Abstract
In the past, the transportation of birds to Europe
and to the United States from distant lands was a precarious
undertaking, often encountering prolonged
journeys by sea on slow cargo boats and under the
worse possible conditions. Many times birds were
netted, trapped and shipped before they had become
accustomed to an artificial diet. Packed in unsuitable
crates, with little light to see food or water provided
enroute, hundreds of birds arrived dead, starved to
death. Other shipments were stowed below deck in
stifling conditions or stacked on the open deck, exposed
to inclement weather or tied up in tropical ports
where heat exhaustion takes its toll.