Drunk parrots falling from the sky in Australia

Drunken lorikeets are falling out of the sky. The Northern Territory may have the toughest alcohol laws in Australia, but a Palmerston vet is preparing for a season of alcohol-fuelled avian vertigo.

The noisy birds act in a drunken manner and then fall over, according to Ark Animal Hospital vet Dr Stephen Cutter.



He says they are not drinking alcohol, but may eat from a plant that causes them to become drunk. "It's probably a plant with alcohol, or toxins in a plant making it worse," he said.

Dr Cutter said The Ark had received about half a dozen sick parrots so far this year. "It usually happens every May - it's hard to predict," he said.