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Week 50 entry for 52 weeks challenge.

Ring-Neck Parakeet this afternoon on one of our seed feeders. We seem to have two or three visit several times a day; I’ve no idea if they are the same birds all the time, but it wouldn’t surprise me if they have their own defined feeding territories.

I know a lot of people don’t like these birds, but I do. OK they’re not native but they are colourful, brash, noisy, intelligent and incredibly comic to watch. Their body isn’t a lot bigger than a blackbird, but they’ll stand their ground against a magpie, which is noticeably bigger. One bird will be respectful of a magpie but won’t give in to it easily. Two birds is more than a match for a single magpie. I’ve noticed this recently as our magpies have decided to try raiding the seed feeders, which they don’t find easy but they’re determined birds! Two parakeets on a feeder beats one magpie. One parakeet will give way, but not by a lot!

I also discovered recently that there is a big (like 2500 birds) parakeet roost at Wormwood Scrubs (the open ground and trees just north of HM’s hotel), which is only about 5 miles away as the parrot flies. I suspect our birds belong to this roost as we often see them and others flying in that direction around dusk.