Parroting swears

Max-imum curses - Image from The Sun

What do you say when a parrot curses? More often than not you are speechless. Thats pretty much the reaction that Max the African Grey parrot gets when he hurls filthy words at visitors to the zoo where he stays. Max was donated to the zoo by his previous owner after getting thoroughly tired with his vocabulary. The five year old parrot has also learnt to mimic car alarms and mobile phone ringtones. Peter Hansom, the keeper at the zoo in Darlington, Durham, UK, says that the local schoolchildren are the ones who taught Max all the words. Hansom says he has to "hold my breath" when parents with small children in tow come and admire Max. Many times its just an innocent "hello" or "bye" but more often than not its nastier, punctuated with a lot of f*** offs. Max's favorite trick is to stick his head in tin cup in his cage and swear, probably knowing that it makes a louder sound.