Monk Parakeets

If you live in the U.S., parrots might seem like ambassadors from far-off rainforests. Especially since the Carolina Parakeet, a native species once common in the South and Midwest, went extinct in the early 20th Century. But more and more parrots are finding a home here. Since the 1960s at least, Monk Parakeets have been free-flying and reproducing in the U.S. Over twenty introduced parrot species are now nesting in the US, with hotspots in Florida and California.

BirdNote^®

Monk Parakeets Fly Freely

Written by Bob Sundstrom

This is BirdNote.

[Monk Parakeets calling, http://macaulaylibrary.org/audio/132540, 0.11-13]

If you live in the U.S., parrots might seem like ambassadors from the far-off rainforests of Brazil or Australia. Especially since the Carolina Parakeet, a native species once common in the South and Midwest, went extinct in the early 20th Century.

[Monk Parakeets calling, http://macaulaylibrary.org/audio/132540, 0.11-13]

But more and more parrots are finding a home here. Since the 1960s at least, Monk Parakeets have been free-flying and reproducing in the U.S. — which is to say they have become naturalized. Native to southern South America, Monk Parakeets have a lime-green back, gray and yellow under parts, and deep blue wings. They’re also known as Quaker Parrots. Initial fears that they would devastate crops haven’t materialized, and they’ve become the most numerous free-flying parrots in the country.

[Monk Parakeets calling, http://macaulaylibrary.org/audio/132540, 0.11-13]

Escaped Monk Parakeets now have self-sustaining populations in many areas across the country: Chicago; Dallas; New Orleans; Portland, Oregon; and Bridgeport, Connecticut, among others. So clearly, in the wild, they can gradually acclimate to cold.

And Monk Parakeets are not alone. Now, over twenty introduced parrot species are nesting in the US, with hotspots in Florida and California.

[Monk Parakeets calling, http://macaulaylibrary.org/audio/132540, 0.11-13]

For BirdNote, I’m Mary McCann.
###
Bird sounds provided by The Macaulay Library of Natural Sounds at the Cornell Lab of Ornithology, Ithaca, New York. 132540 recorded by Peter A. Hosner.
BirdNote’s theme music was composed and played by Nancy Rumbel and John Kessler.
Producer: John Kessler
Executive Producer: Sallie Bodie
© 2016 Tune In to Nature.org October 2016 / April 2023
Narrator: Mary McCann

ID# MOPA-01b-2016-10-10 MOPA-01b

Reference:
https://www.mdpi.com/1424-2818/13/9/412/pdf

Related Resources
A Field Guide to The Feral Parrots of the US
https://blog.nature.org/science/2019/09/09/a-field-guide-to-the-feral-p…
Monk Parakeet – More at All About Birds
https://www.allaboutbirds.org/guide/Monk_Parakeet/overview