At a Glance
Most parrots and parakeets nest in holes in trees, but this South American native builds bulky stick nests among the branches, both for raising young and for sleeping in at night. Many North American cities now have local colonies of Monk Parakeets, established by birds escaped from captivity. Despite some dire predictions in the past, these noisy but colorful birds have not yet spread to take over the countryside.
All bird guide text and rangemaps adapted from Lives of North American Birds by Kenn Kaufman© 1996, used by permission of Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. All rights reserved.
Parrots and Allies, Perching Birds
Forests and Woodlands, Urban and Suburban Habitats
Florida, Mid Atlantic, New England
Direct Flight, Rapid Wingbeats
Range & Identification
11" (28 cm). Medium-sized parakeet with a long, pointed tail. Mostly green, paler below, but with extensive gray on forehead, throat, and chest. Blue in outer part of wings is most evident in flight.
About the size of a Crow, About the size of a Robin
Blue, Green, White, Yellow
Songs and Calls
Loud, harsh, screeching eeeh-eeeh.
Chirp/Chip, Rattle, Raucous
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Audubon’s scientists have used 140 million bird observations and sophisticated climate models to project how climate change will affect the range of the Monk Parakeet. Learn even more in our Audubon’s Survival By Degrees project.
Climate Threats Facing the Monk Parakeet
Choose a temperature scenario below to see which threats will affect this species as warming increases. The same climate change-driven threats that put birds at risk will affect other wildlife and people, too.