the naked neck is a breed of domestic chicken originating from transylvania. long called the “turken” and thought to be a hybrid between a chicken and turkey, these birds are just chickens with a gene that causes overproduction of a feather-blocking hormone. despite their featherless necks, they are known for being surprisingly hardy in all kinds of environments.
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two white feral rock doves take a bath. while naturally rock doves are grey, escaped pigeons & lost racing pigeons joined feral flocks & added in various mutations with their bloodlines. now, in most places it is stranger to see a pigeon flock that is only grey.
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the bourke’s parakeet is a small parrot native to australia. considered a ‘grass parrot’, the bourke’s parakeet mainly forages for grass seeds. the parakeets live in small flocks (though their numbers can grow during drought) and mate for life.
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a flock of major mitchell’s cockatoos at a watering hole. all cockatoo species are native to australia. cockatoos are very social; part of the reason why feather plucking is so common in cockatoos in captivity is they typically don’t receive enough social interaction.
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though many of us consider budgerigars just as domestic as a cat or dog, they have retained many of their wild traits – some escaped or released pet budgies have even formed their own feral colonies. in the wild, budgies mainly eat grass seeds, and forage in grasslands. they are highly social, and travel in large flocks, sometimes numbering in the thousands.
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a white pigeon stands in the middle of a flock of wild-type pigeons. while in the wild, they only are seen in grey, pet birds introduced to the feral pigeon population lead to color mutations like the white bird.
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a feral quaker parrot, naturally found in south america, tries a taste of sunflower. quaker parrots have established themselves throughout the world due to escapes and intentional releases from the pet trade, and some flocks number in the thousands.
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two feral pigeons take a bath. despite being stereotyped as dirty, pigeons are relatively clean birds, and regularly preen and wash themselves.
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an escaped fancy pigeon walks down the street. though pet pigeons come in many shapes, sizes, and colors, they are all descended from the gray rock dove.
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a feral budgerigar and quaker parrot feed alongside each other on spilled popcorn. through budgerigars are native to australia and quaker parrots are native to south america, both parrots have established feral populations in the united states, and surprise some by being commonly found in urban environments.
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today's bird 