High above the mistbelt forests of South Africa, a flash of green and gold breaks through the morning fog. This is the Cape Parrot (Poicephalus robustus), the country’s most endangered parrot — and one of its most overlooked treasures. With fewer than 2,000 left in the wild, their echoing calls have grown heartbreakingly rare.

Once, they thrived in the towering yellowwood forests that stretched across the land. But since the late 19th century, more than 60% of those ancient trees have been logged, stripping away the Cape parrot’s home and food source. As if that weren’t enough, the spread of psittacine beak and feather disease — often transmitted from captive birds — has cut even deeper into their fragile numbers.

Today, the Cape parrot clings to survival in just three isolated regions: the Eastern Cape, KwaZulu-Natal, and Limpopo. At dawn, researchers like Cassie and Kate Carstens rise with the mist, listening for the parrots’ distinctive calls, scanning treetops, and searching for nests. Sometimes, they witness hopeful sights — such as nearly 600 parrots gathering in a pecan orchard. But the threats remain close: parrots shot down with slingshots, captured for the pet trade, or sold for pocket change in local markets.

Conservationists are fighting back with both science and community action. Each year, the Cape Parrot Big Birding Day rallies birders across South Africa, creating a snapshot of the population that has held steady at around 1,500 individuals for over a decade. Meanwhile, DNA analyses and a genetic studbook now track bloodlines, ensuring that wild birds can be distinguished from captive ones and helping enforce laws that make owning a Cape parrot without a permit illegal.

But ultimately, the survival of this parrot depends not only on science, but on pride. The Cape parrot is more than just a bird — it is a living link to South Africa’s vanishing forests, a voice of the wild that still rings out at dawn. To lose it would mean losing a piece of the country’s natural soul.