the sea. When the fauna services of the island governments have rescued the animals, they evaluate if they need a long recovery and they place them with the veterinary department of the LPF. From this moment our veterinarians are in charge of carrying out the treatments with regularity and to monitor the evolution of the patients. The veterinary team examine a turtle Loro Parque Fundación is reinforcing its activities in the rescue and recovery of marine fauna by collaborating in a programme for the rescue of marine turtles with the island governments of Tenerife and Gran Canaria. By means of this project we are try to help the recovery of some of the 200 turtles that get stranded on the Canarian coasts every year, due to injuries by nets, ingestion of hooks, oiling or other causes. The role of Loro Parque and the Loro Parque Fundación in this collaboration is to carry out the recuperation of the specimens that require greater attention and must spend a long time before being able When they no longer require frequent treatments, they are placed in one of the exhibition pools in Loro Parque. In this way the turtles can recover their physical form and return to swim by themselves before being released back to the sea. During the time they are on exhibition, they are the subjects of an information and awareness programme, aimed at all the visitors to the park by means of informative panels. At the same time, the Department of Education the Loro Parque Fundación conducts awareness activities with the schools of Tenerife, by means of talks and games, such as the the odyssey of the turtles installed in the computers of the Classroom of the Cetaceans. Once a turtle is ready to be returned to the sea, the schools that have participated are contacted so that they can attend the release. To date, an initial phase of the project with three turtles has been made, of which one already has been released, the second is on exhibition and the third is still receiving intensive treatment to save one of its fins. In the near future we hope to extend this activity in collaboration with other organizations, and to increase dissemination of information about the programme. Nº 83 - December

16 The newsletter of Loro Parque Fundación Meetings in Brazil for the conservation of Spix s and Lear s Macaws of the workshop were related to the keeping and breeding of these, and each institution which holds Spix s Macaws and Lear s Macaws presented its keeping concept as the basis for valuable exchange of information. The Spix s Macaw meeting discussed the success of breeding in recent years, and the re-pairing of some birds to increase productivity. Also discussed was the future reintroduction of birds, the protection of land with suitable habitat, the high motivation of the local community to participate, and the function and siting of a breeding center. An action plan and a conservation handbook are in preparation for publication. The team from IBAMA at the meetings At the beginning of November 2006, meetings the Spix s Macaw (Cyanopsitta spixii) Working Group and the Lear s Macaw (Anodorhynchus leari) Conservation Committee took place in Brazil, hosted by the Sao Paulo Zoo, and presided over by IBAMA. The Loro Parque Fundación was represented by its President Wolfgang Kiessling, and Director Dr. David Waugh. The Curator of LPF, Matthias Reinschmidt participated in three-day captive management workshop which preceded the meetings. The main subjects The Lear s Macaw management plan has just been published, and the discussions about this species covered diverse issues, including the increase of the wild population and the official conservation status of the species. Other matters referred to protection of the breeding and roosting sites, management of licuri palms, subsidies of maize for damage to crops, options for rescued macaws, land ownership, education and awareness, training, and working with the local communities. Following the meetings, Mr Kiessling participated in the field visit to the areas where wild Lear s Macaws exists, as well as to Curaçá, the former area of the Spix s Macaws and made important recommendations based on this direct experience. The LPF also supported the travel costs of Dr Lorenzo Crosta, official veterinary advisor for the captive birds in Brazil and former LPF veterinarian, to make a health check of the birds in advance of the meetings. News on the captive management of the Lear s Macaw by David Waugh and Matthias Reinschmidt Actions for the conservation of the wild population of the Lear s Macaw Anodorhynchus leari, and its habitat have been underway for a number of years, and a plan has been published recently to clarify and prioritise the necessary conservation measures (IBAMA 2006). The plan also includes the use of captive breeding as an ex situ conservation tool for the species. The Loro Parque Fundación (LPF) of Tenerife, Spain, together with the Brazilian Government agency IBAMA (Brazilian Institute of Environment and Renewable Natural Resources) and other partners, is contributing to the field conservation project. Furthermore, the LPF Curator, Matthias Reinschmidt is the international studbook keeper with support from Onildo Marini-Filho of IBAMA and Ryan Watson of Al Wabra Widlife Preservation. This article presents current information about the captive population. Table 1. Distribution of Lear s Macaws in the managed population Participating institution Country Status Al Wabra Wildlife Preservation Qatar Crax Wildlife Research Society Brazil Harewood Hall United Kingdom Loro Parque Fundación Spain Lymington Foundation Brazil Rio de Janeiro Zoo Brazil Sao Paulo Zoo Brazil Total: In the studbook are seven participating institutions with 43 officially incorporated birds (Table 1). These are the birds which currently form the managed captive population which is under the coordination of IBAMA, the birds being on 16 Nº 83 - December 2006

17 Saving wildlife and habitats deposit from the Brazilian Government. There is an additional living specimen confiscated by the competent authorities in Brazil in October 2006, which will be incorporated into the managed population. There are a further two female living specimens also likely to join the official population. There are an undisclosed number of Lear s Macaws in Switzerland, for which there is no definite prospect of their inclusion in the officially managed population. Demographically the managed population requires a breeding momentum to add more young birds, as can be seen from the age pyramid (Figure 1), and improvement of the current sex ratio of 0.74, by the addition of more males. However, the breeding programme is necessarily at an early stage. Because most of the macaws have been recruited to the population as confiscated young birds taken in their first year of life, there are close estimates of the ages, even though they are registered in the studbook as wild-caught. Furthermore, endoscopic examination of the condition and stage of development of the gonads of these birds reveal that at 7 to 8 years of age they are only just entering reproductive maturity (L. Crosta and L. Timossi, in litt.). This coincides well with the first studbook registered breeding occurring in 2006 at Al Wabra Wildlife Preservation in Qatar, which holds the oldest birds. Figure 1. Age pyramid of the managed population of Lear s Macaws. relatedness = A, to highest = E). In general terms (scientific details, Miyaki et al., in prep.) this indicates the following. The macaws sampled (17.21) have a total of 357 pairing combinations, which show 115 (32.2%) in the low relatedness categories (A,B), 131 (36.7%) in the medium category (C), and 111 (31.1%) in the high categories (D,E). Currently, all 17 males with known similarity indices are paired with females, with relative proportions of genetic relatedness as shown in table 2. The same table indicates the changes in these proportions if re-pairing of macaws takes place within each institution, i.e. before interchange of macaws between institutions. The pairing according to institution are shown in table 3. Table 2. Pairings of Lear s Macaws in the managed population: level of genetic relatedness currently and after re-pairing within each institution. Level of relatedness Current pairings Re-pairings No. % No. % Low (A, B) Medium (C) High (D,E) Total Table 3. Level of relatedness in possible re-pairings of Lear s Macaws within each institution. Males Females Age (years) > Participating institution Al Wabra Wildlife Preservation Crax Wildlife Research Society Harewood Hall Loro Parque Fundación Lymington Foundation Rio de Janeiro Zoo Sao Paulo Zoo Relatedness of pairings 1A, 1B, 2C 1E N/A 1B, 1C 1A, 1C or 2B 4A, 1C 3A Number of specimens Given that 42 of the studbook registered macaws are wildcaught, founders apparently constitute 97.6% of the captive population, a remarkable and positive situation. However, given that these macaws have been taken from nests, and often were confiscated together, there is a reasonable probability that the founders (which by definition should be unrelated) include siblings. However, despite this possibility, the genetic situation overall in the Lear s Macaw studbook is favourable, as can be demonstrated by work in progress of Prof. Cristina Miyaki and her team at the Institute of Molecular Genetics, University of Sao Paulo. Dr Miyaki has carried out DNA analysis from blood samples obtained from these macaws, and has been able to calculate a genetic similarity index between all of the individuals. Thus she has all possible pairings ranked according to the statistical probability of genetic relatedness of the birds (in five ranks, from lowest 0-1 Given that in the first instance it is easier to manage species populations on a regional basis, it would make sense to exchange birds for further re-pairings between the holding institutions in Brazil. From the captive Lear s Macaws currently in Brazil, it is possible to make 11 low-relatedness (A) pairings. Acknowledgements We thank Prof. Cristina Miyaki for making available the rankings of relatedness of possible pairings. References IBAMA (2006) Management Plan for the Lear s Macaw (Anodorhynchus leari). Endangered Species Series 4. Brasilia: Brazilian Institute of Environment and Renewable Natural Resources, Fauna Species Protection Coordination. Reinschmidt, M (2006) Lear s Macaw (Anodorhynchus leari). International Studbook, Annual Report and Recommendations for Puerto de la Cruz, Tenerife: Loro Parque Fundación. Nº 83 - December

18 The newsletter of Loro Parque Fundación Lear s Macaws, Licuri Palms and People by David Waugh from the known colonies continue. A pair of Lear s Macaws on a nesting cliff The Lear s Macaw Anodorhynchus leari, a large, blue macaw with yellow facial skin, has often been regarded as the poor cousin of the bigger, bolder Hyacinth Macaw Anodorhynchus hyacinthinus - but it shouldn t be. The Lear s Macaw is a real survivor, clinging on to existence in the semi-arid caatinga region of north-east Brazil, where it is endemic. Here it ekes out its existence in a close relationship with a species of palm, the licuri (Syagrus coronatus), which produces the hard fruits forming the major part of the macaw s diet in this unforgiving environment. The people of this region are similarly very hardy, growing maize and keeping cattle and goats which extensively graze the land. The grazing impacts negatively on the regeneration of licuri palms, and the macaws impact negatively on some maize crops, the relative hardiness of each player sometimes bringing them into conflict a situation which must be resolved for the Lear s Macaw to survive and exist in harmony with humans. The Loro Parque Fundación of Tenerife, Spain, together with the Brazilian Government agency IBAMA (Brazilian Institute of Environment and Renewable Natural Resources) and other partners, is helping to make this happen. A wild population of A. leari was first found in 1978, although it had been known to science for 150 years previously from birds in trade. Now it is known from two colonies at Toca Velha and Serra Branca, south of the Raso da Catarina plateau in north-east Bahia, Brazil. To date, colonies have not been found elsewhere, although the macaws range over long distances following patches of fruiting licurí palms. In 1995, a roosting site holding 22 birds was located at Sento Sé/Campo Formoso, 200 km to the east, but these birds are considered to originate from the Toca Velha/Serra Branca population. In 2006 these sightings of Lear s Macaws at substantial distance The Lear s Macaw is protected by Brazilian law, and is a CITES 1 Appendix species. It is designated as Critically Endangered (IUCN Red List category because it has an extremely small population which breeds and is resident in one area (3,900 km 2 ).Given that licurí palm-stands formerly covered 250,000 km 2 but have been vastly reduced by livestock-grazing, it is threatened by the degradation of its habitat. It further threatened by illegal trapping for trade (BirdLife International 2000, 2006), and there are occasional shootings of macaws by farmers where attacks on maize crops occur. Within the caatinga, the Lear s Macaws associate specifically with spectacular sandstone cliffs which they use for colonial roosting and nesting in large tunnels, up to seven metres deep. The cliffs are hazardous to scale but, despite the difficult access, the concentration of the macaws in so few places makes them susceptible, especially to determined macaw smugglers. It is reported that in , c.20 birds were caught and sold to smugglers from Toca Velha/Serra Branca and, in 1996, at least 19 individuals were taken (BirdLife International 2006). In the succeeding years, at least 33 additional macaws have been confiscated from trappers, including two birds in Despite the continuing pressures from habitat degradation and trapping, the good news is that the global population appears to be on the increase. In 2001 it was estimated at 246 Maize plants after an attack by Lear s Macaws birds in 2001, in 2004, 570 in 2005, and 632 at the most recent census in Monitoring of the reproduction has also been carried out by CEMAVE (Research Centre for Wild Bird Conservation - part of IBAMA), with estimates 18 Nº 83 - December 2006

19 Saving wildlife and habitats of 1.83 average number of chicks per nest and 80 young fledged in 2005, and respectively 1.46 and 63 in One possible result of the population increase is that the level of threat to Lear s Macaw could be reduced to Endangered. Measuring areas of maize near to licuri palms However, there is some uncertainty as to what proportion of the population increase is real, and what is possibly an artefact caused by improved census methods and coverage. Therefore, based on a recommendation made by the Lear s Macaw Conservation Committee at its November 2006 meeting, BirdLife International proposes no change at present, but to down-list five years after (with the date still to be determined) the number of mature individuals exceeds the down-listing threshold ( There is no doubt that measures to reduce disturbance and trafficking have been more effective in recent years, but equally there is no doubt that conservation actions must continue. To clarify and prioritise the necessary conservation measures, a plan has been published recently (IBAMA 2006), and the success of the recommended measures and current actions will be essential to the species survival. Working through the Lear s Macaw Conservation Committee (of which it is a member), in 2006 and 2007 the Loro Parque Fundación is supporting with 50,000 euros some of the key conservation actions. These are being implemented by Proaves (Brazilian Association for Bird conservation) in collaboration with CEMAVE. In 2006 they have included two main areas of activities, the first being awareness and environmental education to increase the awareness of local people about the importance of conserving the Lear s Macaw. The second has concerned the longer-term protection of the main food source, the licuri palms. From our survey of public opinion conducted in the communities living in the Lear s Macaw area, it is clear that a proportion of the local people understand that this species is special to where they live. This feeling needs to be carefully nurtured alongside actions to help the farmers whose maize crops are affected by the macaws. Thus, Proaves has organised public talks at schools and cooperatives, distributed t-shirts, a Lear s Macaw newspaper and calendars. The calendar features the winning paintings of Lear s Macaws in a competition for local school children. In a region which lacks cinemas, Proaves has also organised the presentation of films which show the macaws and other wildlife. These have been especially successful, as have the art workshops, which show great promise for the promotion of local arts and crafts made especially from parts (mainly the leaves) of the licuri palms, and the economic benefit that this can bring. The work with the licuri palms logically has involved an updating of the general mapping of land use in the region, which shows that livestock grazing and maize cultivation continue to predominate. Work in progress is to estimate the density of licuri palms, and its variation from one location to another, to search for new feeding areas and to map the occurrence of natural regeneration of licuri palms and other native vegetation. A register of taller trees is also being compiled, because these are important for sentinel macaws to perch and warn others of danger. Patches of licuri palms with ripe fruits might not be eaten by the macaws if they are too distant Lear s Macaw eating licuri palm fruits from safety trees. Experimental transplanting of licuri palms has been attempted in previous years on two farms (Santana and Serra Branca), but the survival rate has been poor, related in part to difficulties with interrupted irrigation. A future option might be to concentrate on protecting naturally germinated palms from grazing until they are sufficiently large to withstand this pressure. The occurrence of alternative sources of food is also being recorded, but the licuri palms continue to be vital, as detailed observations of almost 20 years ago have shown (Brandt & Machado 1990, Yamashita 1987). These have shown that an adult macaw spends on average 25 seconds to open a licuri fruit and remove the endosperm. Nevertheless, this activity can be interrupted for some seconds while the individual observes the surroundings or engages in other behaviour. Nº 83 - December

20 The newsletter of Loro Parque Fundación Thus, a macaw consumes on average 118 licuri fruits per foraging hour which, according to the daily average time spent foraging, represents around 350 licuri fruits per day. According to more recent observations (M. Stafford, pers. comm.), a Lears s Macaw can consume a smaller amount of fruits, and females that are feeding recently fledged chicks may consume at least two times the usual daily amount of food. More research on the consumption of licuri is required. will also be important. The awareness and education activities with the local community will continue to be strengthened. These can be combined with improvements to the project centre in the community of Jeremoabo, including a specific area assigned for educational activities. From time to time, injured and rescued macaws are brought to the centre and a small clinic for emergency treatment of rescued macaws will be built. Another improvement will be to have aviary space, located next to the education area, for macaws that cannot be released back to the wild. Whether or not these macaws might form part of the captive breeding programme for this species is a decision yet to be made. The official breeding programme is at an early stage, with 43 birds registered in the Lear s Macaw international studbook (holder: Matthias Reinschmidt, Loro Parque Fundación), held in seven institutions, and with the first studbook registered breeding in 2006 at Al Wabra Wildlife preservation in Qatar. Breeding and roosting cliffs of Lear s Macaws A nutritional analysis of licuri fruits made by Crepaldi /et al./(2001) certainly shows that the kernel is a major source of lipids (49.2%) and proteins (11.5%), and has 9.7% of carbohydrates. When a Lear s Macaw cracks open the hardshell, an important energy source is available inside. The outer part of these contents has much more water and 4.5% lipids, 3.2% proteins, and 13.2% carbohydrates. However, it seems to be an important source of beta-carotene (26.1 μg.g ^ 1 ) and pro-vitamin A (4.4. Retinal Equivalents), and also contains alpha-tocopherol (3.8 μg.g ^ 1 ). The month of July is when the Lear s Macaws show highest activity in the consumption of cultivated maize, this season coinciding with low availability of licuri fruits. Brant and Machado (1990) report this problem from more than 15 years ago, but it has the potential to worsen if the wild population continues to increase, and the farmers decide to shoot macaws. It is evident that a small-holder farmer can lose the majority of his annual maize crop in a very short period of time from attacks by the macaws. To prevent this situation getting out of control, a system of compensation for farmers has been installed (funding started by Parrots International and Fundação Lymington with US$2,000). Any farmer which has proven losses due to Lear s Macaws has the extent of damage fairly evaluated, and is then compensated 110% directly with maize. Looking ahead, the Loro Parque Fundación is willing to help with improvements to make the nesting and roosting cliffs better protected. Expansion of the extent land under protection The Loro Parque Fundación will also offer training for people who are local to the area, especially in conservation education, in ecotourism and in avian medicine, because we recognise that ultimately the future of the Lears Macaw and the licuri palm will depend on the willingness and capacity of the local people to conserve them. The recovery effort for the Lear s Macaw continues due to the generous support of many people, and if any readers would like to help, please contact the author the Loro Parque Fundación. References BirdLife International (2000) Threatened birds of the world. Barcelona and Cambridge, UK: Lynx Editions and BirdLife International. BirdLife International (2006) Species factsheet: Anodorhynchus leari. Downloaded from on 7/12/2006 Brandt, A. and Machado, R.B. (1990) Ârea de alimentação e comportamento alimentar de (Anodorhynchus leari) Ararajuba 1: Crepaldi I. C., Almeida-Muradian, L. B. de, Rios, M. D. G.; Penteado, M. V. C.; Salatino, A. (2001) Composição nutricional do fruto de licuri (Syagrus coronata (Martius) Beccari). Rev. Brasil. Bot. 24: IBAMA (2006) Management Plan for the Lear s Macaw (Anodorhynchus leari). Endangered Species Series 4. Brasilia: Brazilian Institute of Environment and Renewable Natural Resources, Fauna Species Protection Coordination. Yamashita, C. (1987) Field observations and comments on the Indigo Macaw. (Anodorhynchus leari), a highly endangered species from northeastern Brazil. Wilson Bulletin 99: Thanks to Karl-Heinz Lambert for use of his photos 20 Nº 83 - December 2006

21 Saving wildlife and habitats LPF News Many thanks for recent donations and support We very much appreciate the support provided to the Loro Parque Fundación from the following donors: Kathryn Bailey, in memory of her late sister Caroline Simmons. Vogel freunde Achern Gold member company Abraxis, USA for donated testing equipment to our Clinic. The incubation company DMP Engineering Ltd, Israel for donating two Inca incubators Life members Dr. Carmen-Ilona Flasch and Dr. Hubert Flasch Mark Hagen of Rolf C. Hagen, Inc., Canada Pakara, Netherlands; Rosemary Low, UK; Rainer Emmeneck of EMO Fenster- und Türenbau GmbH, Germany; Ruth Kühlbander, Germany; Vogelfreunde Höchstadt, Germany; the Parrot Society UK; the Dutch Parrot Society Magazine, and Jenny Brückner, Germany. LPF again helps CITES The Convention on International Trade in Endangered Species of Wild Fauna and Flora (CITES) aims to ensure that international trade in specimens of wild animals and plants does not threaten their survival. The Parties to CITES are collectively referred to as the Conference of the Parties, and its meetings, often called CoPs, happen every two to three years to review the implementation of the Convention. Virtually all Convention decisions are made at the CoPs. Full representation of the Parties at these meetings ensures a good balance of views and opinions of consuming and producing countries. However, developing countries and countries with economies in transition are often unable to fund the participation of their delegates. Therefore, to achieve full participation for the best-informed and most-balanced decisions to be made, the CITES Secretariat has a Sponsored Delegates Project. The LPF, being on the official register of donors to CITES, has previously donated to help the attendance of delegates to the Cops 12 and 13, and for the same purpose will donate 2,500 euros for the forth-coming Cop14 to be held in The Hague, Netherlands in and helps Orang-utans in Indonesia Now with very advanced years, but still active and very determined, Ulricke von Mengden has dedicated her life to the protection in Indonesia of those beings very close to humans the orang-utans. She not only cares for more orphaned orang-utans than most people could ever imagine, she knows that these animals need to be rehabilitated back to the forest, which is their true home. Mrs von Mengden cares for orangutans located at the Ragunan Zoo on Java, supporting their basic needs to stay in good health. So when the LPF received a request from Mrs von Mengden, for financial help to cover these basic needs before rehabilitation is possible, it was only too pleased to help with a donation of 4,000 euros. The LPF thanks the German Embassy in Indonesia, and Dr Willie Smits, for helping to make this support possible.... and supports Mesoamerican Parrot Symposium The Mesoamerican Network for Parrot Conservation exists to promote knowledge about the parrots of this region and to advance the conservation of them and their habitats. It does this by promoting the exchange and sharing of information between interested persons within the region, and also with people anywhere else in the world who can help parrot conservation in MesoAmerica. In October 2006, the Network held the II Mesoamerican Symposium on Psittaciformes in Antigua, Guatemala, an even as successful as the first symposium held the year before. The LPF was pleased to donate US$1,200 in support of the II Symposium. (www. lorosmesoamericanos.net). New Vice-President for LPF Long-time member of the Advisory Board of the LPF, Dr Jorgen Thomsen, Senior Vice-President of Conservation International has for reasons of work decided to step down from the Board, but we are delighted that he has accepted to become a Vice-President of the LPF. He joins existing Vice- President, Dr Wolfgang Grummt in this capacity.. and new President for AZ We are pleased to learn that Mr.Theo Vins has been elected as the new President of AZ, the important organisation in Germany for bird breeders. Mr Vins has a friendship with Loro Parque and the LPF of many years standing. LPF is a member of the AZE The Alliance for Zero Extinction (AZE) is a global initiative of organizations that conserve biodiversity. It aims to prevent extinctions by identifying and safeguarding key sites where species are in imminent danger of disappearing. The goal of the Alliance is to create a front line of defence against extinction by eliminating threats and restoring habitat to allow species populations to rebound. This is what the LPF does, and why it is a member of the AZE. ( News of the parrot collection August:- The four young Hyacinth Macaws (Anodorhynchus hyacinthinus) being raised in the baby station of Loro Parque are developing perfectly. The oldest youngster is already showing dark blue plumage while the other three barely have any feathers as yet. Two further Hyacinth Macaw chicks are being raised by the adoptive parents, a pair of Green-Winged Macaws (Ara chloroptera), and are ready to leave the nest cavity. They constantly observe their environment from the entrance hole of the nest box, and it will take some more days until they start flying around for the first time. The first Palm Cockatoo chick (Probosciger aterrimus), born in January this year, has started to take its food independently. However, this chick has already been together for three months with its sibling which was born the previous year, and which acts as a teacher for the chick in the outdoor aviary of the baby station. Palm Cockatoos belong to the parrot species which take the longest to become independent from Nº 83 - December

22 The newsletter of Loro Parque Fundación additional feedings. Now, the seven month old chick is being fed twice per day, but also is carefully testing the first food independently. A second Palm Cockatoo hatched on May 31 and is being raised by hand together with the Hyacinth Macaws. As soon as this bird feeds independently, it will be transferred to the outdoor aviary with the two older siblings in order to learn the social behavior of Palm Cockatoos. Some new aviary projects for parrots will be completed on time before the VI International Parrot Convention starts. Thus, seven additional aviaries for amazons are being built at the moment in the park, and therefore further species of the most diverse amazon collection of the world will be exhibited for the visitors in Loro Parque. Three new group aviaries are planned for the genus Pyrrhura. For the first time these conures will not be shown pairwise, but in a group of several different species of the same genus. The advantage of this presentation is due to the aviary size. These species were previously exhibited pairwise in smaller aviaries, and with this new combination the individual birds have more space to fly around. The largest new aviary project is the new installation for the cockatoos. For this purpose the 16 old cockatoo aviaries and the old bird clinic behind the cockatoo installations were demolished. This space has created sufficient area for the generous flight aviaries of the cockatoos. The new concept allows only six large aviaries, of which four are used for the pairwise accommodation of the black cockatoo species. The other two aviaries will show larger cockatoo groups to the visitors for the first time, and the different species will be arranged geographically. One large flight aviary presents exclusively the Australian Cockatoos, while the other one exhibits all Asian Cockatoo species. While the background of the Australian aviary includes reddish artificial rocks to imitate Ayers Rock in Australia, the Asian aviary simulates a waterfall from a rock face, creating an environment with a higher humidity which is typical of the tropical rainforest in Asia. At the beginning of August David Waugh, Director of LPF and Matthias Reinschmidt, Curator of Loro Parque/LPF were present during the annual American Federation of Aviculture (AFA) conference with an information stand. Prof. Waugh gave the opening speech of the conference while Matthias Reinschmidt showed two presentations, about the breeding of the white Cockatoo species in Loro Parque and about the artificial breeding and hand raising of parrots. For a long time the AFA and LPF have maintained a close and successful partnership which includes joint projects for the conservation of endangered parrots in the wild. November:- All the new and spacious aviaries in Loro Parque have been thoroughly tested by their occupants, and are a great success with the parrots and the visitors alike. Matthias Reinschmidt attended a three day workshop in the Sao Paulo Zoo, Brazil on the keeping and breeding of Spix s Macaws (Cyanopsitta spixii) and Lear s Macaws (Anodorhynchus leari). With regard to the breeding programme for the threatened Lear s Macaw, on his return flight to Tenerife he carried with him two pairs of this species for the Loro Parque Fundación from the Sao Paulo Zoo. These birds will remain the possession of the Brazilian Government, and have been deposited with the Loro Parque Fundación for the purpose of breeding. Thus, it is the first time that, within a breeding programme, Lear s Macaws have been transferred from Brazil to Europe. With this gesture, the Brazilian Government s environment agency IBAMA has honoured the serious efforts of the Loro Parque Fundación to save several species of Brazilian parrots, as well as the good breeding results it has shown, among other species with the Spix s Macaw. After having fulfilled the quarantine period, the four Lear s Macaws will be moved to the breeding centre La Vera, where aviaries will be prepared especially to meet their requirements. Young Orange-breasted Fig-Parrot with older companion Very enjoyable news coming from Loro Parque s baby station is that during the past few weeks a tiny Orange-Breasted Fig- Parrot (Cyclopsitta gulielmitertii) has for the first time been artificially reared. The hatching weight of the chick was just 2.9g. But thanks to affectionate care and perseverance, the breeding team succeeded in raising the delicate nestling. At the age of 60 days, a two year old bird of the same species was brought to the baby station to socialize with it, and now the youngster has fledged. The reaction of both birds at the moment of bringing them together was very interesting. The young bird, reared by hand, had never seen another parrot before, as it had been held in a separate breeding room. It was very tame. Directly after putting in the adult bird, the young one was very interested in this conspecific and it began to beg. Just some minutes later, both animals preened each others plumage. No form of aggression has ever been observed, and quite the reverse:, both animals are getting on very well, often sitting in direct contact with each other and it seems that the socialization of the young bird has turned out completely fine. Although the young bird is fed twice a day by hand, it has begun to take the example of its conspecific and and has started to eat independently. In cooperation with the magazine: PAPAGEIEN, the Loro Parque Fundación is planning to hold, in the beginning/middle of May 2007, its 9th. Parrot Workshop in German for all parrot enthusiasts who want to deal with questions about keeping, breeding and illnesses of parrots. The workshop will again take place in Loro Parque in alliance with the Hotel Botanico, and it will focus once more on many practical aspects of the keeping and breeding of parrots. We will announce the exact date in the next news. 22 Nº 83 - December 2006

23 Saving wildlife and habitats Sponsors and donors of Loro Parque Fundación Loro Parque is the Foundation s principal sponsor. Therefore, the financial support provided by our sponsors, members and donors can be dedicated 1 00% to the wide range of wildlife and biodiversity conservation activities of Loro Parque Fundación. Over Over Up to Reynold s Polymer, Cumba, Vogelfreunde Achern, Cash and Carry, Emerencio e Hijos, Georg Fischer, Moeller Canarias, Cita, Pakara, Rohersa, Cavas Catalanas, Celgán, Dialte, Procalor, Frutas Cruz Santa, Fontasol, Aguas del Valle de la Orotava, Ferretería San Isidro, Alimentación y Distribuciones Sálamo, BANIF, Solveig Mittelhauser-Brown, Elfriede y Siegfried Heck, Martin Guth, Papageienfreunde Nord e.v., York Area Parrot Society, Malinda Chouinard, Abaxis, Chiclana Parrot, Club de Leones, Juan Luis García Rodolfo, Rocky Mountain Society of Aviculture, Bärbel & Klaus Binder, Surfilm Taucho TV, La Venta Nueva, Mark Hagen, Caroline Simmons, Luis y Guillén, Cerrajería La Asomada, Grúas Hnos. Pacheco, Parrot Society UK, Dutch Parrot Society, Rosemary Low, Carmen & Hubert Flasch, Garjor, Ruth Kühlander, Vogelfreunde Höchstadt e.v., Walter Zimmerman, Sufocan We want to thank all our sponsors, donors and other supporters Nº 83 - December

24 The newsletter of Loro Parque Fundación 24 Nº 83 - December 2006