[LINative]

Originally Posted by Antonio84

You guessed correctly!

The coast is definitely warmer than inland, but the area where things turn bad (from my perspective, I hate the cold and winter ) is not too far inland. In fact, I live in Stamford and there's a marked difference between Shippan (the most southern peninsula in the city) and High Ridge (the most northern area of the city). In the winter months, it often snows in High Ridge while downtown and the coast gets rain. Many times, that's how you can tell who lives in the northern part of the city, since the roof of their cars have snow while everything else is just wet. It takes around 15-30 minutes to go from downtown to High Ridge, depending on traffic, of course.

Also, a few years ago a truck filled with tropical parakeets got into an accident on I-95, and many of the birds escaped and settled along the coast. I haven't seen them in Cummings Park, where there used to quite a colony of them. Anyway, they stayed along the coast and manage to survive all the winters there. I guess the warmer nature of the coast had something to do with that.

I wonder if you are referring to the Monk Parakeets which are slowly spreading here in the USA. Here in the North where it is colder they seem to like being the water and/or built-up areas where it is a bit warmer.

From the wickapedia site Monk Parakeet - Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia :

"Considerable numbers of Monk Parakeet were imported to the United States in the late 1960s as pets. Many escaped or were intentionally released, and populations were allowed to proliferate. By the early 1970s, M. monachus was established in seven states, and by 1995 it had spread to eight more. There are now thought to be approximately 100,000 in Florida alone.

As one of the few temperate-zone parrots, the Monk Parakeet is more able than most to survive cold climates, and colonies exist as far north as New York City, Chicago, Wisconsin, Cincinnati, Louisville, northern New Jersey, coastal Rhode Island and Connecticut, and southwestern Washington. This hardiness makes this species second only to the Rose-ringed Parakeet amongst parrots as a successful introduced species."

If you read ther article these birds seem to be disliked in some areas as foreign invasives but are liked in other areas. We used to have our own native parakeet (parrot) here in the United States, the Carolina Parakeet. But the Carolina Parakeet was driven into extinction about a 100 years ago. Maybe the little green Monk Parakeets are filling the niche of our extinct native birds. Carolina Parakeet - Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

[AntonioR]

@ LINative: Those are probably the birds I'm referring to.

Fall foliage in Bulls Head, Stamford (its still patchy):

[JayCT]

Believe it or not, the parakets you see in Fairfield County were from a truck accident on I-95 years ago. The truck was transporting a large load of the birds and they escaped. The birds were all over Fairfield several years ago. I am not sure if they are still around but they created some problwems when they began nesting on utility lines. Jay

[wavehunter007]

Originally Posted by JayCT

Believe it or not, the parakets you see in Fairfield County were from a truck accident on I-95 years ago. The truck was transporting a large load of the birds and they escaped. The birds were all over Fairfield several years ago. I am not sure if they are still around but they created some problwems when they began nesting on utility lines. Jay

That's what I've heard as well. These "escaped" parakets (not parrots - I think there is some difference?) are much smaller than the resident monks. I often see them mixed (they do nest and move together from what I've seen) in my bamboo grove.

On other related note....from what I've read (and who knows), I don't think their are any populations of Monks in the Midwest (Chicago, WI...etc) like there are on the East Coast from CT south. They are just barely able to survive on the coasts of Ct and NJ due to the mild winter climate - so they would never make in the the Midwest I would think. Chicago is like 10 F colder than NYC in the winters months.

[AntonioR]

Route 7 in Norwalk on October 20, 2012

[Cambium]

How are you guys enjoying the Reds and Oranges this year?

[Cambium]

10/20/12 Update

[Cambium]

Its good those areas West of Albany look to be fading because chances of heavy wet accumulating snows are getting higher for around the 28th. Major sharp cold front coming through next weekend which could speed the color/leaf drop process further.

Enjoy the warm week everyone..soak all the rays you can get. Things will be changing.

[Lintu]

We saw some of those parakeets when we were about to buy our house in Stratford and were exploring town. They were down near the beach/golf course. Too funny. In TX it wasn't too unusual to see a random parakeet, but that's such a warmer climate.

[AntonioR]

Around Stamford on October 21, 2012.