This gnarly-looking parakeet showed up on our bird feeder yesterday. Dave saw it first and said, "That parakeet is filthy!" It's only when we looked closer that we realized it wasn't dirty, but was instead missing patches of feathers.
I think we're seeing an annual or biennial molt, when the bird loses its old feathers and grows new ones. For a while in between it looks pretty awful and apparently can be quite cranky. It surely must not feel good to have spiky pinfeathers coming through your exposed skin.
The funny thing is, you'd think they'd all be molting at the same time, but this is the only one we've seen looking this bad. Maybe the others are on a slightly different schedule.
I did some household projects yesterday, mostly cleaning, and trimming the monster on the patio. I collected a bag full of garden waste. (Look how open our patio looks in that linked post -- we have so many plants now, and big ones, that we can barely move around out there!)
I also sealed our green cherry tomatoes in a paper bag with an apple, in the hopes that at least some of them will ripen. (JayCee mentioned using a banana for this purpose; apparently apples have the same effect because they both exude ethylene gas, which promotes ripening.) I have no idea how long I'm supposed to leave them in there, but maybe I'll check back in a week or so. Eventually I'm going to want to eat that apple.
Today our property managers are supposed to visit the flat for "an interim visit report." I have no idea what the heck that's supposed to mean, especially since we just had our annual inspection two months ago. I suspect the managers, or possibly the landlords, want a look at a couple of things they've talked about fixing. Fortunately we don't need to be here.
Dave has parent/teacher conferences today and tomorrow. I'm not sure what I'm going to do, since there won't be many kids around -- maybe more book weeding. Some of you expressed surprise that we're already going on a break this week (after conferences), given that the kids just came back to school relatively recently. We're on a slightly different schedule from the British schools, so our mid-term breaks come a bit earlier.
I don't know anything specific about parakeets, but if they have social structures like hens and other birds, it might be a case of the one you saw being the last in the pecking order, and others of his/her flock being responsible of the featherless patches. I hope not!
ReplyDeleteHere, after the summer break school has started in the second week of September, and before October is over, they break up again for a week. I'll notice that mostly by how pleasantly empty the platforms and the trains on my way to work will be.
Yeah, I hope the poor guy (or girl) isn't being bullied THAT badly! I think British schools go on half-term next week.
DeletePoor parakeet! If he's a regular visitor you can keep monitoring his condition and see how he progresses.
ReplyDeleteI check my banana / tomato bag every couple of days and replace the banana with a fresh one once it shows signs of becoming overripe. Some of the tomatoes are quite slow to turn red but they get there eventually.
I'll keep an eye out and see if he/she comes back.
DeleteI hope you have tidied up your flat before the interim inspection and hidden away all the seedy magazines and books you enjoy but never mention within the bounds of this blog. At work you just should wait till BBW tells you what to do - there will probably be just two words.
ReplyDeleteHa! Our working relationship isn't THAT bad!
DeleteDo people in London complain about these 'foreign' parakeet, or have they settled in as incomers. Given the uprisings about foreign plants invading the countryside, the parakeets seem spotless in their behaviour ;)
ReplyDeleteNow this made me laugh out loud, thelma!
DeleteHa! I actually HAVE heard complaints about them -- in fact there's been talk of culling them because they take habitat away from woodpeckers and other birds, and they are spreading wildly.
DeleteI'm waiting patiently for the parakeets to reach Berkshire. I'm sure it will happen eventually.
ReplyDeleteI'm sure too. I'm surprised they're not there already!
DeleteI always find it amazing that parakeets exist "in the wild" in London!
ReplyDeleteIt's a little crazy!
DeleteAs we say here in horse country, that parakeet looks like he's been rode hard and put away wet.
ReplyDeleteHa! That is exactly what it looks like.
DeleteWhen my hens molted they quit laying eggs. It must take a great deal of energy to replace all those feathers.
ReplyDeleteI can see why the birds get irritable, absolutely.
DeleteSeems to be a good science fiction book could be written about humans if we molted once a year and shed the outer layer of skin off. Even better if it happened toward the end of October around Halloween/Day of the Dead!
ReplyDeleteThere you go -- the seeds of the great American horror novel!
DeleteThe tomatoes should ripen. They like to be in the dark as well.
ReplyDeletePoor parakeet, I'd be grumpy too.
They're in a paper bag, so pretty dark, though they are sitting out on the counter.
DeleteI'm surprised I never see the songbirds around here molting.
ReplyDeleteDo the property managers let themselves into your flat for this inspection?
We have to give them permission, but yes, they can let themselves in. They have keys.
DeleteAs far as ripening tomatoes go, I just leave them on a shelf downstairs in the dark.
ReplyDeleteWe don't have a downstairs, so there is no truly dark place! (Well, maybe a closet.)
DeleteOh goodness, that parrot does look a bit ragged.
ReplyDeletePoor thing!
DeleteI've never seen a bird molting. The poor bird looks ill without feathers and color.
ReplyDeleteOur schools have a weekly teacher skill development/planning day. It is either a half or full day. The kids love the time off.
We have occasional Professional Development days, usually before a holiday, but we don't do planning days. I guess the expectation is that teachers will do that on their own time.
DeleteI'm parakeet-ignorant so glad to hear that this is molting and not a disease. It will be nice to have a quiet day at the library. I love the idea of an early break. We never had a midterm break when I was in school. (Also a good reminder on traveling in UK in October! We always thought that would be a quiet time, but if you hit break at an attraction, oops!)
ReplyDeleteWell, I THINK it's molting, but I am no expert! Yeah, we never had an October break when I was in school either.
DeleteGood luck with the inspection, just keep a cool head and look bored.
ReplyDeleteThis morning we watched two green parakeets attempting to demolish the lid of the bird feeder - so far without success but no doubt, they are now discussing their methods and will be back.
Well, I will have a cool head because I'm not the least bit stressed about it. We have nothing to hide and the house is as clean as it ever gets.
DeleteI hope your day wasn't too boring - that drives me crazy. I like to be just the right amount of busy (just like I want the temp to be just so. So picky! Ha!).
ReplyDeleteThey can be quite boring during these slow periods. UGH
DeleteI didn’t know that about ripening tomatoes. Am I right to assume it’s supposed to work for all tomatoes? I wouldn’t waste a banana, however. My favorite. Also curious to know what the inspection is for. Maybe they plan to install a hot tub. I think parakeets living free molt 2 or three times a year. No time to look it up, though, I’ve got laundry waiting on the roof and it’s getting dark1
ReplyDeleteYou were moving so fast you couldn't even punctuate that last sentence! LOL
DeleteYeah, I read that molting happens once or twice a year for wild parakeets -- spring and/or fall.
I never had much luck with tomatoes although I didn't know about the banana/apple trick. It seems like they rotted before they ripened. Inspections always make me nervous although it sounds like it has nothing to do with how you're treating the flat. In my case before my younger daughter lived in my rental (I'm there a lot), a yearly inspection was vital. Even with that, there were issues, like smoking where they weren't supposed to, lawn care problems, destructive pets, etc.
ReplyDeleteAnd I'm sure nowadays some tenants do really terrible things, like turning the apartment into a grow house and that kind of thing!
DeleteI really hope that your inspection passes without incident. From your comments I have learnt quite a bit about the parakeets moulting. I was wondering the same as Thelma as to whether they are accepted now.
ReplyDeleteWendy (Wales)
I think they are generally accepted, certainly by the population at large, but I think the ecologists are quite concerned about their effects on native species.
DeleteI have never heard of putting apples or bananas in with tomatoes for ripening, as far as I know they will ripen by themselves unless they were picked too young. Cut one open and see if they have begun to set seeds.
ReplyDeleteSome of ours are quite young because I've taken out the entire plant!
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