Dear Yellowknife: is this your lost budgie?

The search is on for the owners of a budgie spotted near Yellowknife’s Frame Lake South.

Nicole Loubert was first made aware of the feathered friend a couple of weeks ago, after it was mistaken for Loubert’s own bird, a parrot. She thinks the bird was drawn to her yard because of its water.

“We’ve been playing with the pool and the sprinkler, and we ended up having so many birds in our yard because the water created a lot of puddles everywhere,” she said.

On spotting the bird, she wondered why a “green budgie that’s not a wild bird was following a bunch of [wild] birds.” She believes the budgie is an adult, based on its size.

In an attempt to keep the bird safe from the smoke, Loubert and her daughter tried to catch the bird and bring it inside – to no avail.

“We spent two hours trying to catch the bird with nets and treats, but it would just move higher and stick with the big birds,” she said.

After her unsuccessful attempts, she made a Facebook post hoping to locate the bird’s owner.

Since her post last week, the budgie has migrated around the corner to a neighbour’s fountain in search of more water.

Though the budgie has yet to be captured, some Facebook users have offered to adopt the bird if the original owners are not found.

“People get touched by animal stories in this town. They want to help and keep an eye out,” Loubert said.

If you happen to encounter the budgie, Loubert suggests making a gentle clicking sound with your mouth or playing budgie sound videos. Using bird treats like millet sticks never hurts either, she said.