Birds of a Feather

In preparation for exams, many of my students have been emailing me questions about specific cases.  One student (who gave me his permission to post this) wrote to me with a question about the “Red Parrot” case.  When I wrote back to ask whether he meant the “Red Owl” case, the student profusely apologized for using the wrong casename.  As he told me “I’m from Brooklyn, so the only birds I know about are pigeons.”

Well, it actually turns out that not only does a tree grow in Brooklyn, but parrots inhabit Brooklyn as well.  Proving that truth is stranger than fiction, yes, there is a large colony of wild parrots that live on the campus of Brooklyn College.  The Brooklyn Parrots website asks the intriguing question of how the parrots got there.  Was there an escape of parrots from a shipment at JFK airport?  Were they released from a pet store on Flatbush Avenue that was going out of business?  Did a truck carrying parrots overturn on the highway?  These hardy birds continue to inhabit the wilds of Brooklyn, despite the cold climate. 

And, yes, this officially continues my fixation with the Hoffman v. Red Owl

[Miriam Cherry]