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Feather Fanatic
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Ok, this is for any one. But i bet you, Bea, will have a very good answer to this question....
I was giving Miss Willow her shower yesterday and was thinking about how pretty it is when the water beads up on her feathers and the feathers are still dry. Then that went to why don't Amazons have preen glands, and since they don't, where do they get the feather conditioning effects that they obviously have , and since the oils in the preen gland help to process some vitamins how does that get done without a preen gland? Hum????
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Feather Fanatic
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Good question Icky. I actually have thought that myself. Looking forward to hearing the answer.
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Fledgling
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very interesting topic! I don't know "why" they don't have the gland, but the uropygial gland produces vitamin D3 precursors, and the secretion waterproofs the feathers. The secretion also is antibacterial and antifungal. Since Amazons don't possess the uropygial gland, their powder down (from down feathers) provides waterproofing. The only other parrots without the uropygial gland are the purple macaws (hyacinth, Lear's, Glaucous and Spix).
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Feather Fanatic
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| Well, see, that is what i was wondering about. Given all that, how does an Amazon manage to synthesize D3 and actually make up for the antibacterial effects of the gland.
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Fledgling
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| the answer would be UV. Ultra Violet lighting helps with the natural synthesis of Vitamin D3 in the skin and assists the animal to naturally regulate it. Vitamin D3 is the hormone that allows the digestive system to extract calcium from their diet, helping parrots to achieve healthy bones and beaks. Too little Vitamin D3 results in brittle bones and too much results in calcium build up on the bones or kidney problems. Full spectrum lighting is believed to help in the process of natural regulation of Vitamin D3. Full spectrum lighting also helps improve the health of a parrot’s glandular system. This includes the thyroid and pineal glands and hypothalamus. The thyroid controls the function of the other glands (how and when they function), the pineal gland controls cyclical processes of parrots such as molting and reproduction, and the hypothalamus ensures normal feather development in birds. 
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Feather Fanatic
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Big Talker
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WOW very cool Newbie  I love learning new things, Thanks
 The difference between parrots and kids is that it's cute when a parrot talks back. www.macawsandmore.com
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