African Grey Parrot

The African grey parrot is a medium-sized parrot native to the dense rainforests of West and Central Africa, widely regarded as one of the most intelligent bird species, capable of learning large vocabularies of human words and, according to extensive research on captive individuals, of using language in ways that demonstrate genuine problem-solving and conceptual understanding rather than simple mimicry. It has predominantly grey plumage with a bright red tail, a stark contrast that makes it easy to identify, and in the wild it lives in large, noisy flocks, feeding mainly on fruit, seeds and nuts in the forest canopy. African grey parrots can live for many decades, often outliving their human owners in captivity, which has made them a long-favored but demanding companion bird around the world. Heavy trapping for the international pet trade combined with habitat loss has caused steep declines in wild populations, and the species is now classified as endangered.