THE PARROT WHO OWNS ME
by Joanna Burger
636.6865/BURGER

The Parrot Who Owns Me: The Story of a Relationship, by Joanna Burger, was recommended to me by fellow librarian Mary Proudfoot.  The author is a renowned ornithologist:  “Birds are my passion,” she says, “but parrots are my weakness.”  Fifteen years before she wrote this memoir, she adopted an orphaned thirty-year-old Red-lored Amazon named Tiko.  The two formed a strong bond once Tiko gradually warmed up to her (and her husband, though Tiko harbored some jealousy toward him).  Tiko's antics are by turns amusing and fascinating:  he slides down the bannister, displays courting behavior toward the author during the springtime, and eats off her plate.

As well as being a story of the relationship between Tiko and the author, the book also includes findings from Dr. Burger’s field work on the science of birds that complements what she learns about Tiko.

This book is a great read for those who enjoy memoirs about parrots and other birds (Alex and Me, The Wild Parrots of Telegraph Hill, and Wesley the Owl, to name a few) as well as if you are interested in animal behavior and the bonds between animals and humans.