Old habitats

"The parakeets have settled here for a long time, living alongside us," Wang said. "The villagers' awareness of protecting the banyan trees and the birds has been passed down through generations. In fact, we consider both of them sacred."

Due to conservation efforts and the area's mild climate, 36 towering banyan trees are scattered throughout the village, which is home to 64 families. These trees provide ideal shelters for the parakeets.

The village borders the Nuozhadu Provincial Nature Reserve, which spans 18,997 hectares in Pu'er. According to Lu Wen, the director of the reserve, more than one-third of it is covered by Simao pines. "The seeds of Simao pines are the primary food source for Derbyan parakeets," he told China Daily.

The parakeets make their nests in the hollows of the old banyan trees. During the day, they leave their home in Mangba to forage in the nature reserve, returning around sunset.

Aside from their noise, Wang said, the birds have few conflicts with the local villagers. "They don't feed on our crops, including corn," he said. "In addition to cones, they also feed on banyan fruits and the flowers of certain trees in the forest. If they're thirsty, they can fly to the Lancang River for a drink."

During the Derbyan parakeets' breeding season from March to May, chicks sometimes fall from their nests on the banyan trees, and Wang, who worked as a patrolman at the reserve for many years and has been a pioneer of the local birdwatching business, always steps in to help.

Over the years, he has rescued some 10 baby Derbyan parakeets, releasing them back into the wild once they matured.

Raising a baby Derbyan parakeet is like caring for a child. Wang's wife chews the rice into fine pieces, feeding it to the chick bit by bit, without oil or salt, observing its droppings daily, anxious it might get diarrhea. Once the chick grows larger, it can eat whole cooked rice grains and sunflower seeds.

"Newly hatched Derbyan parakeets have downy feathers like cotton wool, and slowly grow beautiful plumage," Wang said. "I feel sad when I release them back into the wild, but when I hear the parakeets' calls every morning, I feel like the birds I rescued have returned and are greeting me."

The Nuozhadu reserve has also played a significant role in supporting the villagers' efforts in parakeet conservation. Since 2018, Lu said, the reserve administration has invested over 500,000 yuan ($70,325) in these efforts.

To enhance the habitat for Derbyan parakeets, reserve workers have planted more than 500 trees that produce fruits and flowers favored by the birds, including banyan, cherry and Indian coral trees, around Mangba.

In November 2022, they constructed a 14-meter-tall artificial "tree" equipped with nearly 20 nest boxes and a water trough to cater to the parakeets' breeding and drinking needs within the reserve. This installation has successfully attracted flocks of Derbyan parakeets, who have been observed drinking and playing there. In 2023, the nest boxes had attracted three pairs of Derbyan parakeets to settle and breed.

Several campaigns have also been launched to clean up garbage around the banyan trees in Mangba. Lu said that promoting Derbyan parakeet watching among birdwatchers is perhaps their most important work. "The incoming bird-watchers are truly the main force to vitalize Mangba," he said.