I don't know how many of you have ever heard of this...Its a tropical fruit that grows in Polynesia (like where the ekkies are, lol) Anywho, we found some today at H mart and bought some. Its a bizzare fruit thats kinda stinky. Its spiky on the outside and resembles a pineapple in coloring on the inside.

I just wanted to see if it was safe for the fids!

I was doing a little reading about it. Appears according to the story on this website that 'stinky' may not be a strong enough word! LINK: The King of Fruit

This info was on the Caique sites dangerous foods list;

Durian. The locals in Southeast Asia call the durian (Durio spp.) the “King of fruits.” However, they describe its odor as something between rotting dead cats and unwashed socks. Durian is reputed to exacerbate high blood pressure and tradition indicates that you should not eat it with alcohol (106) . Every year, the newspapers of Thailand report one or two deaths from eating durian (NY Times, April 8, 2007). Raw seeds should not be eaten because they contain 1-Methylcyclopropene that may cause shortness of breathe. However, people do eat the seeds after they are roasted or boiled and then deep-fried. These seeds are a treat in some cultures. We know little about durian toxicity for birds.

LINK: Dangerous human foods

This site talks about Cockatoos eating Durian/

LINK: Project Bird Watch Library

Some data are available on the diet of the Citron-crested cockatoo. They eat kananggar and kayarak fruit (exact spelling uncertain) and showy flowers from ‘Eretrina’ and Dadap (species of Erythrina); berries from the hello-hello tree; fruit from the hello-hello tree; small durian fruits (Durio species) and the similar-appearing carara (spelling?) fruit; plus banana, coconuts, and corn.

I would not give it to the bird. Check wikipedia (Durian - Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia) on it, it's just too iffy. Besides, eclectus are not from Polynesia but from Melanesia. And because we are talking of islands, we can't assume that because they are geographically near, they have the same vegetation. Island flora and fauna evolve differently from other islands and the mainland because of the isolation so, just because one island has something, it doesn't mean that the others have it, too.

Hmmm....Thanks Karen and Bea! I read the info on the Caique site as well. I also found a thread on a Quaker forum where a woman gave her bird some and he was fine...I just don't know though...Maybe not

When it comes to birds, my motto is "If in doubt, don't do it". Better safe than sorry.