As regular CFZ-watchers will know, for some time Corinna has been doing a column for Animals & Men and a regular segment on On The Track... particularly about out-of-place birds and rare vagrants. There seem to be more and more bird stories from all over the world hitting the news these days so, to make room for them all - and to give them all equal and worthy coverage - she has set up this new blog to cover all things feathery and Fortean.

Monday, 11 August 2014

Wild parrots bring South American flair to Tarrant County city


by LAUREN ZAKALIK

Posted on July 25, 2014 at 11:02 PM

EVERMAN -- Ask just about anyone in Everman, and they can tell you exactly where the birds are.

"We have one in this pole right here, a pretty good-sized nest," said Michael Box, who runs Everman's Public Works Department.

But these aren't your garden-variety gulls or grackles; these are wild Quaker parrots that live in gargantuan nests. And no, they are definitely not indigenous to Tarrant County.

"They're a South American bird," Box said.

No one is quite sure how they landed in Everman decades ago; Box has heard a rumor that the birds were a couple's pets and either were released or escaped and started multiplying. Since the last time News 8 checked in on the birds five years ago, Box said their population has doubled.


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