Hi,
Bob W wrote:
during the summer I saw a couple of exotic birds on a pavement in Southwark. When I approached them they flew up a tree where they remained for quite a long time before flying out of sight. They were not parrots, but had (iirc) blue, red, green and yellow plumage.
European Bee eater? http://www.birdfoto.fsnet.co.uk/beeeater/beeeater.html We even had a pair nesting here last year.
Nope. The ones I saw were more crow-like, in size and shape. The colour was more cartoonish (probably not a good biological term), and I was particularly struck by how vivid the green was.
The only things I can think of that are a reasonable possibility are European Roller and Green Woodpecker, with the Roller winning for colour and the Woodpecker winning for form. More likely is a pair of escapees of some exotica. Maybe Moulin Rouge birds. They have multicoloured plumage. On the subject of what obscure animals people use as pets, did you know that the "Amazon" section of the London Aquarium is populated almost entirely by "cast-offs" from peoples' aquaria? That is, the fish grew too large to remain in them. Many of the fish are only able to reach their full size in something like the space given in the L A and they are upwards of six feet......
The most surprising exotic creature I've seen in the UK was a wild penguin. Last year on Chesil Beach in Dorset I saw a bird swimming very quickly through the waves, chasing a fish. From my vast experience of penguins in S. Africa I identified it immediately. I was rather taken aback to see one so far north, so when I got home I went through my Observer Book of Birds (or whatever), and learned that it was in fact a guillemot, which is not at all exotic (although I've never seen one in London, whereas I have seen penguins). Still, those things are pretty good examples of convergent evolution.
Like modern cars, which Cath is certain are all modelled on Kryten's head 8-) Recommend the glassbottom boat trip along the Fleet next time you are there. The guide is a proper marine biologist. Not recommended after gale force winds, though. Makes it too muddy. 8-(
mike
