Parakeet protection lifted
11 January 2010
Parakeets colonising swathes of southern England and becoming regular visitors in many public parks and gardens including RHS Wisley are no longer a protected species after rules obliging landowners to apply for a special licence to shoot them have been lifted.
Populations of monk and ring-necked parakeets, originally from India but now naturalised in the UK, have exploded over the last decade and now number in the tens of thousands. Their exotic bright-green plumage is now a common sight in RHS Garden Wisley, especially in autumn when they feed on apples in the fruit fields.
“They're attracted to the brightly-coloured fruit,” says fruit supervisor Alessandra Valsecchi. “They hang on the branches and peck at the fruits on the red side."
The level of damage is not however considered serious and the RHS has no plans to control parakeet numbers.
The Wisley vineyard, which began producing wine in 2006, has been left largely untouched by the parakeets although the vineyard at nearby Painshill Park is losing thousands of bottles of wine a year to the large flocks which descend on the vines as the grapes ripen. There are also concerns about the impact the parakeets may be having on local bird life by out-competing them for food and other resources.
From this month, however, vineyard owners and others for whom the parakeets pose a serious problem can control them in the same way as pigeons, crows and magpies, without having to apply for a special licence.
The move is an acknowledgement by Natural England, the authority which issues the licences, of what it says is the 'increasing impact' which non-native species are having on the environment. However, it emphasises that the new rules are not an excuse for a widespread cull of the birds, and it is still illegal to harm or disturb either monk or ring-necked parakeets without a very good reason.
Any gardeners needing further guidance can contact Natural England on 0845 601 4523 or email wildlife@naturalengland.org.uk