Meet Guapo, the Oak Park parrot giving residents a reason to smile

OAK PARK, Ill. (WBBM NEWSRADIO) — Scot Yonan was turning heads again on a recent stroll down Harrison Street in Oak Park, thanks to a feathery friend perched atop his shoulder.

“This is Guapo, and he's an eclectus parrot,” Yonan said.

Guapo, which means “handsome” in Spanish, is a bit of a rare breed.

“They come from a small cluster of islands to the north east of Australia called the Solomon Islands,” he said. “Nobody's really sure how long they live. Guapo was, well, he was my ex-wife's last gift to me before she left.”

He’s had Guapo for 17 years, and the parrot is nearly 21. Yonan said he’s been stopped on walks with Guapo so many times that he eventually decided to create an Instagram account for the bird .

“His Instagram handle is @Guapothejunglechicken,” he said. “I just post pictures of him with other people on it.”

Those photos include Guapo posing inside of a record store, with a Binny’s employee, with local residents, and even on top of a DJ’s shoulder .

Although Yonan doesn’t bring Guapo — who is potty trained — into restaurants, he did say that the parrot often joins him inside other local businesses. The common response: A smile.

“They like to see him, and they love to hold him here,” he said.

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