Yeah…someone had a video on Youtube of some conures eating their loquats… I could imagine a flock of macaws would about empty a fruit tree.
Do you have common grey squirrels? Will they try to get your bananas?
There are plenty of them in nearby neighborhoods but they do not enter my yard, mainly because I do not leave any place for them to hide from predators – of which there are plenty.
Bananas are not left to ripen on the plant, but rather harvested when one or two fingers are sufficiently ripe. Then the entire bunch is cut off and hung indoors to ripen – for example in the garage. Consequently there is little if any pest damage.
Now with Orioles … as you know they weave their nests. When the local Orioles discover banana leaves they are so happy … fluttering about, chatting about them, and carefully pulling thread-diameter fibers off the leaves. At my previous home one couple was so excited they built a condominium by tying a 3-ft leaf long ways, creating little chambers and a hidden entrance. The amount of damage is minimal. I’ve sometimes noticed them pecking at the upper fruits but only leaving pock marks because the skins are so tough at that stage. 
Clipped off the male end of the inflorescence today.
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Hey! Good timing!! Just when we finished the last of the Namwa’s, tonight I noticed these were ripening 
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Today.
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Better get started!
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Today.
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Try to dehydrate some if you can’t consume them fast enough.
Tony
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Won’t be a problem around here! These have a sub-acid quality, as if there’s a bit of nectarine flavor. Everyone loves them. Should be fully ripe in a day or two.
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Sure look ripe now!
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That would be true for store-bought “chichita” brand bananas, which are harvested unripe and then gassed in the hull of a boat to simulate ripening. However, if you were to taste one of these bananas in my photo you’d find it under-ripe.
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I gave the first hand to my dentist’s practice, the second to my neighbors, and the rest are destined to a weekend banana feast!
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I love the flour girl … 
For those who are too young to remember the song (I love the flower girl):
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Ties and short hair!
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Flag leaf! The next growth to emerge will be an inflorescence. Great timing with warmer weather on its way.
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Perfect timing!
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