Swift parrots are quite established in aviculture overseas. They are that
widely kept that there are a number of mutations available e.g. pastels and
diltues (like multi coloured budgies). They sell for about AU$100ea for
normal wild coloured
ones in the UK and keepers overseas of Swift parrots know alot about their
captive biology than most keepers in Australia. A small number of people
keep them in Australia and are really restricted by legislation in their
respective states.
It's probably not so much of an issue that 'if' the species becomes
extinct in the wild that there are sufficient individuals in captivity to
fall back on, because there appears to be quite sufficient captive
population in Europe (probably way more than the number of birds left in the
wild and
captivity in Australia together), but the more important issue is that Swift
parrots arent 'too
genetically modified' from being kept in captivity (now there's another can
of worms to talk about).
Cheers
Marc NT
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