A runaway parrot has been causing a flap in a Speyside town.
Brightly coloured rosella parrot Graham absconded from his garden aviary in Dufftown last week after rats invaded it.
Since then his vivid red head has become a familiar sight in the treetops surrounding the Birchlea area of the town, where he has been dining on residents’ bird feeders.
Graham’s owners, Jenny and Derek Smith and their 18-year-old daughter Emma, are now desperate to get him safely – before he is attacked by other birds.
Mrs Smith, 50, said the bird was used to cold weather having lived in an outdoors aviary for years.
She said: “Graham is quite hardy and has been through a few harsh winters out in the garden, so the cold won’t bother him.
“The worry is crows could go for him, however he does seem to be getting on OK with them.
“People are trying to capture him so he can be returned to us, but so far he has evaded them at every turn.”
The parrot flew from his garden home last Wednesday when the Smiths took moves to protect him from rats.
Mrs Smith added: “We live just above Mortlach distillery, and when they knocked a shed down there it obviously disturbed a number of rats who had been living in it.
“Graham shares his aviary with guinea pigs and rabbits, and after one of the rabbits was attacked by a rat we decided to move the animals from the aviary to a safer place.
“When we were moving Graham though, he escaped from his net.”
Dufftown resident Elizabeth Squires, who has been feeding the bird, explained her surprise upon first catching a glimpse of Graham from her kitchen window.
She said: “I was at the sink when I glanced out the window and couldn’t believe what I was seeing, so I called my husband over to get a look.
“He spends most of his time in my garden and one down the road, and seems to be very happy flying free.
“One day I got really close to him, but he flew away into our apple tree and just sat there whistling loudly.”
When Mrs Squires next spots Graham, she plans to contact Mrs Smith and together they hope to capture him in a net.