Parrots, lots and lots of parrots, can usually be found flying around Pasadena, San Marino and San Gabriel.

According to local legend, many were released during a 1959 fire which destroyed Simpson’s Gardenland and Bird Farm in Pasadena.  Some of the parrots were probably pets that escaped or were set free. Some may have been released by smugglers attempting to avoid arrest. One common breed is the Red-crowned parrot.

However, according to the Parrot Project of Los Angeles, the parrots fall into as many as five different groups. There is a cycle of regular public outcry about the noise and the sheer oddity of the birds’ presence, but most Pasadenans seem to have come to accept the birds as part of the city’s life. They can be seen year-round, but are especially noticeable in the winter. The birds are definitely gregarious, and the amount of disturbance their chatter creates is related to the time of day they may choose to chatter.

Today, we have a guest photographer, Alex Lantsman, who has sent in this photo of one of the parrots he snapped at the Huntington Library.

Do you have any pictures that you’d like to share?  Send them to me and I’ll be happy to post them on our Sunday Spectrum.