# A parrot? **URL:** \ **Category:** Miscellaneous and Personal Stuff I Must Share\ **Created:** [October 5, 2010, 4:08pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/a-parrot/556133 "2010-10-05T16:08:49Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 18\ **Page:** 1
**Author:** ![Johnny\_L.A](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/johnny_l.a/32/1084_2.png) [@Johnny\_L.A](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Johnny_L.A)\ **Post date:** [October 5, 2010, 4:08pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/a-parrot/556133/1 "2010-10-05T16:08:49Z")
I decided I’d run down to the gas station this morning. As I started up a narrow road, I flicked my windshield wiper control to get rid of some of the condensation. Just then I saw a red-and-yellow parrot standing just off the road. Since this was close to the intersection, I wasn’t going fast. I got a decent look at it. Now, I used to see parrots all the time. Mostly green ones. But I lived in L.A. and worked in Orange. There are loads of parrots down there. Now I live in the very northwest corner of Washington state (excluding Point Roberts), and it’s 42ºF outside. How strange to see a parrot here. I returned home by the same route, hoping to see it again. I didn’t see it, but there was a guy taking a walk. I asked him if he’d seen a parrot, and he looked at me as if I was mad. He wondered if I didn’t see a chicken. No, it was red-and-yellow. He agreed that sounded like a parrot. Perhaps, he opined jokingly, I’d had too much to drink. I’ve seen photos and videos of parrots living in snow. It would be cool to have a population of parrots up here. But they might have exciting lives, what with all of the raptors. ---
**Author:** ![picunurse](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/p/7bcc69/32.png) [@picunurse](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/picunurse)\ **Post date:** [October 5, 2010, 4:41pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/a-parrot/556133/2 "2010-10-05T16:41:38Z")
There is a colony of green parakeets somewhere in south King Co. The county tried to catch them a few years ago, but were less than successful. What you describe sounds like a [Scarlet Macaw](http://www.google.com/imgres?imgurl=http://www.petsintouch.com/nwposter/wp-content/uploads/2010/01/macaw-big.jpg&imgrefurl=http://www.petsintouch.com/nwposter/%3Fcat%3D12&h=596&w=341&sz=195&tbnid=ltNxrtoYgjO-VM:&tbnh=135&tbnw=77&prev=/images%3Fq%3DMacaw&zoom=1&q=Macaw&hl=en&usg=__vwfqfXSaqwV-gpgeo_yoYhI3jbg=&sa=X&ei=81OrTLSvFILMtAOvmMl3&ved=0CDkQ9QEwAw). Probably a lost pet. It isn’t likely to survive for long. Could it have been a [Tanager](http://www.allaboutbirds.org/guide/Western_Tanager/lifehistory)? ---
**Author:** ![Wile\_E](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/w/c37758/32.png) [@Wile\_E](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Wile_E)\ **Post date:** [October 5, 2010, 4:52pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/a-parrot/556133/3 "2010-10-05T16:52:18Z")
It was probably pining for the fjords. ---
**Author:** ![needscoffee](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/needscoffee/32/1076_2.png) [@needscoffee](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/needscoffee)\ **Post date:** [October 5, 2010, 4:56pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/a-parrot/556133/4 "2010-10-05T16:56:53Z")
There is also a flock of parakeets in [this Seattle neighborhood](http://www.mapleleaflife.com/2010/09/26/the-scarlet-fronted-parakeets-of-maple-leaf/), presumably the same flock that picunurse mentioned. ---
**Author:** ![Sailboat](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/sailboat/32/461_2.png) [@Sailboat](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Sailboat)\ **Post date:** [October 5, 2010, 5:00pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/a-parrot/556133/5 "2010-10-05T17:00:37Z")
They escape by accident occasionally. If you were so minded, you could look at local vet offices for lost bird notices, or even report the sighting yourself on the [Bird Hotline](http://www.birdhotline.com/). It’s an outside chance but you might be able to re-unite a family. ---
**Author:** ![Johnny\_L.A](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/johnny_l.a/32/1084_2.png) [@Johnny\_L.A](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Johnny_L.A)\ **Post date:** [October 5, 2010, 5:19pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/a-parrot/556133/6 "2010-10-05T17:19:28Z")
> [@picunurse](#): > > There is a colony of green parakeets somewhere in south King Co. The county tried to catch them a few years ago, but were less than successful. > > What you describe sounds like a [Scarlet Macaw](http://www.google.com/imgres?imgurl=http://www.petsintouch.com/nwposter/wp-content/uploads/2010/01/macaw-big.jpg&imgrefurl=http://www.petsintouch.com/nwposter/%3Fcat%3D12&h=596&w=341&sz=195&tbnid=ltNxrtoYgjO-VM:&tbnh=135&tbnw=77&prev=/images%3Fq%3DMacaw&zoom=1&q=Macaw&hl=en&usg=__vwfqfXSaqwV-gpgeo_yoYhI3jbg=&sa=X&ei=81OrTLSvFILMtAOvmMl3&ved=0CDkQ9QEwAw). Probably a lost pet. It isn’t likely to survive for long. > > Could it have been a [Tanager](http://www.allaboutbirds.org/guide/Western_Tanager/lifehistory)? Why catch them? I like seeing parrots. The macaw photo has blue. I didn’t see any blue on this bird. Just red and yellow. Not a tanager, either (though I’m not an expert). It was parrot-sized and parrot-shaped, and was brilliantly coloured. ---
**Author:** ![Sailboat](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/sailboat/32/461_2.png) [@Sailboat](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Sailboat)\ **Post date:** [October 5, 2010, 5:22pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/a-parrot/556133/7 "2010-10-05T17:22:48Z")
> [@Johnny\_L.A](#): > > The macaw photo has blue. I didn’t see any blue on this bird. Just red and yellow. Not a tanager, either (though I’m not an expert). It was parrot-sized and parrot-shaped, and was brilliantly coloured. How big, say, relative to a pigeon? Could it have been a [Sun Conure](http://www.google.com/images?hl=en&q=sun+conure&um=1&ie=UTF-8&source=og&sa=N&tab=wi&biw=1152&bih=755)? ---
**Author:** ![Tethered\_Kite](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/t/a5b964/32.png) [@Tethered\_Kite](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Tethered_Kite)\ **Post date:** [October 5, 2010, 5:28pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/a-parrot/556133/8 "2010-10-05T17:28:26Z")
I remember when we started to see and hear lovely little house and purple finches here in the Midwest. Had to do a little research to find out what they were. They were from a country far to the south of us, I read, and their arrival here began with escape from a New York pet shop. ---
**Author:** ![Johnny\_L.A](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/johnny_l.a/32/1084_2.png) [@Johnny\_L.A](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Johnny_L.A)\ **Post date:** [October 5, 2010, 5:38pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/a-parrot/556133/9 "2010-10-05T17:38:19Z")
> [@Sailboat](#): > > How big, say, relative to a pigeon? Could it have been a [Sun Conure](http://www.google.com/images?hl=en&q=sun+conure&um=1&ie=UTF-8&source=og&sa=N&tab=wi&biw=1152&bih=755)? About half again the size of a pigeon, though not as fat. In the google images you linked, maybe twice as big as the one the girl in red is holding. ---
**Author:** ![Tom\_Tildrum](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/t/e95f7d/32.png) [@Tom\_Tildrum](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Tom_Tildrum)\ **Post date:** [October 5, 2010, 6:07pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/a-parrot/556133/10 "2010-10-05T18:07:56Z")
Given the colors, the size, and the fact that it was on the ground, it might have been a scarlet macaw with the blue flight feathers clipped. Maybe it hopped out of someone’s window or car. ---
**Author:** ![Wile\_E](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/w/c37758/32.png) [@Wile\_E](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Wile_E)\ **Post date:** [October 5, 2010, 6:17pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/a-parrot/556133/11 "2010-10-05T18:17:57Z")
Half the size of a pigeon does not sound like a macaw, unless they have very big pigeons up there. Most parrots are predominately green, for the colors and size given it sounds like a conure, parakeet (not the budgie type of 'keet) or lory/lorikeet.The latter probably won’t do well in the wild with winter coming. They are fruit and nectar eaters. ---
**Author:** ![Johnny\_L.A](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/johnny_l.a/32/1084_2.png) [@Johnny\_L.A](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Johnny_L.A)\ **Post date:** [October 5, 2010, 6:46pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/a-parrot/556133/12 "2010-10-05T18:46:01Z")
> [@Wile\_E](#): > > Half the size of a pigeon Half again. i.e., 1.5x. ---
**Author:** ![purplehorseshoe](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/purplehorseshoe/32/2996_2.png) [@purplehorseshoe](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/purplehorseshoe)\ **Post date:** [October 5, 2010, 8:30pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/a-parrot/556133/13 "2010-10-05T20:30:02Z")
> [@Johnny\_L.A](#): > > > [@Sailboat](#): > > > > How big, say, relative to a pigeon? Could it have been a [Sun Conure](http://www.google.com/images?hl=en&q=sun+conure&um=1&ie=UTF-8&source=og&sa=N&tab=wi&biw=1152&bih=755)? > > About half again the size of a pigeon, though not as fat. In the google images you linked, maybe twice as big as the one the girl in red is holding. That one’s tagged as being a baby, so maybe that was it after all. ---
**Author:** ![Wile\_E](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/w/c37758/32.png) [@Wile\_E](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Wile_E)\ **Post date:** [October 6, 2010, 12:35am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/a-parrot/556133/14 "2010-10-06T00:35:42Z")
> [@Johnny\_L.A](#): > > > [@Wile\_E](#): > > > > Half the size of a pigeon > > Half again. i.e., 1.5x. Really? I’ve never heard of that turn of phrase meaning one and a half times something. ---
**Author:** ![Ferret\_Herder](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/f/e47774/32.png) [@Ferret\_Herder](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Ferret_Herder)\ **Post date:** [October 6, 2010, 12:40am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/a-parrot/556133/15 "2010-10-06T00:40:28Z")
There’s a colony of [Monk Parakeets](http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Monk_Parakeet) living wild in Chicago, so I’m not surprised that similar birds might be hanging out wild in Washington state. ---
**Author:** ![picunurse](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/p/7bcc69/32.png) [@picunurse](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/picunurse)\ **Post date:** [October 6, 2010, 1:07am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/a-parrot/556133/16 "2010-10-06T01:07:54Z")
> [@needscoffee](#): > > There is also a flock of parakeets in [this Seattle neighborhood](http://www.mapleleaflife.com/2010/09/26/the-scarlet-fronted-parakeets-of-maple-leaf/), presumably the same flock that picunurse mentioned. That is the colony I was referring to. I thought they were farther south, but as soon as I read Seward park, I remembered. **Johnny** , they wanted to get rid of them because they are very noisy. ---
**Author:** ![Johnny\_L.A](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/johnny_l.a/32/1084_2.png) [@Johnny\_L.A](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Johnny_L.A)\ **Post date:** [October 6, 2010, 3:17am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/a-parrot/556133/17 "2010-10-06T03:17:47Z")
> [@Wile\_E](#): > > > [@Johnny\_L.A](#): > > > > Half again. i.e., 1.5x. > > Really? I’ve never heard of that turn of phrase meaning one and a half times something. Really? I don’t see how it couldn’t mean one and a half times as much. At least, the way I think of it: Given an amount _x_, add ½x to x to get 1½x. ---
**Author:** ![KRC](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/k/45deac/32.png) [@KRC](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/KRC)\ **Post date:** [October 6, 2010, 3:57am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/a-parrot/556133/18 "2010-10-06T03:57:03Z")
We don’t see many escaped parrots here. We do see a lot of Cooper’s hawks. Maybe there’s a connection? (Yeah, one of mine escaped once, which led to a bizarre adventure in which a small child heard the bird calling, I ran into the countryside to get it, coyotes started singing, I yelled at my boyfriend, who was following me “Somebody shut up the G\*damm coyotes” and then found the bird. The bird was angry and wondered where I had been.)