Park rangers catch the wild parakeets
By Liz Lee - Northampton Chronicle
WILD parakeets discovered nesting in Abington Park, in Northampton, are being hunted by rangers to be caged in the park’s aviary.
Several of the brightly-coloured birds were found in the park in February after naturally becoming acclimatised to the weather, and had been spotted by keen birdwatchers in the area.
But Northampton Borough Council have now decided to capture the birds in a bid to rescue them from predatory crows who have moved in on their territory.
A spokesman for the council’s parks department confirmed that a male parakeet was successfully cornered last week and is now safely housed in the aviary, close to Abington Park Museum.
He said: “Our bird keeper managed to catch a male ringneck parakeet that was being attacked by crows in Abington Park on Friday.
“At this time of year, the weather is becoming warmer and wild birds are getting ready for the breeding season. Consequently their behaviour becomes quite territorial.
“Ringneck parakeets are clearly no match for crows, raising concerns about their safety with our bird keeper. The male parakeet is now happily settled in the aviary and we are in the process of trying to lure his mate in to join him.”
The parakeets, which are native to India, Malaysia and parts of Africa, have probably been surviving loose in the park for as long as two years after migrating north from Devon and the south coast.
Keen birdwatcher Keith Smith, who regularly photographs the birds, reacted angrily after finding out they were being caged.
He said: “I was very disappointed to see the male in the aviary. He looks a lot less happy and healthy than he used to when he was flying wild in the park with the others.
“The birds have been here for at least two years and should be allowed to stay free in the park. As far as I’m concerned the council have got no right to be capturing wild birds for their own aviary.”
After the Chron first revealed the wild parakeets colony in Abington Park earlier this month, Lois Hook, of the Northampton Parrot Centre, said: “A large number of ringneck parakeets were released into the wild in the 1950s, so they seem to have taken to living here.”
The long-tailed parakeets are actually parrots, and are growing in popularity as pets in Britain. They usually sell for about £150.