Puerto Rican Parrot Project

The Puerto Rican parrot (Amazona vittata) is the last surviving species of parrots native to lands under the U.S. jurisdiction. It was listed as a critically endangered species in 1967 under the Endangered Species Preservation Act, being considered one of the ten most endangered bird species in the world. Reduced eggshell strength and the consequential loss of offspring is one of the main problems often found by conservationists. The Puerto Rican Parrot Project is focused on annotating genes known to be expressed in the uterus during eggshell deposition with the aim of finding genetic differences between the Puerto Rican parrot and its sister species.