Meet Our Ambassadors!

Here you will find information on the birds that are usually available for classroom talks and other educational events.

Liberty

Liberty is a large female Peregrine Falcon. She has an interesting and unique life story revolving around California and the Channel Islands. She is a good ambassador species for discussions about pesticide use (from her own life experiences) and great for teaching about physical adaptations for specialized hunting techniques. Peregrine falcons are also one of the fastest flying birds in the world!

Zike
(pronounced "Zee-kay")

Zike is a North-East African species of hawk called an Augur Buzzard (other parts of the world call hawks " buzzards" but in the US we use the term as slang to mean a vulture.) Zike is a very large white and grey hawk, with a red tail, similar to our Red-tailed hawks. Zike is a great ambassador to talk about birds from other countries, and how they are alike and different from the birds we have here in the United States.

Popay

Popay is a Harris Hawk. Harris Hawks are some of the smartest raptors in the world. Popay is a great ambassador bird for discussions about the intelligence of animals and how different species live in different family-types. Harris Hawks life in matriarchal communities and are smart enough to work together to plan and carry out ambushes on rabbits and other prey!

Miss Poe

Miss Poe is a big and impressive Great-horned owl. These owls are one of our most powerful raptors in all of the United States, with strength in their feet rivaling that of Golden Eagles! Miss Poe is a great ambassador for discussions about predator-prey relationships, natural camouflage, and about what can happen when a wild animal becomes too accustomed to humans.

Photograph © Michael P. Nguyen 2010

Diego

Diego is also a Great-horned owl, though he is more timid than Miss Poe and does not go out to as many off-site presentations.

Akili

Akili is a Von Der Decken Hornbill, native to Kenya and slight surrounding areas. Von Der Decken Hornbills are one of the smaller species of hornbill but are still very impressive birds, with long curved bills and eye lashes you can totally see! (Many birds have eye lashes but few are as long and impressive as on a hornbill!) The Von Der Decken Hornbill is the bird that Zazu from Disney's "The Lion King" was modeled after. Akili is a great ambassador bird for discussions about physical adaptations for specialized feeding techniques, sexual dimorphism in birds, and for discussions about birds from other countries.

Miniature Chickens!

Our miniature chickens are Luzonica's "Petable" ambassadors. They do not bite and have very soft feathers! Our Bantam chickens are great ambassador birds for audiences that would like a chance to touch live birds. Most of our birds are either too shy or too dangerous to allow touching, but we have chickens that are very soft and very tame.

Finches, Tanagers, Doves, Oh My!

Our small and colorful songbirds that can come to your classroom or educational event in a portable display cage include Lady Gouldian Finches (native to Australia), a Pacific Parrotlet and a Green-cheeked Conure (both native to South America), Blue-grey Tanagers and Safron Finches (both native to South America), a Desert Finch (native to the Middle East), Red-cheeked Cordon-bleu finches and Orange-breasted Waxbills (both native to Africa), a Eurasian Collared Dove (native to Asian and Europe) and a Luzon Bleeding-heart Dove (native to the Philippines). All of our small birds are great ambassadors for discussions about specialized adaptations for feeding and nesting, as well as for discussions about birds from other parts of the world.

Arnold the Pacific Parrotlet

Blue-Grey Tanager

Lady Gouldian Finch