Top Flight Birds

From the October 2009 issue of The Blue and White:

For Toby, a small but loquacious kelly green parrot, the fence around the 91st Street Gardens in Riverside Park is a stage. Toby delights a crowd of adoring fans and his rather demure caretakers by performing afternoon concerts of The Magic Flute. His aria of choice? "Papageno, Papageno, Papageno," of course.

According to Bob, one of said caretakers, Toby is a double-headed Amazonian parrot, which, "you know, is the national bird of Belize." Officially, the Keel-Billed Toucan is cited as the country's national bird, but what Toby doesn't know can't hurt him. Besides, he doesn't even speak Spanish.

He does have a bit of French under his belt, though. The conversations between Toby and Audrey, a francophone Chow Chow, whom he meets from time to time in the park, are casual and consist mostly of him repeating, "Allons, Audrey, Allons, Audrey!"  In addition to Audrey, Toby's network of friends extends to Slyvie, an African Gray Macaw, who unfortunately prefers her Riverside Drive apartment to the park.

Not every parrot, though, travels in Toby’s jet-setting clique. Sam, a more introverted Amazonian parrot, tends to remain in the closed quarters of his protective doggy carrying case.  Sam's caretaker has not clipped his wings, which means that if released from his cage, Sam could fly away. For those parrots who want to experience the open air without having to have their wings clipped, the Feather Tether Parrot Harness and leash offers a solution. But for Sam, a modest parrot of Minnesotan origins, the spacious, if relatively

unadorned, interior of the carrying case will do.

Lovey Dove Dove, a 14-year-old blue, peach-faced lovebird, however, would cock his head in derision at Sam's spartan lifestyle. When the weather is just right, Lovey Dove Dove splits his time between Zabar's in the mornings—the seeded loaf is his carb of choice—and Riverside Park at 72nd Street in the afternoons.  Lovey Dove Dove is a bird with taste: a reproduction of Van Gogh’s "Sunflowers" (in magnet form) decorates his cage. 

Parrots have long occupied a place in the literary tradition of avian sidekicks thanks to Gustave Flaubert, Robert Louis Stevenson, and Walt Disney. Now, given the style and panache of Toby and his feathered brethren, the breed proves to have the making of A-list urbanites. 

--Mariela Quintana