Saltaire is used to welcoming visitors from all over the world, but Salty the parakeet must be one of the most unusual. He (or she) has recently been seen flying around the village. This bird, or another one like it, has also been seen in Harden, Cottingley and Nab Wood.

Now people in Saltaire are asking if it will survive the weather here. The answer is yes, green parakeets can live comfortably in our climate as they come from the foothills of the Himalayas and don’t need to be too warm.

Green parakeets have been seen in Devon, Maidenhead, Hyde and Glasgow, so they are thriving all around Great Britain. They are also regularly seen in Northern France and in Belgium. The RSPB says that there is a flock of around 6,000 in Surrey, and a lot more in London’s parks. They also estimate that in a few years 50,000 of the birds will be flying around England and a cull could be needed to stop them taking over local bird populations.

Salty and the other green parakeets live on berries, fruit and nuts, so the bird feeders that you and I put out in our gardens are helping to feed them. So it’s our fault if Saltaire gets over-run with green parakeets – we have been warned! To feed or not to feed Salty the parakeet? That is the question…

Written by Peter Bottomley