Why is the Puerto Rican Parrot almost extinct?
The Puerto Rican Parrot Amazona vittata is the only native parrot on the island. When Christopher Columbus arrived here on his second voyage of exploration in 1493, these birds were a common sight throughout the island. This parrot is a forest bird which requires large hollow tree trunks for nesting. As trees were cut-down by the original settlers to make way for farms, the parrots gradually retreated into the remaining patches of forest. During the ensuing centuries it is estimated that 85% of the island was deforested. Only in the protected El Yunque National Forest could the parrots still find the large trees that they needed for nesting. Until laws were enforced that stopped parrot hunting in the forest the parrot population decreased substantially. In 1968 the Puerto Rican Parrot was placed on the Federal Endangered Species List and cooperative effort by the USDA Forest Service, the US Fish and Wildlife Service, the Commonwealth of Puerto Rico Department of Natural and Environment
