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| Captive parrots - Parrot Jungle State Archives of Florida |
Flocks of parrots noisily flying at dawn and dusk around Broward
County are a familiar sight today. Many older residents who grew up here say they
rarely, if ever, saw these colorful birds during the 1950s and 1960s. The
mythology of the introduction of these non-native exotic noise makers runs deep.
Newspapers present various theories about where they came from and report several early sightings. One account points to the unintentional release of parrots from an opened crate at Port Everglades in 1967.
Others tell a tale about a bar owner releasing pet birds near Wilton Manors a few decades ago who was responsible for their introduction to that town.
Florida railway developer and one-time oil tycoon Henry Flagler was known to have an affinity for parrots, keeping many on his Palm Beach property (Whitehall) uncaged but fed. They remained there for years after his death in 1913; that may explain a reported parrot roost at the Breakers Hotel during the past 20 years and flock sightings in Lake Worth.
Fort Lauderdale News reported the first sighting of a flock in Broward in 1975. During the 1940s “a rare bird farm” operated in the Miami area. Flocks were spotted in south Miami-Dade County during the 1990s.
Newspaper and personal accounts aside, scientific research tells a probable story about South Florida parrot origins. One scholarly paper notes most of these exotic birds escaped from pet owners and pet stores or were deliberately released by owners and smugglers (Distribution, Populations, and Documentation of Parrots in Broward County, by Bill Pranty and Susan Epps, Vol. 30, Issue 4, Article 1, Jan. 2000). Most releases, however, have been unintentional.
About 20 species were spotted in Broward County in 1990. In 2000, Pranty and Epps reported 31 species, 20 of which were unknown before then. They suggest parrots have probably been released here since at least the 1950s. Worldwide 350-410 species exist with most originating in Central and South America (some from Pacific Islands). The Carolina parakeet was the only species native to Florida, but they were killed off by poachers by the early 20th century.
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| Florida's extinct Carolina parakeet State Archives of Florida |
The South Florida Sun-Sentinel reported on flocks in Dania that seemed to appear and disappear suddenly in the early 1990s. A story suggested people captured many to sell as pets (wild birds make lousy pets of course).
In 1995, utility workers in Deerfield Beach were seen sweeping parrot
nests from tall light fixtures. Most of these birds nest in dead palm trees but
some have been spotted setting up residence in vacated osprey nests.
Pranty and Epps* observed parrot populations in Dania,
Wilton Manors, Fort Lauderdale’s Hugh Birch State Park, Coral Ridge, Harbor
Beach, Las Olas Isles, Poinsettia Heights, Rio Vista, Victoria Park, and Oakland
Park. Among species they observed were Quaker or monk parakeets (some also live
successfully in Chicago!), Orange-winged parrots, Red-headed parrots, Yellow-headed
parrots, and Black-hooded parakeets. The two scientists reported a large jump
in all parrot populations from the early 1990s to 2000 even though poachers
regularly decimate local populations.
With the human population growth of Fort Lauderdale and Broward
County comes additional parrot species and even more flocks. Lucky for these
garrulous birds, most of us love hearing, if not always sighting, them.
* Susan Allene Epps has also written a book, Parrots of
South Florida (2007) available on Amazon.
Copyright © 2023. All rights reserved. Jane Feehan.
Sources:
Distribution, Populations, and Documentation of Parrots
in Broward County, by Bill Pranty and Susan Epps, Vol. 30, Issue 4, Article
1, Jan. 2000
Fort Lauderdale News, May 24, 1970
Fort Lauderdale News, Feb. 12, 1975
Fort Lauderdale News June 29, 1985
South Florida Sun Sentinel, Aug. 30, 1995
South Florida Sun Sentinel, Jan. 29, 1990
Tags: Parrots in Fort Lauderdale, parrots in Wilton Manors, Broward County parrots, Fort Lauderdale history