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One More Thing About Macaws...
Parrots have a much more involved digestive system
than we do. Our food goes basically from our mouths to our stomachs
to our intestines. Parrots swallow into a crop, which is something
like a holding area where the food starts to break down. Then it
goes into their two-part stomach; first the proventriculus where
digestion continues and then to the ventriculus or the muscular
stomach where the softened food is ground up before passing into the
intestines. Why am I telling you this? Read on.
One of the reasons for this system and the inclusion
of the crop where food remains essentially undigested, is so that
food can be stored by parent birds and regurgitated for their young.
This food sharing is not, however, reserved solely for offspring. It
is also a sign of affection between parrots, especially mated pairs.
Again, why am I telling you this?
Well, you see, companion parrots are occasionally overtaken by their feelings for us humans. So much so, in fact, that they will start the familiar head pumping and "bring up" a morsel or two just to show us how much they care. Most parrot owners have reconciled themselves to this unconventional testimony to friendship, but if you have a macaw, watch out. Not only are macaws more frequent "love regurgitators" but the volume that they can produce is awe inspiring. I once saw a Hyacinth upchuck a glob of "macadamia butter" the size of a Volkswagen. Another time oh, never mind. You get the picture.
Okay, this is why I told you all this stuff: If you
have or want to get a macaw, start thinking of something creative to
tell your friends if they ever see your bird "gifting" you
in this manner. Tell them that the bird is ill, or that he's never
done it before or that he's possessed by an ancient pagan demon.
Anything other than, "He regurgitates because he loves
me."
They'll never understand that.
by, Layne Dicker, from Bird Talk magazine,
July 1999