Hello my name
is Winston!

Psittacus Erithacus

I am a 20 year old African Grey Parrot who entered into The Friends of the Aviary's foster program in August of 2024. I was one of the first birds to come into the program, with my friends Sierra, Oscar, and Merlin when our owner passed away. I may look all grey, but I actually have a bright red tail! There are 2 species of African Greys, the Timnehs (who are a little smaller, a little darker, and have pale beaks) and Congos like me, King, and Cocoa.

Likes

Anything cardboard
Scritches

Dislikes

Scary noises
Peaches & Berries

Fav Foods

Walnuts, Almonds in the shell, Broccoli and Bananas!

What I Can Say

Hello, Winston, Happy Birthday, Merry Christmas, Happy Bird, Water, etc

Friends

I used to live with other birds and dogs, but likely didn't interact with them.

About Me and Other African
Grey Parrots

We might not be as colourful as other parrots, but we are smart! AGPs are among the smartest birds in the world and are the best at mimicking human speech. Although, this doesn't mean every African Grey Parrot will talk. I however have a wide variety of words and sound effects in my repertoire! So far my foster family has heard me say 31 words and lots of noises including a turkey gobbling impression, laughing, and lots of squeaks and whistles ranging in a high to low pitch. They are excited to see if I know anymore words or start picking up some from them!

My ancestors lived in Central and Western Africa, in lowland rainforests. African Greys are actually the biggest parrot in all of Africa! In the wild, many AGPs only live into their early 20s, whereas I, as a companion bird, will comfortably live 40-80 years.

Unfortunately, since everyone wants a talking parrot, many wild African Greys were illegally captured. From 1982 to 2001 over 1.3 million wild-caught Greys entered international trade. Of these birds 30-66% died before reaching the airport!

Many wild AGPs also suffer from habitat loss. We like to nest in tall trees that are increasingly targeted by loggers, so often lose our homes for breeding. Due to these hardships, and for sometimes being killed for food, African Grey Parrots are considered an endangered species.