California Parrot Project They Prefer Roosts Closer to Their Nest Yellow-Chevroned Parakeets Tend to Pasadena Audubon Society Ing Locations
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market. When spring comes, the roost Mitred Parakeet Aratinga mitrata, ing flocks decrease in size, but spread Red-masked Parakeet Aratinga ery The out in area, ranging from Arcadia to thogenys, White-eyed Parakeet western Pasadena. The roost flock Aratinga leucophthalmus, Blue California breaks up into smaller and smaller crowned Parakeet A ratinga acuticau flocks because the parrots are tending data, and Black-hooded Parakeet Parrot Project to choose to roost in newly leafed-out Nandayus nenday are the "conure" deciduous trees, such as Western sized parrots. They are present in the Sycamore Platanus racemosa, Sweet Researching Parrots in the Wilds eastern and far southwestern portions Gum Liquidambar strycaflua, and of the valley. Yellow-chevroned of California's Suburban Jungles Silver Maple Acer sacchannum. Parakeets Brotogeris chiriri and Rose Parrots are also in smaller roost flocks ringed. Parakeets Psittacula krameri by Karen T. Mabb in the spring and sumn1er because are also found throughout the area. The California Parrot Project they prefer roosts closer to their nest Yellow-chevroned Parakeets tend to Pasadena Audubon Society ing locations. Parrot chicks reach their he found in botanic gardens (e.g. peak in September, making up over Huntington Library and Los Angeles 100/0 of the flock (roughly equivalent to County Arboretum) because of their stir and murmurs ... as the over 50 chicks in a flock of 500). dependency on Silk Floss Chorisia spe first rays of the sunrise gen We categorize the free-flying parrots ciosa trees as a food source. A flock of A tly kiss the tops of towering into five Inajor groups: "alnazon"-type, less than 20 Rose-ringed Parakeets is eucalyptus .. an explosive cacophony "conure"-type, Rose-ringed Parakeet often present in the Amazona roost. of green squawking birds with wings type, Brotogeris-type, and "other" Parrots are sustained and thriving aflutter as they exit the roost for their (lnacaws, cockatoos, cockatiels, bud due to the prevalence of exotic planti daily foraging foray. Eucalyptus - gies, etc.). The majority of Amazona ngs, especially fruit trees and street Australia? No. Green squawking birds are Red-crowned Amazona viridige trees. When conSidering parrots as suc - Mexico, Central and South America? nalis and Lilac-crowned A.finschi par cessful urban colonizers, i~ is ilnportant No. This is a scene witnessed every rots, but small numbers of Blue-front to consider cities as habitat. There are Inorning in Temple City and Arcadia, ed Parrot A. aestiva, Red-lored Parrot many common characteristics among right in the confines of the lush forests A. autumnalis, White-fronted Parrot A. city habitats. Most cities contain natur-. of street and backyard trees, suburban albifi''Ons, and Yellow-headed Parrot A. al waterways like creeks, rivers, etc. Los Angeles, California, USA. oratrix have been documented as Often these waterways are human Many urbanized and suburbanized breeding, too. altered into concrete washes, flood areas around the world that are already home to many introduced:8 species, such as House Sparrow Passer ~ I- domesticus, European Starling Stumus ~ vulgaris, Spotted Dove Streptopelia ~ chinensis, and Rock Dove Columba ~o livia, have become faced with a new &. invader - parrots. In the San Gabriel Valley, which is where Pasadena is located, parrots have flourished, estab- 'lishing self-sustaining populations, with reproduction occurring in the wild, well outside of captivity. The exact location of the parrot roost, where they sleep for the night, changes with the change in season. In the winter, parrots converge nightly on one roost location, eaSily numbering over 1200 individuals and settle on broadleaf evergreen trees, such as eucalyptus, oak, and fig, since there are not many choices for suitable roost trees. An especially interesting winter roost site is in a stand of Indian Laurel Fig Ficus microcarpa trees in the Blue-crowned Parakeets (or Conures), Aratinga acuticauda, perching in English Walnut trees brightly-lit parking lot of a busy super- in southern California. 30 January/February 2001 {J the health of the tree and destroys the ~ ~ cavity forever, rendering it useless for a.: ~ parrots and, more importantly, for ! native animal species . .0 -§ As beautiful and charming as par- -&. rots are, we must not let that cloud us into taking light the threat they pose. Should parrots move out of the city and invade wild land, such as sycamore and oak canyons, they CQuld exert serious competitive pressure on native species. These native species populations already suffer under the pressure of increased urban- and sub urbanization. As areas undergo this transformation into .urban-sprawl, and as the trees in these neighborhoods grow into "mature fore t," we can expect that it becomes more common to see free-flying parrots established in other city areas in addition to Los Angeles County, or even California. Two Mitred Parakeets (or Conures), Aratinga mitrata, eating Brazilian Pepper, Scrunus spp. For more information visit: http://parrotproject.org control channels, debris basins, and attempting to determine the factors that Karen started working on Parrot Project in reservoirs. Natural habitat is often lead to successful colonization by ana 1995 while a student at California State entirely replaced with exotic vegeta lyzing coml11unity structure and habitat. University, Long Beach, and is joined by (and tion, which is generally clumped into Perhaps this information could be could not po sibly do without) Natural groves and stands due to both home applied to assist conservation in History Mu eum of Los Angeles County owner and city planning preference endemic areas. Likewise, we are ornithologist Kimball L. Garrett and California for particular species'. The well researching th extent of pressure these State Polytechnic University, Pomona, biolo groolned city has little under-story and parrots are exeI1ing on native anil11ais, gy graduate student Melanie A. Stalder. tr es are pruned frequently. Backyard especially native cavity-nesting birds .. Karen is now a student at California State fruit trees and remnant orchards are I hear all of the time how people Polytechnic University, Pomona. Parrot often abundant and provide a source would love to catch one of these par Project is affiliated with the Natural History . of food for many types of animals. rots. It takes a ceI1ain kind of person to. Museum of Los Angeles County and Cities have structures such as build even put up with a tame parrot (in my California State Polytechnic University, ings, power lines, power poles, radio opinion: (1) one who is hard of hear Pomona and operates in cooperation with towers, and highways, which act as ing, (2) etelnally patient, and (3) has no Pasadena Audubon Society (who handles all harriers to animal movements and fear of lOSing beak-sized chunks of flesh inquiries and donations). Parrot Project is also sources of mortality, but are also uti and/ or those unnecessary fingers). Wild as ociated with Dr. Walter Piper of Chapman lized as nest sites, roosts, cover frol11 pan-ots do not make good pets. Many University, and Alison Sheehey of Kern predators, and perches for predators. of the wild parrots are out there in the Audubon Society . •:. Alnong our research priorities is to first place because their owners could develop a 111ethod to accurately esti not stand them and threw them out of mate the size of this population and to the nearest window, despite the hun assess its rate of growth. We are also dreds of dollars they spent on them. Avicultu,ral SOciety~~. ~; _ interested in the frequency of inter They are messy, noisy, and these wild of Amen ca . ,/ ~~,.~ hreeding hetween closely related parrots can carry many diseases and Founded in 1927 ~~ :. congeners (Mitred Parakeet/ Red parasites. I also hear rumors of people The ASA welcomes new members and masked Parakeet, Red-crowned cutting into nest cavities and taking publishes the ASA Bulletin six times a year Parrot/ Lilac-crowned Parrot, White chicks. The destruction of nest cavities with articles on all aspects of aviculture. For membership and information winged Parakeet Brotogeris versi for the purpose of harvesting chicks is contact: ASA c/o Helen Hanson col u r u s / Yellow - c h e v ron e d one of the reasons parrot populations P.O. Box 5516, Riverside, CA 92517 Parakeet), which are geographically are in such peril in areas where they are Yearly dues $2 5 separated in their native areas. We are enden1ic. Cutting open cavities affects Overseas members add $5 postJge. U.S.funds only. the afa WATCHBIRD 31 .