If you thought London had avoided an invasion of little green aliens, you’d be wrong. All across the city, swarms of these small birds have been growing in numbers.
No-one quite knows the true story behind the ring-necked, or rose-ringed, parakeets’ (Psittacula krameri) successful invasion of London. Some say Jimi Hendrix is responsible for jazzing up the skies, and others claim that the birds escaped from the set of the 1963 film, Cleopatra, while it was being filmed in Shepperton Studios.
Of course these birds with their bold sense of style and tendency to draw attention to themselves would have to have a glamorous back-story, but the truth is likely far more mundane. They have been popular pets to keep since the Victorian ages and over the decades, many have inevitably escaped or been deliberately released. In 1969, enough parakeets existed to begin breeding and their population has steadily risen since.
The fact their natural habitat stretches from West to East Africa and across Nepal, Bangladesh and India could suggest that they were unsuited for urban living under the grey skies of Britain. Yet these are birds that survive at high altitudes, up to 4000ft in the Himalayas. A comparatively mild climate plus abundant of food in parks and gardens - insects, seeds, fruit - equals the perfect environment for a population boom of these bolshy birds.
Many find the bright, charismatic birds a welcome sight against the dreary cityscape. They ‘make me feel like I’m in the rainforest…minus the forest,” said one local, while another claims that ‘they look cooler than our pigeons.’ However, being sociable birds, they like to hang out in colonies of up to 6000 and can make quite a racket. One Croydon resident eloquently described them as, 'noisy fuckers.'
It's not just the cacophony of noise that people have an issue with. Back home they are seen as pests, stripping trees of their fruit and munching on crops. In 2009, the exotic species joined gulls, magpies and pigeons on the UK's general license list for the same behaviour.
There is also the problem of the effect they're having on our native avifauna. Flocking to bird feeders in gangs of up to twenty, they unsurprisingly scare away our more timid garden birds. Research has shown that blue tits and great tits are more reluctant to feed with even a caged parakeet present, perhaps intimidated by their screeching noise. Concerns have also been expressed for the nuthatches and woodpeckers of the city. With parakeets also opting to nest in tree cavities, perhaps there wouldn't be enough holes to go around.
No matter what you think of them, this feisty bird is here and here to stay. Plus, with sightings as far north as Scotland, they probably won't be unique to London much longer.