Hooks

Pirate hooks are known for being prosthetic replacements for a hand. Similar to peg legs, the doctor on board of a ship (if there was any) would look for a replacement when a pirate lost a hand in battle, in order to strap it on his arm with a piece of leather. However, most of the time no skilled surgeon was available on a pirate ship, or the pirate died by his injuries. Choosing a hook as a replacement for a lost limb is purely hypothetical and not proven in any way. No historical pirate is known to have worn a hook, and it is supposed that the legend of the pirate hook originated from James Matthew Barrie's "Peter Pan", in which he mentions a character called "Captain Hook".

Peg Legs

Fact is, there is no known historical pirate with a wooden peg leg. The legend of peg legs probably originates from either Captain Ahab from "Moby Dick", who had an ivory leg, fashioned from the polished bone of a whale's jaw. The pirate Long John Silver from Stevenson's "Treasure Island" was also a one legged man, however the character does not have a peg leg in the story; his use of crutches has been misrepresented and through time and Hollywood productions this pirate legend was formed. However, pirates with wooden legs may really have existed, although it is likely that a pirate with a peg leg was rather rare. When a pirate lost his leg during a battle, an amputation could have saved him from gangrene, a deadly infection of the wound. While skilled surgeons were usually not available on a pirate ship, it was rather a matter of luck if the pirate survived the amputation. It is clear that a one legged pirate would need a replacement for his lost limb, preferably a piece of wood.

Parrots

Usually animals aboard a ship were rather used as provisions on long journeys than as pets. Hens and pigs should provide the crew with eggs and fresh meat. The parrot legend may originate from Robert Louis Stevenson's "Treasure Island", specifically from the character "Long John Silver".

However, the historical journal of William Dampier describes that in certain cases pirates actually did take parrots on board, most likely because they wanted to sell them at a profit to the high society of Europe. In Dampier's journal it is mentioned that parrots were stored along with other animals and provisions on the ship, while anchoring at a Caribbean island:

"The tame Parrots we found here were the largest and fairest Birds of their kind that I ever saw in the West Indies. Their colour was yellow and red, very coursly mixt; and they would prate very prettily; and there was scarce a Man but what sent aboard one or two of them. So that with Provision, Chests, Hencoops and Parrot-Cages, our Ships were full of Lumber, with which we intended to sail."