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A decision to allow parakeets to be shot or captured to reduce their numbers in and around London has been attacked as “racist” by wildlife experts.
The London Wildlife Trust says there is “little evidence” that the bright green birds are causing a problem sufficient to justify their culling. It added that the birds — which come from the Himalayas — were “as British as curry” and they represented London's cultural and historical diversity.
Allowing a cull was “misguided” and placed other birds of similar appearance — such as the green woodpecker — at risk of being shot by mistake, it added. The wildlife trust, which also objected to an easing of restrictions on the Canada goose, said there was “no evidence that either species is having an adverse impact on native bird populations or natural habitats in London or elsewhere in Britain”.
Mathew Frith, deputy chief executive of London Wildlife Trust, told the Standard: “The evidence is scant, and our view is that there are already existing licence arrangements that can be used if parakeets are damaging cherry trees, for example, in a farmer's orchard.”
Natural England yesterday announced that from January it would relax the rules protecting the birds, which have been blamed for destroying crops and bullying smaller native species.
Owners or occupiers of land would be permitted to humanely kill ring-neck parakeets that are causing a problem, trap them in a cage or destroy their eggs.
Matthew Heydon, Natural England's licensing expert, said one farmer in Cobham had lost enough grapes in a day to make 3,000 bottles of wine.
“If you left a flock of several hundred parakeets in a vineyard for a day, you would probably have no crop left,” he said.
Reader views (29)
I disagree with the "racist" terminology in this context, but I believe they're trying suggest that the parakeet is not being given a fair evaluation in the context of all species in the UK. Surely there's other methods to controlling their numbers or removing them that doesn't involve killing them? If local authorities did it, at least you know they followed a process.
What I'm worried about is people like Mark, who seem to take delight in the killing of birds, especially one as special as this parakeet. I'm pretty sure you'd be wetting your tongue to shoot people if that suddenly became legal and licensed.
- Ahmed, London
"as British as curry" experts say. How very PC. Curry is and will remain an asian dish, suited to their climes but adopted in this country with gusto. What next - chicken and rice and peas as the 'national dish' ? right on. As for the parakeets it's a bit late to try and contain the foreign influx when we're already knee deep in grey squirrels, Canada geese, Japanese bindknot and crayfish.
- Squiz, Islington
When all else fails bring out the sex and race cards. To say that this policy is racist is wrong and stupid. All it does is open attempts at equality to ridicule and makes real progress in this area more difficult.
If you do not agree with this policy, use sensible, considered arguments. Using the race card in this instance just lessens and undermines your position.
- Very Very Angry At Paying Tax For Mp'S Expeses, Home Counties
Oh dear, the lefties are using one of their favourite terms again, however they have taken too far this time; idiots! Are the bird killers "Nazis" too?
- Brandon Thomas, SW7
Isn't the use of the word racist wrong in this context? Parakeets aren't a race (of human). Although I can understand the use to try and be as emotive as possible.
However it falls a bit flat (a) because the word racist is being overused and people now dismiss it and (b) it's just plain wrong in this context.
I'm sure someone will call me racist for saying the word racist has no real meaning any more thanks to its overuse.
- Delphius1, Portsmouth
Personally I don't care much for these birds. It's just the element of glee that some of the contributors here have in killing wildlife that I find disturbing. Probably the sort of people who were bullied at school and tortured animals.
As a meat eater I don't whoop up and down everytime I tuck into a bacon sarnie.
- Dc, london
No need to shoot them ... the cat eats them. Good girl!
- Paul, London
Dave, Bexley: well spotted that I live in France - and that of course invalidates the view of professional British conservationists who have dedicated their lives to studying and protecting British Wildlife. It is they who have decided the parakeets are impacting on native wild life, not me. Personally I have never seen anyone here shoot a bird and I have an extraordinary range of species in my garden - many of which I have not seen in the UK since the 1980s: where have you seen the French shooting anything that flies, exactly? Or was that a prejudice too . . . ?
My father's garden in the South East of England had a large variety of birds 15 years ago, which as an ornathologist delighted him. Then loads of magpies turned up and they all vanished: from an assortment of bullfinches, blue-tits, great-tits, nut-hatches, thrushes, starlings, sparrows, black-birds, robins and a wren, he is now down to one robin and has acquired about 20 magpies: the garden is in open countryside, near everything a bird could need to thrive. These parakeets are merely being given the same status as magpies, which means that IF they are causing a problem they can be shot. It is plain stupid to base a decision about the balance of the natural ecosystem based on which animals look pretty. Fear not real bird-lovers: all these species are very much alive and well outside the UK, though that may in part be due to certain pesticides used in the UK being illegal here because they harm bees.
- Roz, France
In south west london there are thousands of these birds. Those of you who think they are "luvvly" would not be saying that when at 4.30am, or whenever the sun starts to come up, there are a couple of thousand of these pests sqawking very loudly in the trees waking you up as you can't really keep the windows closed on warm nights. Eventually the council had to chop down a dozen mature trees because the residents around these could no longer put up with the noise.
- Brian, London
Quite right Roz.
So many people have this absurd, over-romanticized, Disneyesque view of wildlife and nature it's almost surreal.
I sincerely hope that everyone here who criticised Mark is a full-blown vegan who eschews wearing leather clothing, else you are hypocrites. Meat comes from animals, not Tesco's.
I myself ate fish for lunch, had chicken for dinner, and plan on eating some pig tomorrow - all whilst wearing my cow-skin shoes.
Shoot some of the disease-infested, aggressive, native wildlife slaughtering vermin for me Mark!
- John, London
Keep shooting and trapping Mark. I have lost count of the number of tree rats that I have shot drowned and trapped. Bring on the pesky parrots. Vermin are vermin. Pity some open their mouths.
- Macdangler, Wimbledon London
We've had parakeets living in the area for years and they're less of a problem than the wood pigeons. I've heard some people moan that they're noisy and pollute where they live - and some of these people live near Heathrow Airport! I get parakeets in my garden, along with robins, goldfinches, blue tits, great tits, and starlings. And I haven't seen one shred of evidence that they're to blame for the demise of the sparrow population either.
- Wayne, Shepperton, Middlesex
Let's get a bit of science and perspective in here shall we? Alien species, however cute and cuddly and however they were introduced upset the ecosystem into which they are introduced. It may be subtle but it happens. Seen a red squirrel recently? No thought not... Cray fish being ousted by American signal cray fish, Mink outcompeting otters, etc, etc. Our indigenous species are already under enough pressure so having to compete for food and breeding space with an introduced species with no natural preditors will further speed up their decline. I for one will be adding them to my list of targets along with the greys squirrels that have been successfully controlled to the benefit of breeding birds in the woodlands where I shoot. Oh and for the record, I trained as an environmental biologist so I have some knowledge of what I'm talking about.
- Richard, South London
So gulls, crows and magpies are deemed to be so dangerous that the gun-toting public can use them for target practice. The Canada goose that has migrated here for hundreds of years and can be seen on any river or lake in the country (in is regularly featured in BBC Springwatch) is considered too foreign and bullying to survive, despite millions of children try to poison then with slices of white bread.
And finally parakeets that do not real harm and are far less intimidating to smaller birds than pigeons and really are a joy to see and hear - get the order of the bullet.
This when the EU are bringing major fines to countries like Malta (many millions of Euros to such a small country) where shooting birdlife is a part of daily routine.
- Graham, Reading, England
A pest is a pest. It is as simple as that. Being cute pests doesn't change it either. I'm no Vegan/save the whale/hoarding cat lover/animal lib activist, but I would not do any killing myself - but that doesn't mean there's no need for culling of these birds that are NOT indigenous to the UK and therefore DO intefere, as in all such cases historically, with the local bird and animal life.
- Rogan, Irving
Roz, parakeets, sparrows, robins and thrushes all thrive in our area. If parakeets massacred sparrows, you wouldn't see sparrows in South America, would you? Of course, in France, they shoot anything that flies, don't they?
- Dave, Bexley
Roz,
You are spot on. The smaller indigenous birds are much rarer than they were a few years back. The only things I have seen able to compete with the Parakeets are Wood Pigeons.
Carl,
I am somebody who uses a small caliber weapon to occasionally kill declared pests who are being a nuisance on my property; I am not like the unbalanced morons half a mile down the road who will shot or stab somebody just because they looked at them funny.
However nice and pretty these birds are they are pests!
Nigel,
So when the head of Natural England said "there was a “vital” need to control exotic and non-native species.
“Non-native species are a major threat to global biodiversity and it is important that licences can operate as an effective tool in helping to tackle the problem,” it was obviously an euphemism for something much more sinister and obviously Natural England needs to be investigated!
- Mark, South-East London
I agree, this Mark is exactly the sort of person who should not be allowed to hold any form of weapon, even an air rifle.
- Carl, London
What a bunch of Townies! If they are like grey squirrels, which eat the live young of native birds, you probably won't see them 'bullying' other animals, you will just wake up one day and say to your neighbours 'we don't see many sparrows, robins or thrushes these days, do we?!'
It's like those animal-liberation morons who released all the mink from a mink farm into the wild in the West Country so that they could completely dessimate all the native mammals along all the riverbanks because they have no natural predator.
'But they look pretty!' *Doh!*
- Roz, France
I wonder how many of these immigrant-bird haters are also paid up members of the BNP?
- Nigel, London
Mark, you are a miserable mooron for first of all owning a rifle and secondly for not appreciating such a beautful bird. They are here in the first place due to being captured from the wild. There are loads in my garden and they have so much beauty and elegance. Mark you are a pratt and all those who find them a nuisance need to get a life. They are a pleasure to have around and my neighbour and I are always out admiring their beauty. They should not be allowed to be killed.
- Wendy Keelan, Streatham, London
DC London,
What me? I've been waging war against the Grey Squirrel for years and cannot tell you how many I've quite legally dispatched. Now for these pesky Parakets.
I've been shooting for about thirty-five years now (since the age of ten) and have never shoot anything other than designated pests. I'm exactly the sort of person you would want owning a weapon!
- Mark, South-East London
Mark,
Well I live in Barnes and the Parakeets are fine here maybe yours in South East London are not so well bred !
- Linda Cliff, London
Mark
Certainly anyone with your mentality should not be in posession of any firearm or weapon.
- Dc, London
I understand Canada Goose is quite tasty, and with open season, a good free meal!
Probably won't eat the parakeets - not too much meat on them - but always worth a go.....
- Rich, Snalbans
Where can I buy a trap to capture and kill them? In the summer they arrive in my garden at 4:30am waking the neighbourhood. I fancy some Canada Goose for the table too!
- Mark, London
Linda,
They certainly don't interact with the smaller indigenous birds that are in my garden. We have a colony of around twenty that fly between our local park and mine, and my neighbours gardens. The novelty wore off very quickly, particularly for anybody who hangs there washing out to dry!
1 Jan is hunting season as far as I'm concerned!
- Mark, South-East London
Mark you stupid man they are not a pain !They brighten up the day with there lovely bright colour and are very comical. What is wrong with this world I have seen no bullying from these birds they interact with no problems. They come into my garden and are a lovely sight it seems that anything you dont like just go and kill it makes me sick !
- Linda Cliff, London
Yippeeee! Where's my BSA Scorpion?
We have loads of them in our back garden and local park, they are a complete pain.
- Mark, South-East London
