FREE School Program

Animal Clues

Talking Parrots, A Kid Favorite

30 Years Experience Bringing Safe Hands-On Educational Programs With Friendly Parrots To The Public

All students can attend the program for FREE.

Fun educational 45 minute program with live parrots is free to schools
Students have opportunity to hold parrots during optional photos (for a fee)
Professional high quality photos printed and delivered on site same day
Program directly supports BRI parrot conservation projects

Kids love the movie Rio! What was the movie Rio about? The last two Blue macaws in Brazil and the scientist trying to save them. Did you know the real true version of this story is even more interesting than the movie’s story? There were four species of Blue macaws in Brazil, the Hyacinth macaw, the Lear’s macaw, the Glaucous macaw, and the Spix macaw. Both the Hyacinth and the Lear’s macaws are considered highly endanger in the wild. The Glaucous macaw has been considered extinct for many years. The Spix became extinct in the wild in 2001, with only about 120 remaining in captivity.. At the same time in 2022 that Chris Biro was releasing Blue and Yellow macaws into Brazil, another group released eight Spix macaws – so maybe in a few years we will again have wild Spix macaws in Brazil. Watch video of the released birds here.

Our school programs tell this real life Rio story to the children. We also teach them what makes a parrot different from other birds and many other interesting facts about parrots bodies, habitat and environments they live. They also learn about how the Native American Puebloan people kept live scarlet macaws from Central America in the USA 1000 years ago and how the USA once had two species of parrot native to the USA – The Carolina Parrot went extinct in about 1920 and the Thick-billed parrot is gone from the USA since about 1950 and is currently down to about 800 remaining in the wild in Mexico.

After the children have a fun interactive experience learning about parrots, listening to them talk and sing and watching them fly over their heads, we offer different photo opportunities with the birds at a fee at the end of each program. These photo opportunities help to fund our education program and care for our parrots.

Students can also participate in the PalmsForParrots tree planting program in order to help fund BRI parrot conservation projects and to help feed our released macaws as their population increases. $5 plants a palm seed and $25 plants a one year old palm seedling tree. Read more about this program at PalmsForParrots.info. 100% of funds raised from the PalmsForParrot tree planting program and 100% of donations to BRI go to support BRI parrot conservation projects in Brazil, Honduras and Columbia.

Contact Chris for Information

Our new mobile school program “Animal Clues” is an interactive educational program that is free to the schools. We get the students involved during the program with live ambassador parrots to teach students about adaptations, habitats, diets and other interesting facts about these beautiful charismatic birds. Approximately 15 parrots are brought to the school with over 10 different species from around the world. Students will be in awe as birds fly right over their head or talk and sing “Old McDonald” and do other fun activities that engage the students.

Chris Biro has made a career of flight training parrots. He flies parrots professionally as part of The Pirate’s Parrot Show. Chris’ show started out as a school program in 1991 in the Seattle, Washington area. Chris is the director of Bird Recovery International, a 501(c)3 non profit working to improve methods of releasing parrots into the wild – in 2022 successfully released blue and gold macaws into Brazil. He now lives in Arizona where he is working to help reestablish Thick-billed parrots into the wild between Flagstaff, AZ and Albuquerque, NM. He is now again bringing his knowledge and expertise of parrots to classrooms across the western US!

These School programs help us support Bird Recovery International (BRI).

BRI is a 501(c)3 nonprofit organization helping improve the science of parrot conservation and reintroduction. BRI currently has ongoing parrot conservation projects in Honduras and Brazil.

And it helps care for the rest of our 50+ parrots, most of which came to us in need of a new home.

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