The Tribune

THE Bahama Parrot, once found on seven islands, is thriving in Abaco after several successful breeding seasons, so much so that the Bahamas National Trust has installed six parrot crossing signs on the Ernest Dean Highway between the Crossing Rocks and Sandy Point communities.

The parrots – also now found on Inagua – are protected by law and as the only ground-nesting species in the Western Hemisphere need motorists to take care.

Marcus Davis, Deputy Park Warden for Abaco National Park where the parrots breed, said: “The parrots regularly cross over the Great Abaco Highway in flight and the parrot crossing signs will alert motorists that Bahama Parrots are using the Ernest Dean Highway along with them, and further inform them to proceed with caution.”

The BNT has been conducting surveys in Abaco and Inagua on the Bahama Parrot populations for the past ten years and results show that they are recovering.

It is also the only parrot in the world that has adapted to fire.

The Bahama Parrot is protected under the Wild Birds (Protection) Act and the Convention on International Trade in Endangered Species (CITES). It is illegal to harm, capture or offer the bird for sale, and if anyone is caught doing so they can face a significant fine or jail time.

The breeding area of the parrot in Abaco is protected in the Abaco National Park, which was created in 1994.