This month we bring you an illustrious and unusual pet resident of our neighborhood  - Bob, the African Grey Parrot who resides on the West plaza with his person, Joanne.

Of the two subspecies of African Greys, Timneh and Congo, Bob is a Congo - the larger of the two - with bright red tail feathers as the main identifier. He weighs around 15 ounces and is 33 years old ( African Greys can live up to 60 years old - an average life span is 45). African Greys are known for having the intelligence and behavior of a young child – which Joanne can validate !!!  Some early research on African Greys was headed by former University of Arizona researcher Irene Pepperberg. Dr. Pepperberg owned an African Grey named Alex and you can google him and read about the fascinating research she did regarding language and communication.

Joanne has this to say about Bob: " Bob is a very active bird and requires a lot of attention, plus various objects/toys to shred and activities to keep him stimulated. He often surprises me and makes be laugh every day. There are a lot of ‘Bob’ stories, including one where he scared burglars off at a previous home. Our new activity for the past couple of years is going for walks with Bob in a modified baby buggy. He loves it and I wish I had thought of this earlier. Bob enjoys meeting new people – so if you see us on a walk in the neighborhood, be sure to say hi. If you are lucky, you’ll get an ‘incoming bomb’ noise from Bob in return!”