Parrots in wildlife park moved after swearing at visitors

"London (CNN) — 5 parrots have been removed from public view at a British wildlife park after they started swearing at customers.

The foul-mouthed birds were split up after they launched a number of different expletives at visitors & staff just days after being donated to Lincolnshire Wildlife Park in eastern England.

'It just went ballistic, they were all swearing,' the venue's chief executive Steve Nichols told CNN Travel...

The African grey parrots -- named Eric, Jade, Elsie, Tyson, & Billy -- were given to the park from 5 different owners within the same week, & shared a quarantining facility together before being placed on display...

'They literally, within a very short period of time, starting swearing at each other,' Nichols said. 'F**k off' is the most common one,' he explained -- 'it's a very easy one for them to learn'...

Most customers enjoyed the talent once the parrots were displayed. 'The visitors were giving them as much back as what they were giving to them,' Nichols said.

But concern for younger customers forced staff to split up the birds & temporarily remove them from the park's public areas. Staff now hope the birds' language will become more family-friendly now that they have been separated.

'To take in a swearing parrot isn't an unusual thing, it's something that happens probably 3 or 4 times a year,' Nichols said.

But the pandemic has led to a surge in donations, as owners spend more time with their birds & decide to give them to parks that can provide them with a larger living space, he explained...

African greys are among the most popular species of parrot. Around 1.1 million indoor birds were kept as pets in the UK in 2019, according to the Pet Food Manufacturers' Association."