Alexandrine Parakeet Psittacula eupatria

The Alexandrine Parakeet/Parrot, named after Alexander the Great who took many of them from India to Europe, is native to South and Southeast Asia.

There are feral populations in several European and Asian countries. The Alexandrine is similar to a large Ring-necked Parakeet. It is about a third larger (58-60 cm length depending on subspecies) than the Ringneck (some 40-42 cm), has an over-sized, all-red bill with light orange tip and it also has a dark pink/red "shoulder" patch. The male has a wider neck ring than the Ringneck.

Female and juvenile Alexandrine Parakeets do not have the black/pink ringed neck and are duller in colour. Even as a fledgling, the Alexandrine has the red "shoulder" patch on its wing.

The tail is as long as the head and body - longer on adult males than on females.

Hobbies include photography . . .

There are several subspecies across its range. Above centre and right is the Siamese or Thai Alexandrine, native to northeast Thailand, Cambodia, Laos and Vietnam. It is the smallest subspecies, has pale blue higher on its crown and has pinky orange legs and feet rather than grey.

This male Alexandrine Parakeet is feral with a group of parakeets (mostly Ringnecks) in Stanmore, NW London (2006). Superficially similar to the related Ring-necked Parakeets which have colonised NW London, the Alexandrines are larger, noisier, have the pink patch on their "shoulders" and an all-red beak (top and lower mandibles) visibly larger than that of the Ring-necks.

Thanks to Keith Wood for photos above and below of this female feral Alexandrine also with a group of Ringnecks on the feeder in his garden in Essex. The larger size of body and beak can be seen.

Keith's photos are of 2021 and 2022. The bird has a leg ring so is probably an escapee or release. He points out the power of her destructive beak on the tough metal mesh feeder. (Also note her intelligence: she hasn't broken the wire but has unpicked the seam one wire at a time.)