A ruby red macaw, the beautiful, brilliantly-coloured bird from the parrot family, grabs the spotlight as it mimics human voice and says hello at Kookyland, a newly opened walk-in aviary at Mettupalayam, near Coimbatore.
There are 15 varieties of exotic birds, seven varieties of exotic rodents, ball pythons, ferrets, iguanas, bearded dragon and hedgehog at the aviary located at the foothills of Udhagamandalam. A flock of sun conures, a medium-sized yellow bird from South America, make screechy, repeated sounds as it takes off. Rainbow lorikeets, the sweet-natured parrots with a multi-colour plumage from Australia feast on sliced papaya, guava and water melon served on plates by visitors.
“It’s a busy morning as the birds are basking in sunshine to get the daily dose of Vitamin D,” says M M Sridhar, who set up the aviary from his private collection. There are no cages here, instead they flutter about freely in this man-made habitat set up with landscaping, natural perches, and mist chambers including an artificial fountain.
