As long as we're talking about exotic birds, here's what our back garden bird feeder is looking like lately. We've gone back to the suet balls and the parakeets are thrilled. You wouldn't know it, though, because they're always in a bad mood. I've never seen such squabbly birds.
As I've written before, these are ring-necked parakeets native to India. Large populations of them have become established in the wild in the UK, particularly around London.
And here's a little video, because still photos can't quite capture the cacaphony:
(You wouldn't know it, but inserting that video was a challenge. YouTube insisted on calling it a "short," which apparently means I don't get an embed code. Instead I'm given a button to automatically insert it into Blogger, but that creates a whole new post. So I had to do that, copy the code, insert it here, and erase that new post. What a pain. Gods at Google, if you are listening: I JUST WANT AN EMBED CODE!)
Anyway, I hope you appreciate the crazy parakeets. Mrs. Russia doesn't like them because they're so noisy. The Russians have never asked, but I get the impression they'd rather we not feed parakeets. I like them in small doses but I don't like their tendency to completely monopolize the bird feeder. We also get robins and starlings (also noisy) and magpies and occasionally a woodpecker, but only when the parakeets have eaten their fill.
Yesterday Dave and I had an urban outing. We went to Pierre Victoire for lunch and then to the The Photographer's Gallery, to see their exhibit of vintage queer photography. Many of the pictures were what we'd call physique photography, bodybuilders and that kind of thing -- but I suppose it was basically the porn of its day. It was interesting to tread that line, admiring the photography for its artistic technique but knowing the customers bought it to admire the men. (I admired the men too, I admit it.) And wouldn't you know, I somehow managed to leave my glasses at home -- and many of the images were pretty small, almost like contact sheets.
Who goes to a photography exhibit without their glasses?
Me, that's who.
I am pleased that the parakeets around here tend to stay nearer the river ( River Lea in Batford... 5 mins walk away) I don't want the noisy things crowding my bird feeders!!
ReplyDeleteSuch beautiful birds. Your photos are amazing. I love the video and seeing the third, less childish, parakeet left behind to enjoy the suet. Funny how Mrs. Russia doesn't like the noise of the parakeets, but doesn't give a second thought to daily construction noise. Payback's a bitch.
ReplyDeleteThat's the pits about the glasses... I've done it too.
Who goes to a photography exhibit without their glasses?
ReplyDeleteSomeone with early onset dementia?
As for the parakeets, they are another indictment of stupid humans who have affected nature in many bad and thoughtless ways. Though I thoroughly disapprove of badger culls, I would be very much in favour of reducing parakeet numbers. They make existence difficult for native birds.
Thankfully, we don't have parakeets round here (yet?).
ReplyDeleteHow exotic to have birds like that around your feeder. Here if I get a bluebird or robin I'm excited.
ReplyDeleteI guess the proper analogy would be for me to go on a genealogy research trip and leave my glasses behind. I can't imagine doing so or the amount of behind kicking I would be doing to myself had I forgot them.
The second photo with flapping wings is impressive.
ReplyDeleteI am not looking forward to uploading my next YouTube video.
I really like vintage gay photography. It can be so stylish and preferable to looking at catalogue men's underwear ads with your imagination set at 'fervent' level.
They are indeed bitchy little birds, aren't they? But they are so pretty. As invasive species often are.
ReplyDeleteSteve! Don't forget your glasses when go to a photography exhibit! Especially one that requires such careful and close examination.
My goodness.
parakeets at your bird feeder, grackles at mine. the difference is there is nothing charming about grackles.
ReplyDeleteAges since we even had any birds. They're all busy in nearby trees, plenty of berries and bugs there.
ReplyDeleteImagine not having your glasses on such a vital trip! What next..
What a group of cranky old men! (Yes, I've assigned gender to them.) Ha!
ReplyDeleteI'm PRETTY sure I wouldn't forget my glasses, but not 100% sure. I can see me in the exhibit tapping my phone three times to pull up the magnifying feature. Ha!
Do you feed the birds all year? I think your garden and the area parks has lots of natural things for the birds to eat so maybe you don't always need to have your feeder out there? I gave up on bird feeders when the squirrels ate everything. Even my hummingbird feeder mostly attracted wasps so I took it down.
ReplyDeleteI love the parakeets. They remind me how much I miss the lovebirds that used to eat and squabble in my back yard. I enjoyed watching them.
ReplyDeleteThe parakeets are beautiful, too bad that they are a hungry bit of a nuisance too. We used to feed birds when we lived on the Olympic Peninsula in Washington. We loved all the birds that the feeder attracted, but sometimes it attracted other critters we were not so happy about.
ReplyDeleteBummer about forgetting your glasses at the The Photographer's Gallery.
Who gives a shit what Mrs. Russia thinks with all the noise they make? When I moved here in 2009 I rarely saw or heard a bird because of the feral cats. For several years now, some people have been trapping the feral cats and having them fixed and not as many people are leaving food out for them (in fact, it's illegal now to feed them except on your own property). With the diminishing population of cats, the birds are returning. They are lovely.
ReplyDeleteLove,
Janie
They're like hummingbirds. If they could get along, they could all eat. But nooooo, they must squabble. I love seeing those birds.
ReplyDeleteThe parakeets must be hardier than I thought to survive an English winter. We had some indoor ones and I was happy when they died; don't tell my kids. I would like an exhibit of men in kilts or motorcycle cops in those pants with tall black boots. Weird, I know. :)
ReplyDeleteLovely photos! We have those green invasive pests here in Amsterdam too. Ours are noisy, very loud and quite aggressive. The old people them in my area has kindly but insistently been urged not to feed them.
ReplyDeleteThose old muscle photos were definitely the porn of the day!
ReplyDeleteMaybe tell the Russians that the birds are doing construction in the garden and tell them you're sorry for the noise. Paybacks?
I enjoyed the video, so thank you for making the effort to post it! I get lots of fun birds on our feeders, but I think some of the meanest and pushiest are the female Cardinals. Hummingbirds can be rather mean, too.
ReplyDeleteBe grateful you don't get swarms of sulphur crested cockatoos. Those birds will destroy anything made of wood. Trees, balconies, window frames. And the noise they make sounds like something from the depths of hell.
ReplyDeleteThe second photo is sublime
ReplyDeleteWell, I can tell you I've gone to work without my work glasses (a combination of reading and computer distances), and I've done it more than once. So don't feel bad :)
ReplyDeleteAs others have noted, It's tewwibbly unfawtunate that the parakeets bother Mrs. Construction upstairs :D
That looks an excellent show, loved the interview and , in my heart I am a gay man except for the penis part...I do appreciated all of the photos that were offered in the blurb to advertise the show. Delicious!
ReplyDeleteThe ring neck parakeets look like butlers.
Parakeets -- that's something you will NEVER see at my bird feeder here in Michigan! I wish I did...
ReplyDeleteYou need that magnifying app for your phone!
I'm not the most technologically adept, but it seems like uploading videos of less than a minute in length automatically turns them into shorts. Grrr, No idea on embed codes.
ReplyDeleteThose are pretty spectacular parakeets! But I like the glimpses you've given us of your native birds even better.
Chris from Boise
Frances: They really do TAKE OVER a bird feeder.
ReplyDeleteMitchell: I thought the same -- like she's one to complain about noise!
YP: I think there have been culls in the past, but apparently these things are very efficient reproducers! I wouldn't doubt the early onset dementia at all.
Tasker: Maybe it's too chilly where you are. I'm not sure how far north they can go.
Ed: Yeah, it's just funny (and frustrating) to go to something that requires good vision and leave behind your eyes!
Andrew: I think YouTube only did that to me because it was a short, vertical video and they're trying to capture the TikTok crowd.
Ms Moon: I KNOW! What was I thinking?!?!
Ellen: Yes, your grackle stories reminded me of these parakeets!
Boud: Well, that's probably good. I bet they eat healthier if they're out in the wild.
Bug: You know, I didn't even THINK of using my phone. Dave mentioned it after we left, and I said, "Why didn't you suggest that before?!"
Ellen D: We feed them sort of on-and-off, not continuously. I'm only doing it now because I'm assuming they'll have babies to feed.
Sharon: Your lovebirds are so beautiful! I guess our parakeets are too but they're so common I've stopped really seeing them.
Robin: Yeah, that's definitely a concern with bird feeders. You may remember we had some rats show up in the garden a couple of years ago, no doubt drawn by the feeders. So we try to stay vigilant.
Janie: My brother had a terrible feral cat problem at his first house in Jacksonville. I hope it's better now.
Allison: It's just like people! We could work together, but we seem to love to fight each other!
Margaret: You should come to London and check out this show! :) (No, it's way too small to warrant an overseas visit.)
VikingGirl: I didn't know they were in Amsterdam too! I wouldn't feed them, except that would mean not feeding ANY of the birds. (Which I suppose is an option.)
Bob: I could tell them we've HIRED the parakeets to provide acoustic accompaniment to their hammers and saws!
Kelly: Do you have starlings? They love to squabble at the feeder too.
Caro: See, from this great distance, a swarm of sulphur-crested cockatoos sounds like it would be amazing! But I'm sure it's not.
John: They were giving me lots of good action shots.
Jenny-O: Yeah, that's bad too. I've done the same. And I wind up sitting about four feet from my computer screen so I can read it. LOL
Linda Sue: I was especially struck by a roll of old negatives purchased at the Portobello Market that contained nude and semi-nude pictures of young men. I wonder if any of those guys are still alive and know they're on display at a museum in London?
Chris: Oh, yeah, maybe that's it. I thought maybe it was the verticality. Or maybe it's both?
Jeanie: Sorry, I missed your comment -- it was in spam! Yes, I do need that magnifying app. Or I could have taken a photo and expanded it, I suppose. Parakeets would definitely not survive a Michigan winter!
ReplyDelete