PURSAT, Cambodia — On the outskirts of the western Cambodian city of Pursat, some 180 kilometers, or 110 miles, north of Phnom Penh, tourists and travelers stream out of minivans parked in the forecourt of a PTT gas station. The Cambodian subsidiary of Thailand’s state-owned oil and gas conglomerate, PTT stands out as one of the country’s more modern gas station chains, sporting retail outlets popular in Thailand such as Café Amazon and 7-Eleven. But the PTT in Pursat’s Prey Nhy commune boasts a number of unique Thai imports that draw more attention than the markedly clean toilets. When reporters visited the PTT gas station in mid-February 2024, a blue and yellow macaw (Ara ararauna) and what experts have suggested could be a salmon-crested cockatoo (Cacatua moluccensis) were seen chained to a metal frame surrounding a tree in the center of the forecourt. Curious tourists leaned in to pet the birds. Tucked away, around the corner and behind a noodle shop inside the PTT forecourt, sat a series of cages filled with animals and a large printed banner that read “Beware of animal bites. We are not responsible.” Here, reporters found nonnative species including two more likely salmon-crested cockatoos, two common marmosets (Callithrix jacchus), two Indian peafowls (Pavo cristatus), a golden pheasant (Chrysolophus pictus), three endangered sun parakeets (Aratinga solstitialis), and one as-yet-unidentified green bird that has been suggested to be a green-cheeked parakeet (Pyrrhura molinae). Meanwhile native species identified at the PTT gas station included a juvenile pig-tailed macaque…This article was originally published on Mongabay
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