Seattle's Wild Parrots: Mitred Conures of Maple Leaf

The mild weather this winter here in Seattle apparently has been a boon to Seattle's wild Mitred Conure parrots, as well as Seattle bird watchers. Several sightings of Seattle's wild Mitred Conures have been confirmed, and some really nice photos posted as well. This blog reported a sighting of the Golden Gardens parrots in Seattle's Ballard neighborhood back in September, 2011. Recently, sightings of the Maple Leaf/Shoreline parrots have been confirmed.


The Shoreline, Washington blog Of Paramount Importance, reported that three Mitred Conures (incorrectly identified as Scarlet Fronted Parakeets), were spotted foraging in the Maple Leaf neighborhood of Northeast Seattle, in the vicinity of 12 Avenue NE and NE 90th Street, on December 12, 2011. These Mitred Conures winter in the Maple Leaf/Shoreline area and return to Seattle's Seward Park for the summer. The Conures are known to venture as far north as the Ridgecrest neighborhood in Shoreline.

Photograph by Dennis Paulson, January 20, 2010

People typically report hearing the parrots prior to ever seeing them. Possibly the same three Mitred Conures were reported by the Maple Leaf Life blog in the same Maple Leaf area on September 24, 2010.


The Shoreline Area News blog published these terrific photos of Mitred Conures on January 9, 2012, foraging in Hawthorne trees in the Ridgecrest neighborhood..

Three Mitred Conures in a Ridgecrest Hawthorne Tree
Photo by Stefanie Gendreau, January 9, 2012

Mitred Conure in a Ridgecrest Hawthorne Tree

Photo by Stefanie Gendreau, January 9, 2012

This photo clearly shows that these parrots are not Scarlet or Red-fronted Conures, but are in fact Mitred Conures.The photographer Stefanie Gendreau reported:

My guess is that they nest in Hamlin Park but we see or more often hear them (emphasis added) on 8th NE and 9th NE in Ridgecrest. They usually travel in pairs but this group of three is what we've been seeing this winter. 

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