---
title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: Later, I learned that our forgetting of…"
description: "\"Later, I learned that our forgetting of the parakeet had begun even before the species was extinct.\" — Christopher Cokinos"
image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/d06/christopher-cokinos-50901_environment_later-i-learned-that-our-forgetting-of-t_1004406.png"
---

#  Later, I learned that our forgetting of the parakeet had…

![“Later, I learned that our forgetting of the parakeet had begun even before the species was extinct.” quote by Christopher Cokinos](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/d06/christopher-cokinos-50901_environment_later-i-learned-that-our-forgetting-of-t_1004406.png)   [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/d06/christopher-cokinos-50901_environment_later-i-learned-that-our-forgetting-of-t_1004406.png) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/d06/christopher-cokinos-50901_environment_later-i-learned-that-our-forgetting-of-t_1004406.png)

> “Later, I learned that our forgetting of the parakeet had begun even before the species was extinct.”

[Christopher Cokinos](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/christopher-cokinos/)

## About This Quote

This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation.

We often forget about species before they disappear, highlighting how memory lags behind extinction.

**In simple terms:** We forget species before they’re gone.

Key Takeaway

Recognize and act on ecological loss early.

Themes

environment memory extinction awareness

Mood

reflective concerned

Type

environmental educational

When to use this quote

- wildlife monitoring
- education campaigns
- policy advocacy
- community outreach

Key Concepts

ecology collective forgetting conservation

Questions to Reflect On

- How can we keep endangered species in public consciousness?
- What role does storytelling play in conservation?

A Different Perspective

Forgetting can be mitigated by proactive documentation and storytelling.

★ ★ ★ ★ ★   No ratings yet

[Environment](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/environment/) [Forget](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/forget/) [Forgetting](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/forgetting/) [Forgetting Parakeet](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/forgetting-parakeet-2141401/) [Later Learned](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/later-learned-2141403/) [Memory](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/memory/) [Parakeet Begun](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/parakeet-begun-2141402/) [Parakeets](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/parakeets/) [Species](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/species/) [Species Extinct](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/species-extinct-800766/)

## Related quotes

> [That I had never heard of such a bird did not surprise me… But others more experienced also did not know of the Carolina…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/christopher-cokinos/that-i-had-never-heard-of-such-a-bird-did-not-surprise-me-but-others/)

[Christopher Cokinos](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/christopher-cokinos/)

> [I read, for the first time, of the Carolina Parakeet-a North American parakeet whose green, yellow and reddish-orange plumage appeared vivacious and altogether quite…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/christopher-cokinos/i-read-for-the-first-time-of-the-carolina-parakeet-a-north-american/)

[Christopher Cokinos](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/christopher-cokinos/)

> [What I had later learned was that the FBI knew I was going to New York a couple days after the raid.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/sherman-austin/what-i-had-later-learned-was-that-the-fbi-knew-i-was-going-to-new/)

[Sherman Austin](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/sherman-austin/)

> [“Later I learned to improve my forecasting—if necessary by asking the visitor in advance what subjects he intended to raise with Nixon. In”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/henry-kissinger/later-i-learned-to-improve-my-forecasting-if-necessary-by-asking-the/)

[Henry Kissinger](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/henry-kissinger/)

> [Sometimes when we hurt, we later learned. And maybe that is why we sometimes hurt.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/innah-delos-angeles/sometimes-when-we-hurt-we-later-learned-and-maybe-that-is-why-we/)

[Innah Delos Angeles](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/innah-delos-angeles/)

> [The busy chatter of the heat Shrilled like a parakeet; And shuddering at the noonday light The dust lay dead and white As powder…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/edith-sitwell/the-busy-chatter-of-the-heat-shrilled-like-a-parakeet-and-shuddering/)

[Edith Sitwell](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/edith-sitwell/)

> [Beauty was empty as a gourd, vain as a parakeet. But it had power. It smelled of musk and oranges and made you close…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/janet-fitch/beauty-was-empty-as-a-gourd-vain-as-a-parakeet-but-it-had-power-it/)

[Janet Fitch](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/janet-fitch/)

> [“People who we had believed weren’t able to speak started speaking,” Thomas said. “People who had been completely withdrawn and nonambulatory started coming to…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/atul-gawande/people-who-we-had-believed-weren-t-able-to-speak-started-speaking/)

[Atul Gawande](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/atul-gawande/)

> [You might be a redneck if your parakeet knows the phrase Open up, Police!](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jeff-foxworthy/you-might-be-a-redneck-if-your-parakeet-knows-the-phrase-open-up/)

[Jeff Foxworthy](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jeff-foxworthy/)

> [Healthy parakeets have the nervous energy of tennis players.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mignon-mclaughlin/healthy-parakeets-have-the-nervous-energy-of-tennis-players/)

[Mignon McLaughlin](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mignon-mclaughlin/)

> [Above the forest of the parakeets, A parakeet of parakeets prevails, A pip of life amid a mort of tails.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/wallace-stevens/above-the-forest-of-the-parakeets-a-parakeet-of-parakeets-prevails-a/)

[Wallace Stevens](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/wallace-stevens/)

> [I grew up with two different parakeets - one that lived for five years, and one that lived for 13 years - so I…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jim-parsons/i-grew-up-with-two-different-parakeets-one-that-lived-for-five-years/)

[Jim Parsons](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jim-parsons/)

> [You never count your chickens before they hatch. I used to keep parakeets and I never counted every egg thinking I would get all…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ian-holloway/you-never-count-your-chickens-before-they-hatch-i-used-to-keep/)

[Ian Holloway](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ian-holloway/)

> [My ex-girlfriend owned a parakeet…oh my god, that f\*\*king thing would never shut up. But the bird was cool.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anthony-jeselnik/my-ex-girlfriend-owned-a-parakeet-oh-my-god-that-f-king-thing-would/)

[Anthony Jeselnik](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anthony-jeselnik/)

> [How could anybody confuse truth with beauty, I thought as I looked at him. Truth came with sunken eyes, bony or scarred, decayed. Its…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/janet-fitch/how-could-anybody-confuse-truth-with-beauty-i-thought-as-i-looked-at/)

[Janet Fitch](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/janet-fitch/)

## More by Christopher Cokinos

> [Time is the deepest wilderness in which we wander.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/christopher-cokinos/time-is-the-deepest-wilderness-in-which-we-wander/)

[Christopher Cokinos](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/christopher-cokinos/)

> [Curiosity began my journey, which led to regret, which brings me always to wonder and dedication.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/christopher-cokinos/curiosity-began-my-journey-which-led-to-regret-which-brings-me-always/)

[Christopher Cokinos](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/christopher-cokinos/)

> [I read, for the first time, of the Carolina Parakeet-a North American parakeet whose green, yellow and reddish-orange plumage appeared vivacious and altogether quite…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/christopher-cokinos/i-read-for-the-first-time-of-the-carolina-parakeet-a-north-american/)

[Christopher Cokinos](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/christopher-cokinos/)

> [That I had never heard of such a bird did not surprise me… But others more experienced also did not know of the Carolina…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/christopher-cokinos/that-i-had-never-heard-of-such-a-bird-did-not-surprise-me-but-others/)

[Christopher Cokinos](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/christopher-cokinos/)

> [“We're all eating stars! Every day! What a marvelous annulus of accident and need.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/christopher-cokinos/we-re-all-eating-stars-every-day-what-a-marvelous-annulus-of-accident/)

[Christopher Cokinos](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/christopher-cokinos/)

> [This is the planet teeming, this place we’ve come to and will leave tomorrow, deepened for the long return but not the wedded reach,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/christopher-cokinos/this-is-the-planet-teeming-this-place-we-ve-come-to-and-will-leave/)

[Christopher Cokinos](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/christopher-cokinos/)

[Explore all 7 Christopher Cokinos quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/christopher-cokinos/)

## More Environment quotes

> [I feel like the future is unwritten. So many of the things that we write now haven't been about educating people on the environment,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-flansburgh/i-feel-like-the-future-is-unwritten-so-many-of-the-things-that-we/)

[John Flansburgh](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-flansburgh/)

> [This welfare for wealthy companies wastes taxpayer dollars, harms the environment, and makes a mockery of the recent reductions in federal social spending programs.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ralph-nader/this-welfare-for-wealthy-companies-wastes-taxpayer-dollars-harms-the/)

[Ralph Nader](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ralph-nader/)

> [We must master our egoism, and through this mastery, step outside ourselves and educate ourselves in giving. Fasting requires that we rediscover all that…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/tariq-ramadan/we-must-master-our-egoism-and-through-this-mastery-step-outside/)

[Tariq Ramadan](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/tariq-ramadan/)

> [Plainly, the environment must be a living one, directed by a higher intelligence, arranged by an adult who is prepared for his mission.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/maria-montessori/plainly-the-environment-must-be-a-living-one-directed-by-a-higher/)

[Maria Montessori](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/maria-montessori/)

> [In the current climate, things that are true, brave human stories become political.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/cate-blanchett/in-the-current-climate-things-that-are-true-brave-human-stories/)

[Cate Blanchett](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/cate-blanchett/)

> [They paved paradise and put up a parkin lot With a pink hotel, a boutique, and a swingin' hot spot Don't it always seem…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/joni-mitchell/they-paved-paradise-and-put-up-a-parkin-lot-with-a-pink-hotel-a/)

[Joni Mitchell](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/joni-mitchell/)

> [Life as we know it is fundamentally unsatisfying. I think most folks feel this to be true. They know that a life of aimless…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/michael-yates/life-as-we-know-it-is-fundamentally-unsatisfying-i-think-most-folks/)

[Michael Yates](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/michael-yates/)

> [To assist a child we must provide him with an environment which will enable him to develop freely.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/maria-montessori/to-assist-a-child-we-must-provide-him-with-an-environment-which-will/)

[Maria Montessori](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/maria-montessori/)

> [Daily life is both the subject and environment of the work I am making.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/camille-henrot/daily-life-is-both-the-subject-and-environment-of-the-work-i-am-making/)

[Camille Henrot](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/camille-henrot/)

> [If, as I anticipate, a wide array of personal, portable information/communication devices becomes increasingly important and widespread for information-intensive users, it will be a…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/tom-peters/if-as-i-anticipate-a-wide-array-of-personal-portable-information/)

[Tom Peters](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/tom-peters/)

> [Create an environment for people to fail, to learn, and to grow. Their creativity and productivity will increase.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/create-an-environment-for-people-to-fail-to-learn-and-to-grow-their/)

[Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/)

> [There are many more traits that the climate deniers share with the creationists and Holocaust deniers and others who distort the truth.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/donald-r-prothero/there-are-many-more-traits-that-the-climate-deniers-share-with-the/)

[Donald R. Prothero](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/donald-r-prothero/)

> [Assuming normal winter weather, we currently anticipate the coal markets to remain difficult through 2015; while we always strive to operate a full capacity…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/joe-craft/assuming-normal-winter-weather-we-currently-anticipate-the-coal/)

[Joe Craft](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/joe-craft/)

> [It's the same with this idea of a literate public, and also of a democracy in which people have access to and really read…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/robert-hass/it-s-the-same-with-this-idea-of-a-literate-public-and-also-of-a/)

[Robert Hass](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/robert-hass/)

> [Of course, learning is strengthened and solidified when it occurs in a safe, secure and normal environment.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jean-bertrand-aristide/of-course-learning-is-strengthened-and-solidified-when-it-occurs-in-a/)

[Jean-Bertrand Aristide](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jean-bertrand-aristide/)

[Browse all 8,669 Environment quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/environment/)

```json
{
    "@context": "https://schema.org",
    "@graph": [
        {
            "@type": "Quotation",
            "text": "Later, I learned that our forgetting of the parakeet had begun even before the species was extinct.",
            "creator": {
                "@type": "Person",
                "name": "Christopher Cokinos"
            },
            "isPartOf": {
                "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#website"
            },
            "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/christopher-cokinos/later-i-learned-that-our-forgetting-of-the-parakeet-had-begun-even/",
            "about": {
                "@type": "Thing",
                "name": "Environment"
            },
            "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/christopher-cokinos/later-i-learned-that-our-forgetting-of-the-parakeet-had-begun-even/#quotation",
            "image": {
                "@type": "ImageObject",
                "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/d06/christopher-cokinos-50901_environment_later-i-learned-that-our-forgetting-of-t_1004406.png",
                "contentUrl": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/d06/christopher-cokinos-50901_environment_later-i-learned-that-our-forgetting-of-t_1004406.png",
                "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/d06/christopher-cokinos-50901_environment_later-i-learned-that-our-forgetting-of-t_1004406.png",
                "width": 1080,
                "height": 1080,
                "caption": "“Later, I learned that our forgetting of the parakeet had begun even before the species was extinct.” — Christopher Cokinos",
                "creditText": "SMS4Smile Quotes",
                "creator": {
                    "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#organization"
                }
            }
        },
        {
            "@type": "BreadcrumbList",
            "itemListElement": [
                {
                    "@type": "ListItem",
                    "position": 1,
                    "name": "Home",
                    "item": "https://sms4smile.com/"
                },
                {
                    "@type": "ListItem",
                    "position": 2,
                    "name": "Quotes",
                    "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/"
                },
                {
                    "@type": "ListItem",
                    "position": 3,
                    "name": "Christopher Cokinos",
                    "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/christopher-cokinos/"
                },
                {
                    "@type": "ListItem",
                    "position": 4,
                    "name": "Later, I learned that our forgetting...",
                    "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/christopher-cokinos/later-i-learned-that-our-forgetting-of-the-parakeet-had-begun-even/"
                }
            ],
            "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/christopher-cokinos/later-i-learned-that-our-forgetting-of-the-parakeet-had-begun-even/#breadcrumb"
        },
        {
            "@type": "WebSite",
            "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#website",
            "name": "SMS4Smile Quotes",
            "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/",
            "publisher": {
                "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#organization"
            }
        },
        {
            "@type": "Organization",
            "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#organization",
            "name": "SMS4Smile Quotes",
            "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/",
            "logo": {
                "@type": "ImageObject",
                "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/wp-content/themes/sq/assets/icons/icon-512.png",
                "width": 512,
                "height": 512
            }
        }
    ]
}
```
