fengreg Posted December 31, 2013 Report Share Posted December 31, 2013 Went down to London yesterday doing the tourist thing with family over from SA, walking up the Mall towards the palace I saw a small flock of Parakeets high up flying around, they came down and flew all the way up the Mall at low level making one hell of a racket, there're bloody quick!. I've read articles and heard tell of these birds, but never seen them before, are there others spread over London and other areas? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
aga man Posted December 31, 2013 Report Share Posted December 31, 2013 http://forums.pigeonwatch.co.uk/forums/topic/269144-parakeets/ Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
bakerboy Posted December 31, 2013 Report Share Posted December 31, 2013 Went down to London yesterday doing the tourist thing with family over from SA, walking up the Mall towards the palace I saw a small flock of Parakeets high up flying around, they came down and flew all the way up the Mall at low level making one hell of a racket, there're bloody quick!. I've read articles and heard tell of these birds, but never seen them before, are there others spread over London and other areas? 1000's of them. Richmond Park and West London in particular, but also spreading out through North London and South Herts, we even see a few around Hatfield and Stevenage. Nice to see but very noisy and a real threat to the Woodpecker, by taking over their nesting sites. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
fengreg Posted December 31, 2013 Author Report Share Posted December 31, 2013 Thanks for the link, fascinating stuff, I didn't know you could shoot them, hard to hit, there're bloody quick!. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
bakerboy Posted December 31, 2013 Report Share Posted December 31, 2013 Have a look at Sporting pictures "Parakeets" and 3 pages of the thread Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
parrots2 Posted December 31, 2013 Report Share Posted December 31, 2013 (edited) when I was working at heathrow t5 our digs were next to a wood in Staines and every night they came to roost there looked 1000s of them and the wood was in a poor mess most of the trees were bare Edited December 31, 2013 by parrots2 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
stubby Posted December 31, 2013 Report Share Posted December 31, 2013 quite a few flocks here in essex too Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Tinribz Posted December 31, 2013 Report Share Posted December 31, 2013 Theres loads in the margate area to i used to cut cauliflowers there years ago and you would always see and here them Theres loads in the margate area to i used to cut cauliflowers there years ago and you would always see and here them Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
DEADLY PLUMBER Posted January 1, 2014 Report Share Posted January 1, 2014 1000s in London and spreading out fast. Coming to a town near you all in the next 20/30yrs probably the way they are spreading out. Lock and load and bag them. If you can. They are quick and aggressive. When in a flock very noisey. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
stubby Posted January 1, 2014 Report Share Posted January 1, 2014 Theres loads in the margate area to i used to cut cauliflowers there years ago and you would always see and here them Theres loads in the margate area to i used to cut cauliflowers there years ago and you would always see and here them were talking about parakeets not parrots Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
kdubya Posted January 1, 2014 Report Share Posted January 1, 2014 they are well established up north as well, local park has a thriving colony and they get into the gardens where one of my daughters lives, not huge numbers but must be at least 50 in the colony. KW Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Mr pigeon Posted January 1, 2014 Report Share Posted January 1, 2014 (edited) How would you decoy them? ;-) Edited January 1, 2014 by Mr pigeon Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Lampwick Posted January 1, 2014 Report Share Posted January 1, 2014 How would you decoy them? ;-) There's a U Caller card (photography only) four settings; Pretty Polly Who's a pretty boy then Hello........hello...........hello Fu?? Off! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
stubby Posted January 1, 2014 Report Share Posted January 1, 2014 There's a U Caller card (photography only) four settings; Pretty Polly Who's a pretty boy then Hello........hello...........hello Fu?? Off! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
fengreg Posted January 1, 2014 Author Report Share Posted January 1, 2014 Very funny Less decoy, more roost shooting with an air rifle, that said, are they on any quarry list (DEFRA) etc??, can't seem to find them?. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
kdubya Posted January 1, 2014 Report Share Posted January 1, 2014 There's a U Caller card (photography only) four settings; Pretty Polly Who's a pretty boy then Hello........hello...........hello Fu?? Off! very good KW Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
pigeonblasterian Posted January 1, 2014 Report Share Posted January 1, 2014 I saw around eight parakeets once in East Yorkshire about ten years ago.Never seen any since. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
DEADLY PLUMBER Posted January 1, 2014 Report Share Posted January 1, 2014 I saw around eight parakeets once in East Yorkshire about ten years ago.Never seen any since. Obviously they were on holiday from London. It's so exotic up there. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Therealchucknorris Posted January 1, 2014 Report Share Posted January 1, 2014 Very funny Less decoy, more roost shooting with an air rifle, that said, are they on any quarry list (DEFRA) etc??, can't seem to find them?. Yep, they're on Natural England's General Licence list...along with the other pests that need controlling as per our standard guidelines. If you view the other link aga man posted and baker boy referred to there's a debate about how lovely and green and fluffy they are and they shouldn't be touched because they're pretty and exotic vs a cull needed. As far as I'm concerned, I split my time between Swindon, the Cotswolds and Hampshire and they're not an issue for me but having read the experiences of others living just outside London I would expect to see some around my neck of the woods in the not too distant future. Yes they look interesting and unusual but as far as I'm concerned they shouldn't be here and they're pretty aggressive vs our natural wildlife (plant and birds) and therefore need to be controlled in order to maintain a balance. I'm fully behind anyone that seeks to bag a few in problem areas which could slow down them spreading out from the capital. I haven't yet been convinced by any argument to leave them alone as NE and many other organisations recognise their pest status. Interesting that people are happy enough to shoot pigeons and magpies under the same banner but would draw the line at something green and pretty. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
fengreg Posted January 3, 2014 Author Report Share Posted January 3, 2014 Thanks for that, and I'm with you there Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
KFC Posted January 3, 2014 Report Share Posted January 3, 2014 Once they've all been shot they'll be Polygons Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
victorismyhero Posted January 3, 2014 Report Share Posted January 3, 2014 oh gawd...here's yer coat seriously, before you exterminate em all...let em breed and tell me when the chicks hatch....I could do with a dozen day old chicks to hand rear into fluffy green pets at 250-300 quid a throw.... Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
GingerCat Posted January 4, 2014 Report Share Posted January 4, 2014 They are a real pest stripping trees bare and out competing native birds. Also bloody noisey. Plenty in south London now, will ruin a fruit tree in an afternoon. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
garden gun Posted January 6, 2014 Report Share Posted January 6, 2014 They are out as far as Maidenhead our way. It is only a matter of time before they get to us - on GL classsified as vermin it is lead aspirin as far as I am concerned. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
HW682 Posted January 6, 2014 Report Share Posted January 6, 2014 Never seen any around here luckily - but I notice that there are two species which are treated differently in the general licences http://www.naturalengland.org.uk/ourwork/regulation/wildlife/licences/generallicences.aspx ie Monk parakeet are on GL-04 (preservation of livestock & crops and spread of disease); GL-05 (preservation of public health and safety) and GL-06 (conservation of flora & fauna) but Ring Neck are only on GL-04 and GL-06 (not GL-05) so I was just wondering out of pure curiosity whether the parakeets you are getting down there are predominantly one species or the other or are they a good mix of both? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Recommended Posts
Join the conversation
You can post now and register later. If you have an account, sign in now to post with your account.
Note: Your post will require moderator approval before it will be visible.