May 28, 2004
Feral Argentinian Monk Parakeets on the Chicago Southside
Legend has it these longtime Hyde Parkers protected a Mayor's tenure in office. The parakeets even had their own bodyguards. To me, they are the Hyde Park Wind-Up Birds. When I walk to work in the morning and hear them in their nests, I know impending doom will soon descend upon me.
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They're doomladen, alright. Oh. Oh. Scary. Disturbing. Green with sharp pointy beaks. Pointy bird, oh pointy pointy, etc. They're gonna spread across the country like a damn plague, boyo. aaaaaaargh! I just thought I'd add a comment to your post cos it looked so lonely. It was good, btw. Interesting. I'd heard of 'em before but it was good to see all those links together like that. I think parrots are nize. They are noisy, and they do shit a lot, and they can strip Aunt Betty's prize fig tree in half an hour, but I like them anyway. I'm simple like that. I think the US is better off with parrots.
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southsiders? white sox fans! bah!
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Sidedish, please don't tell me you're a Cubbie! Myself, my favorite bird is the Cardinal.
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Messy nesters, aren't they? They'd be colorful to watch though. So what happens if they learn to speak? Would you get a bunch of 'keets going, "Yo, Bro, wassup?" in a Chicago accent?
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These parrots (Monks or Quakers) are suceeding in what's not a hospitable climate because they build nests in colonies or 'apartments', which can attain a large size. They're about twelve inches or so from head to tail, larger than the familiar small budgie or parakeet. They are noisy -- and have been banned in many places, alas. Why? Because formerly, the eastern US had a native parrot, the Carolina parakeet, which was about this same size; it seems possible the niche the colourful Carolina parakeet filled still exists, so many states in the US are fearful of the Monk/Quaker parrot becoming naturalized and spreading to the detriment of agriculture. The Carolina parakeet became extinct about the same time as the no less extinct American passenger pigeon.