Two critically endangered parrots were returned to London Zoo on Monday after being found more than 60 miles away in a Huntingdonshire village.

Lily and Margot, two blue-throated macaws, escaped the Regent's Park zoo on October 21 while flying freely as part of their daily routine. 

Their escape prompted an urgent search operation for the pair who were traced to the home of a family in Buckden after a number of tip offs from local residents. 

The pair fled the area before London Zoo birdkeepers arrived, but were followed to a field and public footpath in nearby Brampton on October 28.

Buckden resident Janine Pyke told The Hunts Post she spotted Lily and Margot in an altercation with a pair of crows at Hardwick Dene.

She said: "I was out on my break when I saw crows mobbing the macaws. I knew exactly what they were as they're very distinctive. 

"I was stunned and delighted and rushed in to tell my colleagues. I also realised that while I was lucky to have seen them, they may have been in danger.

"I posted on the Buckden residents Facebook page to find out if any locals had lost a couple of macaws in a bid to find their owner. It was then I found out they were the escapees Lily and Margot.

She added: "I heard the birdkeepers had located them very shortly after not too far away. I was so pleased they were safe."

A Zoological Society of London spokesperson said the pair were taken into quarantine in the zoo's hospital, a standard process. 

They added: "The quarantine window lasts for 30 days, to protect the health of Lily, Margot and the other animals living at London Zoo. 

"Lily and Margot are both doing well and are their usual loud, chirpy selves, with no visible injuries.

"They are, however, a little tired from their long flight, so zookeepers are giving them plenty of food – pecans and walnuts – and lots of rest."

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