Urban birds at Hull. 48. Ring-necked Parakeet

The Ring-necked Parakeet (also known as Rose-ringed Parakeet) is the only naturalised parrot species in the UK. A very distinctive bird for their loud calls and bright green plumage, it is unlikely to get confused with any native bird*. Ring-necked Parakeets are small parrots native from Pakistan, India, Nepal and Bangladesh, up to the foothills of the Himalayas. They have a long blue tail and a red bill. Adult males have a rosy and black ring around their necks nd a black bib (top photo). The long tail and narrow, pointy wings and straight flight are distinctive. 

Ring-necked parakeet feeding on garden apples by East Park, 15 October 2019. I've seen them eating maple seeds and apparently they are also fond of sweet chestnuts.

The UK population stems from captive birds which escaped or were released intentionally, most likely repeatedly over a period of time and in different places, as they were popular pet birds. The first breeding in the wild was reported in 1969 in Kent. Nowadays there are an estimated 12,000 pairs in the UK, and the population is still increasing and expanding in range. The bulk of the population is in Greater London and the South East, but there are now established in most main cities as far north as Glasgow. They are found near humans in parks, and large gardens in cities, towns and suburbs, where they might take advantage of bird feeding (or are fed on purpose), a range of bushes and trees that provide them with enough food year round and mature trees with cavities offering them nesting opportunities. They are sociable birds and are usually seen in pairs or small parties, and they roost communally in traditional roosts, where all the individuals of an area might gather in large numbers. 

My first parakeet in Hull, a lone adult male at East Park on a foggy day in December 2013.

A potential juvenile Ring-necked Parakeet, note the dark bill. East Park, 13/09/2022.

Status and distribution in Hull

Ring-necked parakeets are scarce resident birds in Hull. The first record in Hull is from the Bransholme Sewage Works on 4th May 1992, as reported by R.K. Broughton. My first one was at East Park in 2013, a lone bird that had been seen there for a while. East Park seems to be the first site they colonised, with the population increasingly growing. In 2025 a pair, apparently courting, was present. In June 2022, six individuals were seen flying to roost. At an early visit to East Park on 16th June 2023, 16 Ring-necked Parakeets were together in a flock, presumably after having roosted in the park. Roving singles or pairs flying over can be seen across the city, but regular sightings of multiple individuals have been reported in recent years at Kingswood (up to 5 individuals), and Noddle Hill area (up to 3).  Although there is no confirmed evidence of breeding - but see the potential juvenile above - the increasingly large flocks in several places indicates they must have done.

A pair of Ring-necked parakeets courting on the roof of the East Park aviary. 6 April 2019.

A very vocal female at East Park on 18th February 2025. Ring-necked Parakeets start breeding early in the year.

Conservation

The Ring-necked parakeet has increased exponentially in recent decades in the UK. Research across Europe has shown that native cavity-nesting birds (Scops Owl, Blue Tit, Great Tits, Starlings, House Sparrows and Nuthatches) or Greater Noctule bats can be impacted by competition for nest or roost holes with parakeets. In contrast, no effects on other cavity-nesting birds was found in an UK study analysing data from the BTO's Breeding Bird Survey (BBS). Parakeets can also monopolise bird feeders. The species, however, seems so far restricted to urban environments, which is likely to minimise wider impacts. There is also evidence of predation by a range of urban species, including Grey Squirrels, who predate eggs and young, Peregrine Falcons and Sparrowhawks, and Tawny Owls regularly take adults, and may take advantage of the parakeet roosting behaviour.

More information

BTO Birdfacts. Ring-necked Parakeet.

R. Hancock, R., J.R. Martin. Predation of Rose-ringed parakeets by raptors and owls in inner London. British Birds 108, 349–353 (2015).

Hernández-Brito, D., Carrete, M., Popa-Lisseanu, A. G., Ibáñez, C. & Tella, J. L. Crowding in the city: losing and winning competitors of an invasive bird. PLoS One 9, e100593 (2014). 

Newson, S. E., Johnston, A., Parrott, D. & Leech, D. I. Evaluating the population-level impact of an invasive species, Ring-necked Parakeet Psittacula krameri, on native avifauna: Impact of Ring-necked Parakeets on native avifauna. Ibis (Lond. 1859) 153, 509–516 (2011). 

Heald, O.J.N., Fraticelli, C., Cox, S.E., Stevens, M.C.A., Faulkner, S.C., Blackburn, T.M. and Le Comber, S.C., 2020. Understanding the origins of the ring‐necked parakeet in the UK. Journal of Zoology, 312(1), pp.1-11.

* In Hull, an Alexandrine Parakeet individual has reported at East Park at least since 2021. They are a much larger parrot, with a proportionally bulkier bill, and with a pink patch on the wings. The pink ring on the back of the neck is also wider. It has established populations in several European countries.

Alexandrine Parakeet, 22/01/2024.

Holderness: Ottringham, Keyingham, Burstwick and Hedon

 I take the 8:10 bus to Withernsea and at 9:00 I am at Ottringham. It is a sunny, but breezy day. I walk around the small village and church. A few Swifts and House Martins fly above, while a Greenfinch sings from an aerial. I retrace my steps and walk along the to take a track, Fields Close Road, which takes me to the Withernsea railway trail. A stretch of road is lined by maples, with hawthorn and ash hedges. A Yellowhammer and a family of Great Tits along the way. Skylarks sing. The disused railway track has an open aspect, with Birds foot trefoil and lots of rabbit holes. It must be quite a challenge to cycle it, and I did come across a cyclist and a horse rider. Many birds are feeding young, and alarm as I walk past. A Whitethroat and a House Sparrow with bills full of insects stop on trees to keep an eye on me. I hear a Yellowhammer, but I struggle to find it, until I realise it is singing from the ground at the edge of the field, keeping away from the wind. The landscape is quite flat, with ditches and hedges. A Buzzard flies over. I see five Buzzards in my walk today, including a pair flying together.

Greenfinch.

Jackdaw.

St Wilfrid's Church, Ottingham.

Great Tit.

Looking back at Fields Close Road

Looking North across the Withernsea railway track.

Yellowhammer singing from the ground.

Whitethroat with food.

Male House Sparrow with food.

Green-veined White.

As I arrive at Keyingham, I note that the railway track has a gap that has been converted to private gardens. A big board announces that it is a Private Garden, no tresspassing! As the station was sold and converted into a private house, it took with it the land of the railway track, sadly. There is a detour north, but the walk around the village is more interesting, so I walk south along Eastfield Road and then make my way to St Nichola's Church. The church and green are in a rise, as many are, but not at the highest point of the village, about 17 m, which is the location of an old wind mill, at Mill Lane.

Rook at Keyingham.

Displaying House Sparrow.

St Nicholas' Church, Keyingham.

The Mill, Keyingham.

There is a lovely view of a shallow, flat valley as I carry on out of the village towards the NW. The hills around the area are the remains of ancient postglacial moraines, and the sand and gravels that form it have been exploited in quarries, which are now filled with water. The lakes of Kelsey Hill are the flooded quarries that supplied ballast to build the railway line, and the railway line started to be laid in the area. The quarrying revealed remains of ice age mammals, like mammoth, reindeer and the very well preserved bones of a Walrus, indicating that the hills were then islands on a shallow, cold sea, were found in the quarries of these hills. I cross Keyingham Drain by a footbridge and then walk along it to join the railway track briefly. I scan the fields north of the track and spot a Lapwing and a Hare. Then I follow the public right of way across Kelsey Gardens, where I stop for a hot drink by the cafe by the lakes. A Sedge Warbler and a Willow warbler sing. A family of Mute Swans feeds by the shore, and in the distance I spot a Great Crested Grebe. The grounds are wooded and there are two lakes.

Looking north from Mill Lane.

Footbride across Keyingham Drain.

Footpath across a wheat field.

A view of Keyingham Drain from the railway bridge by Kelsey Hill

One of five buzzards seen today along the walk.

Great Crested Grebe.

The Mute Swan cygnets gather around their mother as she pulls plants from the bottom...

...and then they rapidly pick whatever she has brought to the surface.

Four Spotted Chaser.

It's a good day for butterflies, as they settle on the ground to avoid the wind. A Red Admiral here.

Small Tortoiseshell.

A Red Cardinal Beetle about to fly off.

I find the footpath leaving Kelsey Gardens and walk along the track along East Carr Drain towards Burstwick. A Kestrel and a Buzzard. It has got cloudier and more humid. A Yellowhammer takes a bath on the drain. I made my way across Burstwick and follow the track by Burstwick Drain. I notice my first singing Reed Buntings, more Skylarks and Yellowhammers. As I get to the outskirts of Hedon it starts to rain. Burstwich Drain crosses Hedon and has footpaths alongside it. It is very well vegetated and a green corridor in the town. The footpath is very overgrown in places, which means my trousers are soon drenched. I walk towards the town centre along Love Lane. I am a bit early for the bus back to Hull, so I walk around the church and get my lunch. A Sparrowhawk fly over wreaks havoc among the Feral Pigeons, who fly around the church. As I wait for the bus I notice a Jackdaw landing just below a Herring gull. It looks at its tail and before I can take another photo it has jumped and pulled the gulls tail! They find big birds tails so irresistible. What a great way to finish this lovely walk.

Kestrel.

Swift.

A chapel at Burstwick, the former Methodist church, which lost its spire in 2007.

Burstwick Drain.

Burstwich Drain at Hedon.

St Augustine Church, Hedon.

Jackdaw Watching the gull's tail.

Today's walk route.

Priory Fields revisited

I take an early morning walk around Priory Fields east of Priory Road to look for meadow plants. One target is Adder's Tongue fern, which I fail to find, despite having a quite precise location. I'm glad I find the small patch of Water Violets, the large patch Meadow Rue and the Pepper Saxifrage. The meadows have plenty of Marsh Thistle and give me a chance to learn about several grasses. As I walk around, I surprise two Roe Deers.

It's peak dandelion season and Goldfinches are feeding on the green seedheads.

Roe Deer.

Marsh Thistle.

Cuckoo Flower.

Pignut.

Water Violet.

Pepper Saxifrage.

Meadow Rue.

Another Roe Deer.

Lesser Spearwort.

Swift.

I get close to a section of a ditch that is not shaded by hedges (top shot) and record some aquatic plants, including some Marsh Bedstraw. I carry on and look closely into some sedges, all concentration. Suddenly, I feel a loud exhalation by my shoulder and it is a horse standing right next to me, which makes me jump! It has sneaked into this field together with four others. I'm wedged between the horse and a fence by the railway line, and I notice that two of the others, mares, have young foals with them. I briefly pet the horse, who is just curious and friendly, and then start walking along the fence to the next field. The horses weren't there a few minutes before, but they do not pay much attention to me and carry on grazing.

Horses in the field.

Mare and foal.