Attack of the Parakeets Comments – are we fighting a gang war with the birds now? | | Television

‘It was a terrible February in West Wickham, south London, when I saw my first parakeet. About six of them, actually. I looked up while I was washing the dishes, through the window overlooking the garden, and I saw, where there were no members of the middle class. Psittacula they should be. Half a dozen cuttings are a brilliant green against the dark brown of late winter in the countryside. Totally impossible, totally confusing, totally amazing. That was 25 years ago and I’ve been a fan ever since.

It’s been pretty spectacular ever since, as the title of Chris Packham’s latest book, Invasion of the Parakeets, suggests. There are now around 15,000 couples in the UK – the most in Europe.

Packham whips through the ideas of how they came from Asia and Africa. Some were released after filming at Isleworth in the 1951 Bogart-Hepburn vehicle An African princess. Two of Jimi Hendrix’s girlfriend were released in the late 60s as a “peace gift”. Some are relatives of the half a million animals that were brought into the UK between 1975 and 2005 when we had domesticated parrots and didn’t care much about keeping wild birds or showing them in rooms in the colder world.

But this is not what they prioritize. Instead, Packham asks: are parakeets dangerous? Are they destroying the environment for our birds and harming many people? Or are they just loud and a little rude? Are we becoming lovers of the species – or having a class war with – the birds?

The ecologist is as enthusiastic, passionate and ruthless as ever as he collects facts, figures, testimonies and anecdotes from experts and amateurs alike about the parakeet population. People who see their nests say that the birds eat the nests used by nuthatchesstarlings and woodpeckers, destroy fruit crops and defecate in all vehicles. I don’t know what kind of birds Mazdas are, but I don’t drive, so I’m willing to slow down the angry people in Kent.

I give him no reason to be less than a man who shoots parakeets with his gun. I don’t see him as a weapon or a threat. I think you can do a good “mom face” and get rid of that stupid thing (“Give me that!”) without a moment’s resistance.

However. Among those who focus on these issues, the consensus seems to be that these birds are not affected by the population of native birds, although Tim Blackburn, professor of biodiversity at University College London, adds a note of caution. It depends on the population – and plant-loving birds like parakeets don’t have to interfere too much with farmers’ crops to support it. “A lot of (these) cost money… Sibylla Tindale of the High Clandon Estate vineyard in Surrey has found that playing cassettes of birds of prey and the cries of small birds being eaten has saved her grapes. Whether this is repeatable at scale is not being followed up.

Along the way, we are asked to consider what it means to be native – 48% of our world’s animals were introduced to our islands – and whether our tolerance for newcomers is equally distributed. Pheasants and red-legged partridges are exported by the thousands to be shot in the countryside (as part of a £3.3bn UK industry) and the survivors go off to pick crops, fruit, insects and rare reptiles without anyone getting upset. “Bonkers,” says Packham.

Then there are Canada geese, which I know have done little to add to the enjoyment of the UK – and much to hinder the safety of young children and the relaxation of women in our parks – since they were brought in in the 17th century to entertain people in castles.

The attack of Parakeets does not cause the same conflicts between people and birds, but it allows them to gradually settle in the middle of the natural environment. It is well made. And nothing about football. For which, as always, thank you very much.