Mitred Parakeets

Belmont Shore's Noisy & Beloved Parrots

Conure parrots are often seen around Ocean Blvd. & 39th Place, Long Beach, CA

Belmont Shore-- A community of Long Beach has some lively conure parrots who came to the town, according to a shop owner near the Belmont Memorial Pier, after escaping a pet store in Pasadena approx. 35 miles away by air. The shop had caught fire well over 20 years ago, and the birds managed to get free, saving themselves but suddenly in need of surviving the elements of Southern California.

The Central and South America natives, probably the Half Moon conure species of parrot, requires a diet of tropical plants and fruits found nearly 3,000 miles away. Yet the hearty bird is unique in that it survives in Southern California, where other parrot species don't.

It turns out that the unique gardens throughout Southern California offer enough nutrition for these resourceful and hearty birds that they have learned where to go to get a somewhat balanced diet in places such as California State University Long Beach.

Scientists who have studied this group of birds on the campus of have noted that the bird has an ability to forage for food among the many plants, flowering bushes and fruits, including tropical flowers found on the campus five miles from the Belmont Shore palm trees where sometimes may see these noisy, vibrant green parrots.

While Huntington Library & Gardens in San Marino or the Los Angeles Arboretum in Arcadia would seem to make likely choices for finding food sources closer to their point of origination, the resourceful, colorful characters are a delight to listen to and watch if you happen to come across their noisy sounds or catch a glimpse of the swift-flying green parrots.