
Parrots are so expensive because:
1. They live for a long period of time (mine will live to around 40-50 years old!)
2. They are very clever animals:
- one parrot has a vocabulary of 800 words
- they can distinguish between colours, textures, shapes
3. They are good companions
4. They are not as common as hamsters etc. - so by the laws of demand and supply, price is high

http://www.mecca.org/~rporter/PARROTS/grey_al.html
This video is very funny:
http://a1257.v97730.c9773.g.vm.akamaist ... WMExt=.asf