How the Rose-Ringed Parakeet Conquered the Western World

“Dad, what are those birds? I’ve never seen them before” I remember asking my dad when I was younger. We were outside having a barbecue and for the first time, I noticed several green birds flying overhead accompanied by a cacophony of sounds. I had never seen or heard them before, but suddenly there they were. Now, almost 15 years later, they are still there. When I was younger, I only thought about how beautiful they looked. Nowadays, although rose-ringed parakeet (Psittacula krameria) are seen as pests throughout Europe, I admire them for thriving in human dominated areas. But why are these birds so successful?

Urban climate

The rose-ringed parakeet (Psittacula krameria) is a medium-sized parrot originating in Africa and southern Asia. They can now be found all over the world because captive parakeets have managed to escape and start new colonies. Due to the warmer climates in their home range, they aren’t very well suited to survive in colder climates such as found across Europe (Strubbe & Matthysen, 2009). But even though the cold should be a large barrier for them, they seem to thrive in cities all over Europe! Very high human activity in and around urban areas creates what we call urban heat islands. First described by Luke Howard in the 19^th century, the urban heat island describes the increased temperatures in urban areas compared to their surroundings, creating an island of warmth. Although urban heat islands are generally seen as negative, especially to our health, rose-ringed parakeets manage to use it to their advantage when trying to survive colder climates. It gives them an edge and provides them with a perfect climate to not only survive but thrive.

Concrete opportunities

Of course, the urban heat island is not the only reason that these parakeets are thriving. It seems that human activity is also positively correlated with establishment success of the rose-ringed parakeets (Strubbe & Matthysen, 2009). Cities provide an incredible supply of food for them. By introducing a wide array of (mostly exotic) plant species such as flowers and fruit trees in parks and gardens, we are granting them an almost never-ending buffet that they can use throughout the year. Even during wintertime, they are not left without food, as they can be seen spending up to half of their feeding time at bird feeders we fill up to support our local fauna (Clergeau & Vernes, 2011).

Besides food availability, we also grant these birds great nesting opportunities and protection. Because rose-ringed parakeets are secondary cavity nesters, they need existing cavities to find a suitable nesting spot. Not only do cities provide an abundance of these spots, through preservation of older trees for their aesthetic value we increase the availability even further. Recently, rose-ringed parakeets even started nesting innovations, showing they can adapt and create their own cavities increasing their nesting options even further (Hernández-Brito et al., 2021). And as for protection? Most of their natural predators generally stay away from urban areas. Snakes are rarely found within cities and catching prey is too difficult for birds of prey in crowded urban areas (Møller, 2012). Foxes usually don’t lurk in these areas either and humans generally leave them alone. This leaves cats, corvids and squirrels as their main predators, two of which are only nest predators and are not a threat to adult birds.

Conclusion

Between the perfect opportunities granted by the concrete jungle and the interactions with humans, the rose-ringed parakeet has found an incredible niche within European cities. Making use of all the positives that cities have to offer, I feel like they more than solidified and deserve their spot in our urban ecosystem. And although they are thought of as unwelcome by some, I believe we should admire their perseverance and ingenuity and welcome them with open arms. Let’s enjoy these brightly feathered chatterboxes before another species inevitable takes their spot in the spotlight as the next thing to look out for.

References

Clergeau, P., & Vergnes, A. (2011). Bird feeders may sustain feral Rose‐ringed parakeets Psittacula krameri in temperate Europe. Wildlife Biology, 17(3), 248–252. https://doi.org/10.2981/09-092

Hernández-Brito, D., Tella, J. L., Blanco, G., & Carrete, M. (2021). Nesting innovations allow population growth in an invasive population of rose-ringed parakeets. Current Zoology, 68(6), 617–626. https://doi.org/10.1093/cz/zoab097

Møller, A. P. (2012). Urban areas as refuges from predators and flight distance of prey. Behavioral Ecology, 23(5), 1030–1035. https://doi.org/10.1093/beheco/ars067

Strubbe, D., & Matthysen, E. (2009). Establishment success of invasive ring‐necked and monk parakeets in Europe. Journal of Biogeography, 36(12), 2264–2278. https://doi.org/10.1111/j.1365-2699.2009.02177.x