Wildlife: Pretty Polly

Fascinating to watch as they perform screeching fly-bys, rose-ringed parakeets are taking our built up areas by storm. These bright green members of the parrot family have adapted quite well to city living and can — if you happen to have a garden with a fruit tree or two — make a real nuisance of themselves by pecking holes in every single piece of fruit on a tree and thus spoiling the entire crop. Usually about 40cm long, this particular species of parakeet has a rose coloured ring around its neck, the colour of which almost matches that of its very sharp beak. Found throughout the country, even in the Murree Hills during cold, snowy winters, these wild birds are often trapped by hunters who sell them in bird markets where there is a demand for them as household pets. Some people have made so much money from this business that they have now set up special breeding colonies of parakeets in huge enclosures, sealed with strong wire netting, so that they don't have to go to the trouble of catching them in the wilds. Parakeets do make good pets but are far more comfortable living in the wild where they are meant to be. In their natural state they make nests in holes in tree trunks but if they are living in 'civilisation', then they select all sorts of odd places in which to lay their eggs such as in the outer part of air conditioning units and ventilation systems. In the wild they eat fruits, seeds and the occasional bit of green plant material and play havoc in orchards and with agricultural crops such as wheat and sunflowers — the latter are cultivated for the sunflower oil industry. In cities and other built up areas they eat exactly the same kind of thing if they can find it along with any discarded bits of fruits and vegetables which happen to come their way. Some city dwellers are kind enough to hang out bunches of green chillies and coriander for them and these wily birds soon figure out exactly whom they can pester for a free meal. In the absence of trees, parakeets, like their competitors the pigeons, are quite happy to roost on the ledges of high rise buildings and are so noisy with their screeching and whistling that people get fed up of having them as neighbours very quickly indeed. For those who don't get many opportunities to visit the actual countryside, it can be an enjoyable experience to spend time watching parakeets in the city as they go about the business of surviving in an alien world of concrete and steel. If there are parakeets in your neighbourhood, you could try to make friends with them by offering them fresh fruits on a regular basis, but do please ask your parents' permission first as they might not want these rambunctious characters to start hanging around.