B68 and the Threshold He Took His Time Crossing

Ranger Omar opened the door of aviary #3 — in that corner of the reserve everyone here calls the bosquesito — and waited. On the other side stood B68: a yellow-headed Amazon parrot, green band on his leg, feathers the exact color of the jungle that was waiting for him. But B68 didn't move. He stayed perched at the feeding station for several minutes, studying that threshold as though measuring the weight of everything on the other side. There is something the photographs captured well that April 27th: the tray of fruit and seeds where the bird had eaten his breakfast, the metal mesh of the aviary with its wooden posts, and beyond the fence, the dense tropical vegetation visible in the background. Everything was ready. All that remained was for B68 to decide. When he finally crossed, there was no fanfare. He flew out into the forest as someone might finish a sentence they have been slowly composing for a long time. Omar recorded it all in video and photographs. Aviary #3 was left with its door open and its feeding tray empty.