John J. Audubon Carolina Parakeet Vase

In the early 19th century, John J. Audubon sounded the alarm about habitat loss and climate change. From spotting and painting birds over the years, he noted that already in 1816, “Our Parakeets are very rapidly diminishing…where twenty-five years ago they were plentiful, scarcely any are now to be seen.” The Carolina Parakeet - the only parrot native to the U.S. - became extinct in 1920.

The species lives on in Audubon’s brilliant watercolor, as a pandemonium of parakeets jostle together in squawking harmony. They remind us to appreciate and cherish our fragile ecosystem.

John J. Audubon (1785-1851)
Carolina Parakeet
Study for Havell pl. 26, ca. 1825
Purchased for the New-York Historical Society
By public subscription from Mrs. John J. Audubon