In a message dated 96-04-06 01:56:15 EST, you write:

> why not net them and give them to Mike Waller...that would get
>> them out of competition with the locals...

Scott,

We could talk about it, but your timing is atrocious as we are about to
arrive at the season when we are the unwilling recipients of various unwanted
Easter chicks and and bunnies usually thrown over the fence. This practice
continues despite our graphic description about the likely fate of such
"gifts". Of course the carnivores look forward to such largess.

But seriously, it would depend on whether the parakeets fit into an
educational story and the impact of exotics on native species and the
problems of exotic pets might serve such a purpose. The other basis for
accepting animals relates to whether or not they fit into an endagered
species plan.

Space in zoos is limited and we try to focus on species where there is a
clear education message or where we can have a beneficial impact on
maintaining genetic diversity in the capitive population. The latter goal is
problematic in the case of the parakeets simply because we don't know their
lineage. To my knowledge parakeets do not fit since they are bred privately.
I confess I do not know their status in the wild but will check with Bird
Curator Greg Toffic next week.

Mike Waller
WP Zoo