Parrots of the Caribbean If you have heard of Bonaire at all,
you may think of it as a haven for scuba divers or, maybe,
loggerhead turtles. But this tiny island might also offer the
best chance of survival for the yellow-shouldered Amazon parrot.
Dangling from the limestone cliff, Rowan Martin reaches into a
hole in the sharp rock and retrieves a squawking bundle of green
feathers. He slips it into a bag clipped around his waist and
ascends his rope to a ledge, where research partner Sam Williams
waits. Science happens at dawn in the tropics. Beyond the cliff
is a preposterously beautiful view. A plain of tall datu cacti
gives way to crashing waves glowing with the first light from
the east. But Martin and Williams, doctoral students from the
University of Sheffield in England, are focused on their task: a
variation on a checkup at the pediatrician’s office. The bundle
is quiet as it is weighed inside a cloth sack suspended from a
gram scale. As Martin records the number, Williams gently
removes the young bi