In a bizarre incident that captured global attention, a wildlife park in England was compelled to take drastic action against a group of its most intelligent residents. Five African grey parrots at Lincolnshire Wildlife Park had to be separated after they began working together to swear at and laugh at visitors, creating a highly entertaining but problematic spectacle.
The Unruly Feathered Troublemakers
The event unfolded in 2020 at the Lincolnshire Wildlife Park. The park had introduced five African grey parrots into a shared enclosure. Renowned for their exceptional intelligence, these birds are known to do more than just mimic sounds; they can grasp context, tone, and social dynamics. It wasn't long before the keepers noticed the birds were not just copying words randomly. They were using them with clear intent and coordination.
The routine was remarkably consistent. One parrot would initiate the act with a quiet swear word. A second would promptly repeat it louder. As soon as visitors reacted with shock or amusement, the entire group would erupt into a chorus of profanity, followed by loud, human-like laughter. The parrots seemed to feed off the crowd's energy. A gasp or a laugh from people would only encourage them to perform more.
A Coordinated Comedy (or Menace) Act
Zoo staff observed that the birds appeared fully aware of their actions. They would time their outbursts perfectly as families approached their enclosure. The behaviour had a competitive edge, with each bird trying to outdo the other to get a bigger reaction from the audience, much like a group of mischievous schoolchildren. If visitors laughed nervously or walked away, the parrots would often laugh again, as if delivering a final mocking punchline.
This was far beyond simple mimicry. The parrots were engaging in social learning, a trait documented in highly intelligent species. They were actively reinforcing each other's bad behaviour, creating a feedback loop of swearing and laughter that turned their home into what staff humorously called the rudest classroom on the property.
The Inevitable Separation and Lasting Legacy
While many found the act hilarious, the consistent swearing became a significant issue for a family-friendly zoo. Faced with complaints, particularly from parents with young children, the park management made the decision to split up the feathered gang. The separation in 2020 was not a punishment but a strategy to break the cycle of reinforcement.
The story went massively viral on social media, with memes picturing the parrots in detention. Animal behaviour experts cited it as a perfect example of avian intelligence and social dynamics. Studies, including those in the journal Animal Cognition, show African greys can learn over 100 words and pick up behaviours from peers.
In a follow-up, zoo officials later reintroduced the parrots into larger, mixed-species groups. The new strategy aimed to 'dilute' the bad language by surrounding them with birds that didn't share the same vocabulary, a common technique in animal behaviour management. While the swearing parrots are no longer headline news, their story remains a classic case of how animal intelligence, peer pressure, and human reaction can combine to create unexpectedly familiar—and troublesome—behaviour.
