Over the last two weeks five dying Cape Parrots have been handed in to the SPCA King William's Town or directly to staff of the Cape Parrot Project.

SPCA workers say that they suspect that double the number of Cape Parrots are not being reported.

Most people see a Cape Parrot and think that they can rehabilitate it and have it saying: "Polly" in a few days - these parrots always die and need specialist care says  Dr. Steve Boyes, trustee of Wild Bird Trust and Director of Wild Parrot Trust Africa

As a result a message was sent out within the  conservation networks, asking people to submit photos and reports of Cape Parrots in poor condition.

"What followed turned my stomach", says Boyes. Within two weeks we had 30 reports and shocking photos of dead and dying Cape Parrots in King William's Town, Stutterheim, and Alice, all with signs of advanced PBFD infection.

"The Cape Parrot is our "national parrot" and is dependent on our national tree, the yellowwood for its survival. We are at risk of losing our only endemic parrot to disease and malnutrition within the next 5-10 years if we do not act right now to fix this situation. Our Cape Parrots are struggling to fit into the new landscape we have engineered for them, almost behaving like feral parrots would when released into a new area. They are intelligent, sentient beings that are designed to solve problems and share information with each other.