Alex

Being a lover of all things avian, but especially African greys, I had to share this with my blog readers today. 
I first fell in love with African greys when as a young girl I read a newspaper article about an African grey parrot named Alex who could talk.  It wasn't just repeating words back at someone though, he was extensively trained and studied and he had a vast vocabulary and could answer rather complex questions- when he was in the mood.  He had a sense of humor and a little bit onery grey personality.  Anytime I heard he was going to be featured on a television show or in a book or radio show I had to tune in.  I was hooked. 

Today was Alex's birthday.  He passed away a few years ago (2007) and I cried when I heard the news.  Just writing about it actually brings tears to my eyes.  He was such a special bird and did so much to advance the study of these fascinating and intelligent fellow creatures.  There is a foundation in his honor that is dedicated to improving the lives of all parrots worldwide.  This is their goal and mission, "The goal of The Alex Foundation is to support research that will expand the base of knowledge establishing the cognitive and communicative abilities of parrots as intelligent beings. These findings will be used to encourage the responsible ownership of parrots, conservation and preservation of parrots in the wild, and veterinary research into the psychological diseases and care of these birds. Through these efforts The Alex Foundation, and the memory of Alex, will live on and will accomplish its mission to improve the lives of all parrots worldwide." 

I made a donation to The Alex Foundation in memory of Alex.  If you would like to help or just read more about Alex and The Alex Foundation, you can find them on the web here:  http://alexfoundation.org/

Photo – Jenny Pegg

Alex “The” African Grey
1976 to 2007

Image above from The Alex Foundation website at http://alexfoundation.org/alex/