Psitácidos mexicanos A.C.: The association for the protection of Mexican parrots was founded in 2016 by biologists Elisabeth Zeppetzauer and Sarai Anaya Valera.
Elisabeth Zeppetzauer studied biology at the University of Salzburg, Austria. She specialised in behavioural research and wrote her diploma thesis on the social behaviour of African grey parrots (Psittacus erithacus erithacus).
She worked for more than 10 years with captive parrots that were kept as pets and supported their rehabilitation and resocialisation.
From 2008 to 2011, Elisabeth Zeppetzauer was the director of the first parrot protection centre in Austria, which she founded together with Nadja Ziegler, the president of the Parrot Protection Society Austria (ARGE Papageienschutz), before moving to Mexico to dedicate herself to the protection of wild parrots.
Sarai Anaya Valera studied biology at the UAM, in Xochimilco, Mexico City. In 2010, she volunteered at the Austrian Parrot Conservation Centre in Vienna (ARGE Papageienschutz).
Sarai Anaya Valera wrote her thesis on the enemy recognition training of a group of captive scarlet macaws that were subsequently released into the wild in Palenque, Mexico.
Between 2012 and 2014, Anaya Valera and Zeppetzauer coordinated the successful realisation of the reintroduction project for Scarlet Macaws in Veracruz.
They planned the aviary used for the reintroduction and looked after the macaws during the various stages of their rehabilitation, until their release in June 2014. Targeted campaigns and visits helped to create a broad acceptance among the local population for the return of the scarlet macaws.
Sarai and Elisabeth are currently working together with the Fundacion Ornitologica Txori on the planning and implementation of the project to release military macaws (Ara militarus mexicanus) in Jalisco.
Psitamex has also formed an alliance with Proyecto Santa Maria to develop guidelines on how parrots can be rehabilitated and released into the wild in a successful way.
Other team members
Tina Halbwedl
Psychologist, sexual therapist,
parrot lover, public relations
Nicté Hernandez
‘I am a social communication graduate, mother, animal activist, lost in life, but I find myself in it. I have dedicated myself to the promotion and dissemination of films and documentaries, especially on social issues such as human rights and the environment. I have witnessed the creation of the Psitamex project from the beginning. I love seeing it bear fruit every day through the commitment and co-operation of many people. I admire the strength with which Eli and Sara have worked on it.’
Johanna Hackl
‘I stand up for human rights as a trans woman, and for life on this beautiful planet in general. That’s why, for me, Psitamex means creating living space. The more it is protected, the more diverse it can become. Because life is diverse.’
Paula Elizabeth Romo Monteagudo
Landscape planner according to permaculture principles, trainer of deep ecology ‘The Work That Reconnects’, cultural scientist, life motto: ‘Together we can make another world possible.’
Psitácidos mexicanos Asociación Civil (Psitamex)