Large vase parrot: During the mating season, females become ugly, bald and keep male slaves, but a good smart parrot (9 photos)

We decided to write about the big vasa parrot because it figured out how to use stone tools. I planned to start with a leisurely story about their life. Mention that island birds are, on average, smarter than mainland birds. Put forward the thesis that these kids are intellectuals even by the standards of the islanders, because they split shellfish shells using stones. It would be a good post.





Instead, you will see another one. Yes, the main characters are the same, but the emphasis has shifted greatly. In the process of gathering information, I learned that the use of pebbles is not the most remarkable feature of birds. Regularly balding perverts with hypertrophied libido, that’s what these vase parrots are.



Even other species of Madagascar parrots are afraid of these guys. However, the reason for this is not dubious inclinations, but an extravagant appearance. The parrots are really large - 50 centimeters from the tip of the long tail to the beak, more than 500 grams of meat, bones and feathers.





They're also damn dark. Parrots have come up with many bright pigments, but only melanin is recognized by the vase. Their feathers are painted in mourning colors from birth to death. The gloomy appearance is complemented by a small head with a predatory curved beak and hooked claws. The latter features are more typical for birds of prey and often cause panic among related species.



And it’s completely in vain, a big parrot is a peaceful parrot. These guys bring devastation and chaos only to the orderly rows of fruits, berries and seeds. Every morning, a tactical group of 10-15 individuals arranges combat missions into enemy territory. At times, they even enter areas occupied by human farms. When all team members have satisfied their needs, the flock will return to one of the many air bases: large trees on which up to 10 flocks of parrots can be based.



All their strangeness will begin to appear a couple of weeks before the breeding season, at the beginning of the calendar winter. Males will show off in front of the ladies with all their might, almost starting fights. The strongest, most successful and self-confident men will have the opportunity to become... slaves.



During the breeding season, the females' cere (skin near the beak) begins to dry out.

For the sake of their mistress, they will do anything, they will feed her, protect her at the cost of their lives and use their intellectual capabilities to the maximum. The female needs a lot of calcium, so the guys will wander to the beach, carefully select pebbles and use them to break the shells of mollusks. They don’t need animals, but their houses will come in handy. The males swallow them and share the semi-digested mixture with their females.

Over time, strong and rather repulsive changes will begin in the birds’ bodies. Women's skin color will change to jaundice, and they themselves will become partially bald. Their ovaries will triple in size, and this will affect the hormonal levels: the female will become angry and aggressive. A man who is too slow and stupid may even receive a fatal blow to the skull from his beak.



Men will also gain something. Their cloaca (the extended part of the hindgut into which the ducts of the genitourinary system open) protrudes outward and becomes similar to the male organ of mammals. It doesn't look very attractive, so I won't show you a photo.



When the girl satisfies her thirst for power and dominance, she will allow one of the slaves to approach her. A short act of love, 20 days of incubation of eggs, and now from 2 to 5 incredibly voracious chicks begin to demand food from their mother's servants. The males will feed the family for 7 weeks, and then everything will return to normal.



Meet the 7 week old vase

I don't know what rating to give these creatures. They beat each other up, but they adore people. They are very cute on ordinary days, but disgusting during marriage. I wash my hands of it and want to ask: what rating on a ten-point scale would you give?