New Strategy Unveiled by British Zoo to Rehabilitate Profanity-Laden Parrots

A wildlife park in the United Kingdom has devised a new strategy to reform a group of profanity-laden parrots, known for their colorful language. In 2020, Lincolnshire Wildlife Park in eastern England isolated five African gray parrots from the flock with the aim of improving their language. However, the park has now embarked on a riskier approach, integrating three newly donated parrots with a penchant for swearing – named Eric, Captain, and Sheila – alongside the original five offenders.

Steve Nichols, the park’s chief executive, revealed that the language emanating from the carrying boxes of the newly introduced parrots was “phenomenal” and included particularly offensive expletives. The plan involves placing these eight parrots, known for their foul language, amidst 92 non-swearing parrots in the hope that they will pick up more pleasant sounds from their peers.

Nichols explained that if successful, the swearing parrots could learn “nice noises like microwaves and vehicles reversing” from the non-swearing parrots. However, there is a risk that the reverse may occur, turning the aviary into an adult-themed space if the non-swearing parrots pick up the expletives.

While integrating the original five parrots into the flock after a period of isolation was mostly successful, Nichols acknowledged that they still occasionally utter curses, often followed by laughter – a mimicry of the common reaction to their foul language. Parrots, known for their ability to echo sounds they hear, have adopted both male and female voices for swearing, creating an interesting auditory mix.

Lincolnshire Wildlife Park has taken precautions by installing large signs warning visitors about the parrots’ language. Despite their explicit vocabulary, the park has not received any complaints from visitors. Nichols even noted that historically, visitors were more likely to swear at the parrots than the other way around.

African gray parrots, recognized for their high level of intelligence and social nature, form groups of up to 1,000 birds in the wild. Their communication involves various calls, and researchers compare their intelligence to that of apes, whales, and dolphins. African grays find it particularly easy to mimic expletives as they are often spoken in the same tone and context, making them simple to imitate.

The hope is that, over time, the swearing parrots will adapt to the sounds of the larger flock, picking up more socially acceptable noises. However, Nichols remains skeptical about completely eliminating the swearing, stating that they are likely to continue imitating any explicit language uttered by visitors. The park is currently observing the settling-in period, hoping the parrots will acclimate to the diverse sounds of their new environment.

In conclusion, Lincolnshire Wildlife Park’s innovative approach to rehabilitating foul-mouthed parrots reflects the complex nature of these intelligent birds. As the park strives to strike a balance between the parrots’ natural behavior and societal expectations, the integration of the swearing parrots into a larger flock becomes an experiment in avian socialization and communication dynamics.