The CITES Treaty - Convention on International Trade in Endangered Species of Wild Fauna and Flora - came into effect in July of 1975. This treaty was signed by 185 nations and it provides protection for almost 41 thousand species of plants and animals. The level of protection is based on which of the Appendices the plant or animal is placed in.

Appendix 1 lists species threatened with extinction.

Appendix 2 lists species that are endangered.

Appendix 3 lists species that are protected.

In 2017, African Greys were reclassified from Appendix 2 (Endangered) to Appendix 1 (Threatened). This made the import and export of African Grey to the United States almost impossible. Trade in wild-caught specimens is completely prohibited. CITES encourages captive breeding to maintain the population's genetic diversity, since reintroducing wild bloodlines is now almost impossible.

African Greys are insanely intelligent. In the wild, they learn from observation. What breeders have come to realize is that the captive population is losing the knowledge on how to breed properly. Very few African Grey chicks are parent-raised because almost all are sold into the pet trade. African Greys that have been pets their entire lives do not know how to breed. They still go through hormonal cycles because that is a biological process, but the knowledge to go through the physical act of mating is missing. Unless they observe other Greys breeding, they never learn how to do it themselves. The wild-caught Greys that produced the majority of the flock within the United States are reaching the age when they stop breeding. The younger Greys are lacking the knowledge, so the number of baby Greys being hatched each year gets a little smaller. In 2020, during the Covid lockdown, many breeders stopped breeding for that year or kept their babies off the market. Many species were unavailable, which drove up prices for everything. African Greys were already in high demand, which pushed their prices even higher. In late 2020 and 2021, we saw African Greys listed for $10,000. Today, prices have come back down, but they will never return to what they were. Twenty-five years ago, you could get an African Grey for $700 to $1000. Now, young African Greys are regularly selling for $ 5,000.

African Greys wean quickly compared to other large parrots. Breeders have realized that selling their birds directly is more profitable than selling to retail channels. Why sell a bird to a store for $2000 when you can put a few more weeks into feeding it yourself and sell it directly to a customer for $5000 or more? The chances of finding a baby African Grey in stores these days are very small. Here at Tropic Zone, we get calls every day asking for a baby Grey. They just aren't available because breeders aren't offering them to stores. Sometimes we have adults available for adoption, but the chances of us having a baby Grey for sale again are pretty slim.

Unfortunately, due to the low availability and high demand, African Greys have become a favorite of scammers. The demand is so high, and some people are so desperate to own one of these amazing birds that they will throw money at anyone who claims to have one. An amazing deal comes along, and before they know it, their money is gone, and so is the "breeder." If a breeder won't talk to you on the phone, don't do business with them. If they can't give you references, don't do business with them. If the price is too good to be true, then it is. Don't fall for it.