Monk Parakeet Myiopsitta monachus Scientific name definitions

Native to South America from Argentina to southern Brazil, Uruguay, Paraguay, and Bolivia, the Monk Parakeet now occurs in North America, Europe, Israel, and elsewhere due to its popularity as a pet (Russello et al. 2008 Russello, M. A., M. L. Avery and T. F. Wright. (2008). Genetic evidence links invasive Monk Parakeet populations in the United States to the international pet trade. BMC Evolutionary Biology 8:217. Close ). In North America, free-flying Monk Parakeets were first noted in the late 1960s. Early on, it was feared that this parakeet would thrive in its new home, ravaging crops as its range expanded. Over the years, however, the threat of crop damage has not materialized. Despite their capacity to naturalize in a variety of places, the Monk Parakeet remains a popular species in the pet trade, accounting for 97% of all reported trade in parrots exported from South America between 2006–2012 (Bush et al. 2014 Bush, E. R., S. E. Baker and D. W. Macdonald. (2014). Global trade in exotic pets 2006-2012. Conservation Biology 28 (3):663-676. Close ).

The Monk Parakeet is the only species in the parrot family that does not nest in a cavity. Instead, it constructs a bulky structure of sticks that can house a single nest or a complex with a dozen or more separate nest chambers. This behavior allows the Monk Parakeet to more readily adapt to landscape change than other parrot species, which often decline in response to logging, habitat loss, and the removal of suitable nest trees. The species uses and maintains its stick compound year-round, a behavior that may help to explain the ability of the Monk Parakeet to colonize areas with colder winters than in its region of origin.

Although crop damage in North America has not been a major problem to this point, the Monk Parakeet often build nests on electrical utility poles, transformers, and substations which can cause power outages and fires (Avery et al. 2006 Avery, M. L., J. Lindsay, J. Newman, S. Pruett-Jones and E. A. Tillman. (2006). Reducing Monk Parakeet impacts to electric utility facilities in south Florida. Advances in Vertebrate Pest Management 4:125-136. Close , Burgio et al. 2014 Burgio, K. R., M. A. Rubega and D. Sustaita. (2014). Nest-building behavior of Monk Parakeets and insights into potential mechanisms for reducing damage to utility poles. Peerj 2:e601. Close , Reed et al. 2014 Reed, J. E., R. A. McCleery, N. J. Silvy, F. E. Smeins and D. J. Brightsmith. (2014). Monk Parakeet nest-site selection of electric utility structures in Texas. Landscape and Urban Planning 129:65-72. Close ). Use of lethal methods to control Monk Parakeet populations and reduce damage, fires, and interruption in electrical service has been met with considerable resistance from the general public (Russello et al. 2008 Russello, M. A., M. L. Avery and T. F. Wright. (2008). Genetic evidence links invasive Monk Parakeet populations in the United States to the international pet trade. BMC Evolutionary Biology 8:217. Close ) and has even led to a lawsuit against a utility provider in Connecticut, though the suit was ultimately dismissed. Although some non-lethal methods have been explored (such as chemical contraception, nest removal, and trapping), thus far, no practical, long-term solution has been developed.

In the United States, the species has a variety of common names, including Gray-headed or Gray-breasted Parakeet, Quaker Conure, and Quaker Parakeet. The bird’s cowl-like gray face and chest, reminiscent of religious attire, earned the species its Quaker and monk appellations.

The first review of this species’ distribution in North America (Neidermyer and Hickey 1977 Neidermyer, W. J. and J. J. Hickey. (1977). The Monk Parakeet in the United States, 1970-75. American Birds 31:273-278. Close ) and several informative regional studies are available (e.g., Olivieri and Pearson 1992 Olivieri, A. and L. Pearson. (1992). Monk Parakeets in Bridgeport Connecticut. Connecticut Warbler 12:104-111. Close , Hyman and Pruett-Jones 1995 Hyman, J. and S. Pruett-Jones. (1995). Natural history of the Monk Parakeet in Hyde Park, Chicago. Wilson Bulletin 107:510-517. Close , Pruett-Jones et al. 2012 Pruett-Jones, S., C. W. Appelt, A. Sarfaty, B. Van Vossen, M. A. Leibold and E. S. Minor. (2012). Urban parakeets in Northern Illinois: A 40-year perspective. Urban Ecosystems 15 (3):709-719. Close ). Until the last decade, however, there had been relatively little research on North American Monk Parakeets; much of the information of their biology and life history remains based on work done in their native range (e.g., Martella and Bucher 1990 Martella, M. B. and E. H. Bucher. (1990). Vocalizations of the Monk Parakeet. Bird Behavior 8:101-110. Close , Navarro et al. 1992a Navarro, J. L., M. B. Martella and E. H. Bucher. (1992a). Breeding season and productivity of Monk Parakeets in Córdoba, Argentina. Wilson Bulletin 104:413-424. Close ). However, in the past 10 years, research on Monk Parakeet populations in North America has accelerated (e.g., Avery et al. 2012 Avery, M. L., E. A. Tillman, K. L. Keacher, J. E. Arnett and K. J. Lundy. (2012). Biology of invasive Monk Parakeets in south Florida. Wilson Journal of Ornithology 124 (3):581-588. Close , Davis et al. 2014b Davis, A. Y., N. Malas and E. S. Minor. (2014b). Substitutable habitats? The biophysical and anthropogenic drivers of an exotic bird's distribution. Biological Invasions 16 (2):415-427. Close , Hobson et al. 2014a Hobson, E. A., M. L. Avery and T. F. Wright. (2014a). The socioecology of Monk Parakeets: Insights into parrot social complexity. Auk 131 (4):756-775. Close , Edelaar et al. 2015 Edelaar, P., S. Roques, E. A. Hobson, A. Gonçalves da Silva, M. L. Avery, M. A. Russello, J. C. Senar, T. F. Wright, M. Carrete and J. L. Tella. (2015). Shared genetic diversity across the global invasive range of the monk parakeet suggests a common restricted geographic origin and the possibility of convergent selection. Molecular Ecology 24 (9):2164-2176. Close ), with a great deal of research focusing on management (e.g., Avery et al. 2006 Avery, M. L., J. Lindsay, J. Newman, S. Pruett-Jones and E. A. Tillman. (2006). Reducing Monk Parakeet impacts to electric utility facilities in south Florida. Advances in Vertebrate Pest Management 4:125-136. Close , Pruett-Jones et al. 2007 Pruett-Jones, S., J. R. Newman, C. M. Newman, M. L. Avery and J. R. Lindsay. (2007). Population viability analysis of Monk Parakeets in the United States and examination of alternative management strategies. Human-Wildlife Conflicts 1 (1):35-44. Close , Reed et al. 2014 Reed, J. E., R. A. McCleery, N. J. Silvy, F. E. Smeins and D. J. Brightsmith. (2014). Monk Parakeet nest-site selection of electric utility structures in Texas. Landscape and Urban Planning 129:65-72. Close , Burgio et al. 2014 Burgio, K. R., M. A. Rubega and D. Sustaita. (2014). Nest-building behavior of Monk Parakeets and insights into potential mechanisms for reducing damage to utility poles. Peerj 2:e601. Close ).