Parrot returns to British owner speaking Spanish - four years after disappearing
Grey African parrot vanished from British owner's home in Torrance, California in 2010 before reappearing in the same town
Your support helps us to tell the story
From reproductive rights to climate change to Big Tech, The Independent is on the ground when the story is developing. Whether it's investigating the financials of Elon Musk's pro-Trump PAC or producing our latest documentary, 'The A Word', which shines a light on the American women fighting for reproductive rights, we know how important it is to parse out the facts from the messaging.
At such a critical moment in US history, we need reporters on the ground. Your donation allows us to keep sending journalists to speak to both sides of the story.
The Independent is trusted by Americans across the entire political spectrum. And unlike many other quality news outlets, we choose not to lock Americans out of our reporting and analysis with paywalls. We believe quality journalism should be available to everyone, paid for by those who can afford it.
Your support makes all the difference.A very British pet parrot named Nigel has been reunited with his owner after disappearing four years ago – but he now speaks Spanish.
Nigel, a grey African parrot, flew away from his home in California in 2010 but was returned to his British owner, Darren Chick, after he was discovered in Torrance, California.
Although the Spanish-speaking bird bit Mr Chick when he first saw him, the happy owner said: "He's doing perfect.”
Mr Chick says his bird’s British accent is gone, replaced by fluent Spanish – and someone called "Larry".
Even though he has no idea where the bird has been for the last four years, he claimed: "It's really weird, I knew it was him from the minute I saw him."
Nigel was discovered by Julia Sperling, who owns a dog-grooming parlour, after she took him in as he matched a missing pet advertisement she had seen.
“He was the happiest bird. He was singing and talking without control. He was barking like the dogs,” she said.
"I'm from Panama and he was saying, 'What happened?' in Spanish."
Miss Micco tracked Mr Chick by sifting through old sale records on Nigel’s microchip, eventually turning up with Nigel in tow. "I introduced myself and said, 'Have you lost a bird?' He initially said no. But he thought I meant recently.
"He looked at me like I was crazy."
Subscribe to Independent Premium to bookmark this article
Want to bookmark your favourite articles and stories to read or reference later? Start your Independent Premium subscription today.
Join our commenting forum
Join thought-provoking conversations, follow other Independent readers and see their replies
Comments