Ring-necked parakeets have established large feral populations in southern Britain, raising welfare questions for both the parakeets and native species they may displace.
Parakeet welfare management involves complex value judgements: the parakeets themselves are cognitively sophisticated, social birds whose welfare matters; native species that may be displaced have welfare interests too; and the naturalised population has existed for generations with no reasonable prospect of eradication. The welfare of individual parakeets in control operations — licensed shooting — must be weighed against the diffuse welfare harm to native species that may be displaced. The evidence for significant ecological impact remains contested, which complicates the welfare justification for lethal control.