Abstract
When Anna Colbeck purchased a
young pair of Hawk-headed Parrots
nearly ten years ago, she thought to
herself, ' 'This pair is going to breed.''
Not long out of quarantine, they
w ere wild but not frightened of
people, having been partially hand
fed but not socialized as pets. Due
to their mostly brown foreheads
streaked with white, they are possibly
of the subspecies Deroptyus
accipitrinus fuscifrons (according to
the description in Forshaw's Parrots ofthe World).
She named them Maggie and Jiggs
and, not having a cage ready at the
time, released them into an 80 by 30
foot greenhouse where they have
remained ever since. Their ''L"
shaped nest box, about 18" by 24"
deep, hangs from the ceiling. They
make a game of dive-bombing any
strangers who enter the greenhouse,
coming close enough to touch the
people with their wingtips, making
them duck. When Anna comes in
with the food buckets, they come
down to investigate what's for dinner;
otherwise they keep to themselves.