Parakeets on a bird feeder in a back garden in south London. It is feared they could push out native species of birds.

閱讀難度：

The government has confirmed wild parakeets living in Britain are to be culled before they can breed and become a nuisance, the Daily Telegraph reports.

Monk parakeets are the latest invasive species to colonize the country after being released from captivity in the 1990s.

But the Royal Society for the Protection of Birds has called on the government to re-home the birds rather than shoot them.

"They have the potential to expand rapidly and could pose a threat to agriculture and public safety because of the nests causing structural problems to the electricity supply," a spokesman for the RSPB said. "But we do not believe that they should be shot."

（點擊《每日電訊報》查看原文）

英下令射殺長尾鸚鵡

???????據英國《每日電訊報》報道，在野生長尾鸚鵡繁殖并成為有害物種前，英國政府已經開始通過射殺來控制它們的數量增長。

???????這種名為“和尚鸚鵡”的鳥類自20世紀90年代開始被放養后，大量侵入英國，成為英國最新的外來入侵物種。

???????然而英國皇家鳥類保護協會發言人稱，政府與其射殺他們不如讓它們“重返家園”。

???????雖然長尾鸚鵡存在迅速繁殖的可能，并對農業和公眾安全帶來威脅，它的鳥巢也會引發供電問題，但這些還是不足以成為射殺它們的理由。

(China.org.cn April 27, 2011)