Young Macaw still missing!
After he was set free at the bird sanctuary we have seen the young macaw for two days around the stadskweektuinen in Haarlem. Wednesday afternoon he was very frightened of man in animal ambulance suits. When they arrived the young macaw flew to another higher tree from where it was impossible to reach him with a net.
We have tried to follow the young macaw for as long as possible. It flew from tree to tree and gained more height along the way. Finally it reached the crown of one of the Poplar trees that surround the stadskweektuinen and the nearby public vegetable gardens. At nightfall the macaw flew out of sight and it was impossible to determine where it spend the night. If we did we could possibly have gotten it down with the help of the fire department.
Next day I went out on my bike in the neighbourhood and at noon the young macaw was heard again. He was flying around the stadskweektuinen and was calling out in search of his parents. Although the macaws are regular visitors of this garden they were not the last couple of days. That would have facilitated the reunion of the family a great deal.
The bird sanctuary thought that, as the crow flies, Kenau park, where the bird was found, is not that far. But this means the bird had to know where the park is. That was not the case we had to conclude today when we received a sighting on another public vegetable garden on the Boerhaavelaan named Poelpoldervreugde. This is close to the Ring-necked- and Alexandrine parakeet roost. We thought that the young macaw might be as clever as to follow these other psittacene species.
When we arrived we got confirmation that the young had indeed been there for several hours but disappeared again. At nightfall we hoped it would join the parakeets at the roost but we were not able not welcome it there.
The young macaw is still going strong but this is a situation that can not last very long. Its parents have to take care for it in order for it to survive. The most heartbreaking thing for us is that this situation could have been easily avoided. Animals need to be released at the spot where they are found.
We have not had other reports of sightings. The whole city of Haarlem is helping us. The parents are regularly seen and they are doing fine. The other young is still not found either. But since the parents are eating like crazy we assume the young is still around. We hope to report more on that tomorrow.
Have you seen the macaws please let us know ASAP trough director@cityparrots.org