Studies suggest that there are anything up to 10,000 parakeets in London today, and with a flock growth rate of between 20% and 30%, they could more than double their number by 2009.

Around 90% of the UK's population of parakeets live in and around London, outstripping the beloved Cockney Sparra'.

They are not newcomers to this part of the world either.

Surprisingly, these vivid green birds have been in and around London for about 30 years, originally hailing from the foothills of the Himalayas.

They live for around 30 years, so some of them could still just be the original birds that came to these shores.

There many thoughts as to how they came to take up residence here.

Some even think that it was Jimi Hendrix who released his breeding pair into the London skies back in the heady 60s - but was that all a purple haze?

You can see these colourful characters in abundance at the London Wetlands Centre and of course throughout the city - look up to the trees!