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Parrot Magazines
Back to blogging! I have been too busy to do much writing during this last semester because I was teaching three classes and two labs at two different university campuses in two different cities. I barely had time to breathe. However, one of the classes was a fourth-year ornithology class I particularly enjoy teaching and had done before (the other two were new ones). I took Peggy to the first lecture and Ripley to the last lecture and they were quite popular.
I am going to continue to blog about parrots, but am going to start to write about the native birds of North America as well, since I really enjoy bird watching and photographing the wild birds of Alberta (where I live).
On the subject of parrots, my Green-cheek Conure mix, Chiku, was featured on the cover of Parrots magazine. I wrote an article for that issue on Pyrrhura conures.
I lifted the above image from the magazine publisher’s website. I plan to write a few more articles for Parrots this summer.
Unfortunately, a lot of specialty magazines for bird owners have quit publishing recently. Bird Talk stopped publishing a few months ago, and Good Bird stopped publishing this month. Good Bird had been an ‘online only’ magazine for a couple of years, but Bird Talk was always a printed magazine. I had been noticing that Bird Talk was progressively shrinking during its last few years of publication (which I didn’t like) but I’m still disappointed that it went under.
So, what’s left for parrot magazines? There’s Parrots magazine (www.parrotmag.com), which is based out of the UK, and a new one called In Your Flock (https://www.inyourflock.com/), which is based out of the US. I subscribed to the online version of In Your Flock since the publisher hadn’t specified a price for shipping to Canada. However, I recently received a paper copy of the latest issue, so that was a nice surprise.
There’s also Australian Bird Keeper (http://www.birdkeeper.com.au/), which is based out of Australia. Unfortunately, it is quite expensive for people outside of Australia due to shipping charges.
There are a few free online bird publications too. Copies of Parrot Life magazine can be downloaded at http://www.hagen.com/hari/welcome.html . There’s also the Winged Things newsletter – click HERE to download April’s issue. There are instructions in the .pdf on how to subscribe and access past issues.
I’m sure I’ve missed things, so if anyone would like to add a link to a parrot-related publication, use the comments section (click the comments link at the top of the post) to let me know. Please do note that I have sporadic internet access this summer, which means it can take me time to approve comments.
To end this post, I am going to share a nice photo of a Mountain Bluebird I took last week. I’m working as an interpreter at Waterton Lakes National Park this summer and have been doing a lot of birding and hiking during my ‘off time.’
Living with a Jenday Conure
Hey, that Jenday Conure on the cover of the December 2012 “Parrots” magazine looks very familiar!
That’s Peggy, my Jenday Conure. She’s the subject of a feature article I wrote about Jenday Conures. I also outlined how she has adapted to living with only one foot.
She lost one foot in a mishap with a plush bird tent. She had chewed it up and gotten her leg caught in the loose threads and unfortunately, it couldn’t be saved. She’s not the first bird I’ve heard of who has lost an appendage that way, so be cautious with giving birds plush items or ropes.
She has adapted well to her handicap. She can perch just fine, although I do have to provide her with wide, textured perches so she doesn’t slip and fall. Her food also has to be chopped up into bite-sized pieces since she cannot hold food with her feet. Otherwise, she doesn’t need much in the way of special accomodations.
Jendays have a reputations for being extremely loud and screechy. Indeed, I usually warn prospective Jenday owners that these birds are shrill, loud, and are rarely good talkers. Peggy cannot talk at all. I must admit, however, that her other vocalizations don’t bother me much. She’s really not excessively noisy and doesn’t scream much. She will screech if startled or to answer another bird’s call, but she’s not nearly as loud as my cockatoo or macaw. Even so, a lot of Jendays (and the related Sun Conures) do lose their homes due to their voices. They are more likely to be noisy if neglected or if kept in a very noisy household.
Jendays are often mistaken for Sun Conures, but Sun Conures have yellow on the wings (that Jendays lack). Jendays are also similar in appearance to Gold-capped Conures, but the latter are largely green, with a bit of red on the belly and head.
The above illustration (by Frank Knight, from “Parrots of the World” by Joseph Forshaw) shows the difference between Sun and Jenday Conures. Note that the Sun Conure has yellow on the top of the wings, while the Jenday does not. Both species are brighter-coloured as adults than they are as juveniles.
Jendays occur in southeast Brazil (see range map below) and they are not considered endangered, although ultimately very little is known about population trends.
Range of the Jenday Conure. From http://www.iucnredlist.org
Sun Conures occur further north and west (see range map below), and they are considered endangered. Trapping for the pet trade and habitat destruction contintue to pose a threat to its continued existence in the wild.
Range of the Sun Conure. From http://maps.iucnredlist.org/
There is one population of Sun Conure that some ornithologists have proposed is a separate species. It occurs in the southern part of the Sun Conure’s range and has some green shading on the upper part of the wings and less orange on the chest. It has been named Aratinga pintoi.
Aratinga pintoi. Painting by Eduardo Parentoni Brettas.
Sun Conures and Jenday Conures are likely the most popular of the Aratinga conures. While they can rarely talk, they can make interesting, interactive pets, due to their bold and curious personalities. They are also among the most beautifully-coloured of birds. They usually do well on a diet of parrot pellets, supplemented with fresh fruit, vegetables, whole grains, seeds and nuts. They can be quite demanding of attention, and require a good variety of chew toys. Many conures are also acrobatic and enjoy swings and ropes (although I keep all my birds’ rope toys outside their cages so I can be sure they don’t unravel them).
Conures have a reputation for being nippy, although Peggy is actually quite gentle. She will grab onto people’s fingers with her beak before she will step up on someone’s hand, but that’s only so she can steady herself. Conures who are nippy often benefit from training with positive reinforcement (such as clicker training). Regular, gentle handling starting from the time of fledging can also help with preventing a bird from becoming nippy.
I’ll end with this photo I took of Peggy a few months ago. She’s incredibly photogenic!
References
Forshaw JM, Knight F (illustrator). 2010. Parrots of the World (Princeton Field Guides). Princeton University Press: Princeton, NJ, USA
Silveira LF, de Lima FCD, Høfling E. 2005. A new species of Aratinga parakeet (Psittaciformes: Psittacidae) from Brazil, with taxonomic remarks on the Aratinga solstitialis complex. The Auk 122: 292-305.
What’s in my birds’ ‘chop.’
Back to blogging! I’ve been extremely busy at work so I haven’t been able to post much during the past three months. However, I should be able to write a few new posts during the winter break.
For this post, I am going to outline what I put in the home-made bird food mix I feed to my birds. My birds do eat a base diet of either pellets (for the parrots), seeds (for the finches and grass parakeets), or game bird mix (quail) but I do feed them all a mix of cooked grain and fresh vegetables a few times per week. I usually make a large batch and freeze little batches in zip-lock baggies. That way, I only have to prepare the mix every few weeks.
Bird blogger Patricia Sund has popularized and written a lot about this method of preparing bird-food mix (“chop”). It does make feeding a large group of birds easier and quicker.
The ‘chop’ I tend to make usually contains a base of grains and pseudograins. ‘Pseudograins’ include amaranth and quinoa. I call them pseudograins, since they are technically not grains (they are not from plants in the grass family), but they are prepared in a similar way. Amaranth was used as a staple food by the Aztecs, and it is still grown in limited quantities in Mexico. It is also grown in India. Quinoa was domesticated in the Andes and today, most quinoa is grown in Peru, Bolivia, and Ecuador. Quinoa is starting to become easier to find and most large grocery stores carry it, in their bulk sections or with the rice. Amaranth can be trickier to find but many health-food stores carry it.
I use amaranth and/or quinoa because they contain all of the essential amino acids that birds need. Amaranth in particular contains a good amount of lysine and methionine, which are the two amino acids that are likely to be lacking in a seed diet. Methionine is needed for proper feather formation. Birds can convert it to the amino acid cysteine, which is a large component of the proteins found in feathers. I have found that finches and grass parakeets will eat quinoa or amaranth.
The grains I use vary with each batch but can include quick-cook barley, brown rice, millet, whole wheat couscous, or bulgur. I don’t use white rice, as it doesn’t have much in the way of vitamins, minerals or protein. I cook all grains and pseudograins.
I also add finely-chopped, raw leafy greens to the mix. Other than the society finches, my birds in general won’t eat greens on their own. If I grind them up and add them to a mix containing other foods, they will consume them. The two greens I use most are dandelion greens and kale. Both are very high in vitamin A and calcium. Kale in particular is not only high in calcium, but the calcium it contains can be absorbed by the body quite easily. I don’t use spinach, since the calcium in spinach is not well-absorbed (by humans or animals).
I usually include hulled sesame seeds in the mix, because they contain calcium, and chia and flax seeds, because they are a good source of essential fatty acids. The birds also seem to like them.
Other items I may add include peas, shredded carrot, green beans, cooked lentils, corn, and chopped pepper. Birds will eat hot peppers, so I often use jalapeno peppers.
The mix will vary a bit each time I make it, so the birds do eat a good variety of food. All of my birds do eat this mix, including the finches. I used to leave the larger bits, like corn, peas, green beans and carrot pieces out of the version I made for the finches, but when I gave the finches some mix that had those items, they would eat them by placing them under their feet and pecking at them.
This mix does not comprise the entire diet for my birds. The parrots eat pellets and the finches eat seeds. However, I do give them some of this mix a few times per week and they seem to enjoy it. There are other foods I feed them as well, including nuts, bananas, sprouted seeds, plain seeds, mango, muffins, cooked beans, and berries. The macaw in particular (I have a Blue and Gold Macaw now) receives more nuts than the other birds. I will also feed laying finches or molting birds cooked egg white.
I’ll end this post with a picture of my Maroon-bellied Conure, Lucy, eating. Birds are very messy eaters.
Extinct Parrots of the Eastern Hemisphere
In my last post, I introduced the extinct parrots of the Western Hemisphere. In this post, I will introduce the extinct parrots of the Eastern Hemisphere. All but one of these extinct species occurred on small islands. Parrot species restricted to small islands are particularly prone to extinction for several reasons. First, since island species occur on very small areas, populations will naturally be small, so any amount of habitat destruction or hunting will have a negative effect on them. Additionally, isolated islands often lack mammals, which are not as effective as dispersing to islands as the more mobile birds are. As a result, species on isolated islands often lose their instinctive fear of mammals and thus suffer greatly when humans and their pets and livestock arrive.
Extinct Parrots of the Mascarene Islands
The Mascarene Islands are in the Indian Ocean east of Madagascar. They include Mauritius, Réunion and Rodrigues, along with several smaller islands. They are volcanic in origin, which means they were never attached to any mainland. This implies that all flora and fauna there would have had to disperse there from other islands or the continents. Thus, there are many birds on the islands, but few mammals. No humans inhabited the islands until Europeans arrived there in the 1600s, an event that was catastrophic for the birds.
Above: map showing location of the Mascarene Islands.
Much of the bird fauna of the Mascarene Islands is now extinct and this includes a few parrot species. The Broad-billed Parrot (Lophopsittacus mauritianus) was found on the island of Mauritius. It was a very curious-looking animal and what is known about its appearance is based on subfossils, three drawings, and two written descriptions. It was quite large, grey (possibly with a blue head), and had a small crest of feathers on the head. It was evidently a very slow, poor flier. Given the lack of ground-based mammalian predators on Mauritius, several species (such as the infamous dodo) evolved flightlessness or poor flight ability. Flight, and the development of the large muscles needed for flight, is a very energetically expensive process, so when bird species have no need for flight to escape predators or forage, they often lose their flying abilities. The Broad-billed Parrot appeared to eat large seeds that could be found on the ground, so it did not need flight to forage.
Broad-billed Parrot illustration by Henrik Gronvold (1907).
Due to its evolutionary history spent on an island with no mammalian predators, Broad-billed Parrots had very little natural fear of man or other mammals, and they were hunted extensively by European travellers and settlers. Introduced rats, cats, mongooses and monkeys also likely preyed on the birds’ eggs and young. The Broad-billed Parrot did not last long after the arrival of mammals to Mauritius, and they disappeared in the late 1600s.
Another parrot existed on the island of Mauritius. It has been placed in the genus Lophopsittacus, but was recently moved to Psittacula, which is the genus that contains the Indian Ring-neck Parakeet. This species, the Mauritius Grey Parrot, or Thirioux’s Grey Parrot, is known from archaeological specimens and traveller’s accounts. It was hunted to extinction because it was extremely easy to catch. Sketches made by Dutch travellers in the 1600s show hunters catching the birds by hand.
Mauritius Grey Parrots were also very attracted to the distress calls of their flockmates; thus, when one bird was caught, it would call and attract other birds. These other birds could then be easily caught by hunters. Grey parrots were also found on the island of Réunion, and they may have been a subspecies of the Mauritius Grey Parrots. They, too, were very easy to catch. They were extinct by the 1750s.
The Mascarene Parrot (Mascarinus mascarinus) occurred on the island of Réunion, and possibly Mauritius (based on vague traveller’s descriptions). It is known from subfossils, descriptions and specimens. Two specimens of this bird still exist in museums.
If Mascarene Parrots occurred on Mauritius, they likely went extinct there very shortly after the arrival of humans. A few specimens were brought to Europe, but most died by 1800, although one hung on until 1834. They were likely gone from the wild by 1800.
Mascarene Parrot, illustration by J. G. Keulemans
Small amounts of DNA have been extracted from a museum specimen of the Mascarene Parrot. Phylogenetic analyses have shown that this species is most closely related to the Lesser Vasa Parrot (Coracopsis nigra, also known as the Black Parrot). Lesser Vasa Parrots occur on Madagascar, Comoros, Mayotte and Seychelles.
The Rodrigues Parrot (Necropsittacus rodericanus) occurred on the island of Rodrigues. It is known from traveller’s descriptions and subfossils. They were green, with large heads and long tails. The last report of the species being seen alive was in 1761.
Rodrigues Parrot, illustration by J. G. Keulemans. As decriptions of this bird were rather vague, the accuracy of this reproduction is unknown.
Another now extinct parrot also occurred on Rodrigues – the Newton’s Parakeet (or Rodrigues Parakeet). This bird was smaller than the Rodrigues Parrot and was about the size of an Indian Ringneck. Unlike wild Indian Ringneck Parakeets, these birds were a slate-grey colour. They looked much like the grey variants of the Indian Ringneck which occurs in some avicultural collections. There are two skins of this bird in existence, and both are at the Cambridge University Museum. The Newton’s Parakeet was last seen alive in 1875.
Newton’s Parakeet, illustration by J. G. Keulemans
The Seychelles
The Seychelles are an island chain located in the Indian Ocean, north of the Mascarene Islands and east of Kenya and Tanzania. Like the Mascarene Islands, the Seychelles lost much of its fauna shortly after the arrival of humans. However, the losses weren’t quite as severe as they were on the Mascarene Islands. However, one parrot species was lost from the island chain: the Seychelles Parakeet (Psittacula wardi).
Ten specimens of the Seychelle’s Parakeet exist today. The bird resembled the Alexandrine Parakeet, but lacked the rosy-coloured collar on the nape and instead had some blue suffusion there and on the cheeks.
The Seychelle’s Parakeet disappeared during the early 1900s. It was apparently a crop pest and was hunted extensively by farmers.
Seychelle’s Parakeet, illustration by J. G. Keulemans
Norfolk Island
Norfolk Island is located between New Zealand and New Caledonia. It was inhabited by Polynesians for several generations during the fourteenth-fifteenth centuries, although it was uninhabited when James Cook visited it in 1774. The bird fauna of this island suffered greatly as humans started settling it, and several species were driven to extinction due to predation by rats and cats. Some bird species were also persecuted by humans for being agricultural pests. One of the extinct species was a parrot, the Norfolk Island Kaka (Nestor productus).
The Norfolk Island Kaka was closely related to the Kaka (Nestor meridionalis) of New Zealand. They resembled New Zealand Kaka but had more orange colouring on the breast and cheeks. Several specimens of this species still exist in zoological museums. The Norfolk Island Kaka appears to have disappeared from the wild by the 1830s, and the last captive one died in 1851.
Norfolk Island Kaka (top), New Zealand Kaka (bottom). Illustration by J. G. Keulemans
French Polynesia
There are two extinct parrot species that occurred in French Polynesia, and both are closely related to the Kakarikis of New Zealand.
The Society Parakeet (Cyanoramphus ulietanus) occurred on the island of Raiatea in the Society Islands and it went extinct shortly after its discovery in the late 1700s. Two museum species of this species exist. Unlike the New Zealand Kakarikis, this bird had largely earth-toned feathers. Predation by invasive species (such as rats) likely contributed to its demise.
Society Parakeet
The Black-fronted Parakeet (or Tahiti Parakeet, Cyanoramphus zealandicus) was endemic to Tahiti, and it lasted somewhat longer than the Society Parakeet, as it went extinct in the 1800s. Black-fronted Parakeets looked much like the New Zealand Kakarikis, but they had black lores, red cheeks and red rumps. There are a few specimens of this bird in zoological museums. As is the case with many other species from isolated islands, predation by introduced mammals contributed greatly to demise of the Black-fronted Parakeet.
Black-fronted Parakeet, illustration from Iconographie Orthinologique, by Marc Athanase Parfait Œillet Des Murs.
Australia
The last bird discussed here is the only one that did not occur on a small island. The Paradise Parrot (Psephotus pulcherrimus) occurred in northeastern Australia and the last confirmed observation of it was in 1928, although some claimed to see it later than that. Factors that lead to its extinction include habitat destruction, drought, overgrazing, and predation of nests by introduced and native predators.
As its name suggests, the Paradise Parrot was a very colourful and beautiful bird. It was a vivid green-blue, with scarlet feathers on the rump, abdomen, chest and head, and black feathers on the top of the head, wings and back. A few black and white photos of the bird exist, along with museum specimens. They were largely ground feeders and were quite approachable.
The Paradise Parrot is a close relative of the Red-rumped Parrot (Psephotus haematonotus), the Mulga Parrot (Psephotus varius), the Blue Bonnet (Psephotus haematogaster) and Golden-shouldered Parrot (Psephotus chrysopterygius).
Paradise Parrot, illustration by W. T Greene
References
Forshaw, J. M., and Cooper, W. T. (Illustrator). 1977. Parrots of the World. TFH Publications, Neptune, NJ, USA.
Hume, J. P. 2007. Reappraisal of the parrots (Aves: Psittacidae) from the Mascarene Islands, with comments on their ecology, morphology, and affinities. Zootaxa, 1513, 1-76.
IUCN 2012. IUCN Red List of Threatened Species. Version 2012.1. www.iucnredlist.org
Kundu, S. Jones, C. G., Prys-Jones, R. P., and Groombridge, J. J. 2012. The evolution of the Indian Ocean Parrots (Psittaciformes): Extinction, adaptive radiation, and eustacy. Molecular Phylogenetics and Evolution, 62, 296-305.
Extinct Parrots Part I: The Western Hemisphere
While a few parrot species are quite abundant, many are endangered due to habitat destruction or capture for the pet trade. Additionally, several island species (like the Ultramarine Lorikeet or Kakapo) are endangered because they have been preyed upon extensively by introduced predators, such as cats or rats. Many parrot species exist in the wild today only because of intense efforts by conservationists to protect them.
Unfortunately, it is too late to save some parrot species. This series of articles will introduce the extinct species, starting with those from the Western Hemisphere. The majority of extinct parrots from that area are species that occurred in the Caribbean. Unless otherwise noted, the paintings with this article were done by the Dutch bird illustrator John Gerrard Keulemans. They appeared in the book Extinct Birds by Walter Rothschild. The below chart lists the extinct parrot species from the Caribbean, and North and South America.
Two of the extinct parrots of the Caribbean were Amazons. The Martinique Amazon occurred on the island of Martinique, and it disappeared in 1722. The likely cause of extinction was deforestation, and possibly hunting.
Martinique Amazon.
The Martinique Amazon was a green bird, with some red on the wings, throat and tail. The head was apparently slate coloured.
The Guadeloupe Amazon occurred on the island of Guadeloupe, and the last records of it are from 1779, although it is unclear exactly when it went extinct. A combination of hunting and deforestation likely lead to its demise.
Guadeloupe Amazon
The Guadeloupe Amazon was, like most Amazons, a primarily green bird. However, the neck, head and belly were violet mixed with black, and they had yellow and red on the wings. These birds looked much like Imperial Amazons, which still occur on the island of Dominica.
There are no specimens left of either of the Martinique or the Guadeloupe Amazon, and they are known only from traveler’s accounts.
There are six possible extinct macaws from the Western Hemisphere and five of these are from the Caribbean. I say six “possible” macaws, as some of the species listed below may be subspecies of each other.
The Dominican Green-and-Yellow Macaw occurred on Dominica and was described in 1791. It is known from the writings of only one person, and there are no archaeological remains of it. It was apparently green and yellow with some red on the head. It is unclear when it went extinct, but it was likely during the late 18th or early 19th century. The birds were hunted as a source of food and were sometimes kept as pets.
The Jamaican Green-and-Yellow Macaw, much like the other extinct parrots described thus far, is known only from written descriptions. It was described in 1847, and likely disappeared in the 19th century.
The written description of this bird, by a Mr. Gosse, is as follows:
“:—” Head red; neck, shoulders, and underparts of a light and lively green; the greater wing coverts and quills, blue; and the tail scarlet and blue on the upper surface, with the under plumage, both of wings and tail, a mass of intense orange yellow. The specimen here described was procured in the mountains of Trelawny and St. Anne’s by Mr. White, proprietor of the Oxford estate.”
Jamaican Green and Yellow Macaw. The “yellow” on this bird was under the wings and tail.
Mr. Gosse also noted that a Reverend had seen two of the birds flying at the foot of the mountains.
The extinct Jamaican Red Macaw appears to have resembled the extinct Cuban Macaw, and the two may have been of the same species. Unlike the Cuban Macaw, of which there are specimens left, the Jamaican Red Macaw is known only from descriptions. The last known specimen was taken in 1765.
Mr. Gosse described it as follows:
Basal half of upper mandible black ; apical half, ash coloured ; lower mandible, black, tip only ash coloured ; forehead, crown, and back of neck, bright yellow ; sides of face, around eyes, anterior and lateral parts of the neck, and back, a fine scarlet ; wing coverts and breast deep sanguine red ; winglet and primaries an elegant light blue. The legs and feet are said to have been black ; the tail, red and yellow intermixed (Rob.)
Jamaican Red Macaw
The Lesser Antillean Macaw is another primarily red, Caribbean Macaw that is known only from descriptions. This bird was described by multiple authors and appeared to be rare by 1760. It occurred on Guadeloupe and Martinique.
The Cuban Macaw occurred on Cuba and the Isla de la Juventud (Isle of Pines), which is just off the coast of western Cuba. It is much better known that the other extinct Caribbean Parrots, as several skins exist in museums.
Cuban Macaws were widely hunted for meat and for the pet trade, and they also experienced a major loss of habitat due to deforestation. The last documented specimen was shot in 1864, though the species may have held on until 1885.
Cuban Macaws were primarily red, with blue on the wings and tail. They were a little smaller than other members of the genus Ara, at about 40-50 cm long.
Cuban Macaw
There was one conure species that occurred on Guadeloupe, the Guadeloupe Parakeet. These were green conures with pale beaks. They also had a bit of red on the head. Apparently, they were kept as pets and could be taught to speak easily. The species may have occurred on Martinique and Barbados as well, although due to a lack of clear descriptions of the conures that occurred on those islands, they have not been given taxonomic names. The conures on those islands may have been imports from the mainland. Guadeloupe Parakeets appeared to have gone extinct in the second half of the 18th century.
Guadeloupe Conure
Rothschild also lists a species of “purple macaw” (Anodorhynchus purpurascens) that is proposed to have existed on Guadeloupe.
Purple Macaw of Guadeloupe?
The above illustration shows a Purple Macaw. It does look suspiciously like a Hyacinth Macaw (Anodorhynchus hyacinthicus) and the Purple Macaws may have simply been hyacinths (or perhaps Lear’s Macaws) from the mainland. However, hyacinths are more of a cobalt blue than violet, and some travelers did report seeing violet parrots on Guadeloupe. However, those may have been Guadeloupe Amazons. Since the descriptions of the various Caribbean parrots from the 1600-1800s were so vague, very little is known about the ones that went extinct.
There are other paintings of extinct macaw species in Rothschild’s book and they are interesting to say the least. The paintings are based on collections of vague descriptions of macaws and since these birds look so much like hybrids of hyacinths and scarlet or blue and gold macaws, I wonder if they were based on separate descriptions of completely different macaws brought from the mainland. The bird labelled “Ara erythrura” looks like it has a hyacinth head on a blue and gold’s body (with a scarlet macaw tail) and the bird labelled “Ara martinicus” looks like a hyacinth mixed with a blue and gold.
Macaw (“Ara erythrura”)
Macaw (“Ara martinicus“)
Speaking of Hyacinth Macaws, there is one potentially extinct blue macaw from mainland South America that most certainly did exist. I am referring to the Glaucous Macaw (Anodorhynchus glaucus), formerly of northern Argentina, southern Paraguay, northeastern Uruguay and adjacent parts of Brazil. It probably went extinct during the 1960s. However, the IUCN (International Union for the Conservation of Nature) lists the species as “critically endangered,” since there is a small possibility that a few birds exist in very isolated areas.
Glaucous Macaw painting by Bourjot Saint-Hilaire
The most recent parrot extinction in the Western Hemisphere involved the Carolina Parakeet. This bird – a close relative of the Aratinga conures – occurred in woodlands in the eastern United States. This is the only parrot species that occurred in the eastern US in historic times. The last documented wild specimen was killed in 1908 and the last captive individual died at the Cincinnati Zoo in 1918.
Several factors contributed to the demise of the Carolina Parakeet. Much of their habitat was destroyed by European settlers, and introduced honeybees competed with the birds for nesting holes. The birds were also shot for their plumage, which was used to decorate women’s hats, and for being agricultural pests. Unfortunately, the birds’ habit of gathering around fallen flock members made them an easy target for hunters.
DNA obtained from museum specimens of Carolina Parakeets has been compared to that of several extant South and Central American species. The Carolina Parakeet’s closest living relatives include Aratinga auricapillus (Gold-capped Conure), Aratinga solstitialis (Sun Conure), and Nandayus nenday (Nanday Conure). The Jenday Conure (Aratinga jandaya) is also likely a close relative but was not included in the study.
Carolina Parakeets. Painting by John James Audubon.
The next post in this series will describe the recently extinct parrot species of the Eastern Hemisphere. As is the case with the Western Hemisphere, most of these species were from islands.
Major References
Kirchman, J. J., Schirtzinger , E. E., and Wright, T. F. 2012. Phylogenetic relationships of the extinct Carolina Parakeet (Conuropsis carolinensis) inferred from DNA sequence data. Auk, 129, 197-294.
IUCN 2012. IUCN Red List of Threatened Species. Version 2012.1. http://www.iucnredlist.org
Rothschild, LW. 1907. Extinct birds : an attempt to unite in one volume a short account of those birds which have become extinct in historical times : that is, within the last six or seven hundred years: to which are added a few which still exist, but are on the verge of extinction. Hutchinson and Co., London. Online Version.
Feeding Finches, Budgies and other Seed-eating Birds
I’ve written a bit about feeding parrots in the post “The Benefits of Fresh Food for your Companion Parrot.” Generally, most parrots will do just fine on a diet of pellets and healthful fresh foods. A few, like lories, do have more specialized needs, although there are commercial nectar mixes for them. Finches, on the other hand, can be very difficult to convert to pellets, and I’ve noticed that few finch keepers actually feed pellets. Budgies and Australian grass parakeets can also be extremely difficult to convince to eat pellets. Therefore, my finches, budgie. and Bourke’s Parakeet all receive a base diet of seeds. However, seeds do not provide them with all the nutrients and minerals they need. Luckily, there are some non-seed items that they will eat, and I think I’ve been successful in getting them to eat a healthful diet.
Bourke’s Parakleet
The seed mixes my finches eat are generally lacking in vitamin A. However, the majority of my finches will eat broccoli, which contains a great deal of vitamin A and some calcium, so I place some broccoli in their cages several times a week. The Society Finches in particular really snap it up.
The seed mixes also don’t contain sufficient protein or all the amino acids the birds need. There are a few ways I remedy this. I’ve found that most birds are willing to consume cooked quinoa, and that includes my finches and Australian parakeets. I frequently offer them cooked, cooled quinoa. Since the budgie and Bourke’s Parakeet don’t eat broccoli, I do get them to consume some green matter by grinding some greens very finely in a food processor and mixing it with the quinoa. They will generally eat that. Sometimes I use bulgur or millet instead of quinoa. I frequently feed a mix of chopped greens and grain and/or quinoa to my parrots as well, but I will add peas, beans and chopped vegetables to it.
Cooked egg is also a wonderful source of protein, and I also offer it to the seed eaters a couple times per week. I offer “egg food” daily to finches who are laying eggs or feeding youngsters. Gouldians who are molting also receive it daily. The egg food mix can vary slightly but it will contain ground, cooked egg (with shell if I am feeding laying females), very finely ground greens (often dandelion greens), ground flax seed and ground commercial egg mix. I more often than not leave out the egg yolk for non-breeding birds and will add more greens, so they don’t become overweight. Button Quail also seem to like this food. All of my seed-eating birds will gladly eat egg.
Society Finches
Another way I get extra nutrition into the seed eaters is by sprouting the seeds. That does change their nutritional content for the better. Sprouting could be another topic on its own, but I’ve provided a about it at the end of this post. I offer sprouted seeds to my large parrots as well.
Finally, I do give the finches, budgies and Bourke’s a vitamin supplement every week and they all have a cuttlebone in their cage. The supplement I use is called “Prime,” and it is designed for birds on a seed diet. I do not put it in the water but rather place it in their peanut- or almond butter. This is a trick I learned from the breeder of my Gouldians. The Gouldians I got were all used to eating peanut butter and I offered some to my Society, Zebra and Spice Finches. They loved it! Since they all eat it, I use it as a way to give them vitamin supplements.
Link
(this article seems aimed at parrot owners, but sprouts for finches can be prepared the same way. Just use small seeds).
Stuff your Parrot Probably (or absolutely) Doesn’t Need
All sorts of products produced for pet parrots are useful and make caring for them a bit easier. These include toys, pellets, and perches. However, there are several products on the market that most parrots really don’t need and that may, in fact, be harmful. Others may be useful for birds like quail or pigeons, but not for parrots. Here are a few examples:
1. Sandpaper Perches
These are usually dowel perches coated in sandpaper and are supposed to help keep a parrot’s nails short. In theory, when the parrot walks or lands on the perch, its nails may touch the sandpaper and be gradually filed short. However, these perches are actually quite rough on a bird’s foot and are best avoided.
2. Vitamin Supplements
Vitamin supplements do have their use, but a parrot that eats a diet of pellets and healthy fresh foods (like whole grains, fruits, and vegetables) will not need a vitamin supplement. There are a few vitamins and minerals that can actually be harmful if overdosed.
A vitamin supplement can be useful for a bird that is eating a primarily seed-based diet. Ideally, parrots on a seed diet should be encouraged to eat other foods but this can take time. A vitamin supplement may be needed until the bird learns to eat a better diet. Some vitamins, like “Prime” (Hagen) are designed for birds on a primarily seed-based diet.
3. Grit
Parrots generally don’t “need” grit (i.e. pieces of hard substances like oyster shell), but birds like pigeons and quail can benefit from receiving small pinches of it. Pigeons and quail do not hull shells off of their food and the grit will help grind the shells off in the bird’s crop. However, parrots and finches will typically hull seeds before eating them and they don’t require grit for digestion. Parrot pellets and most of the fresh foods people feed to parrots are soft enough that a parrot’s digestive system can grind them without grit.
Some breeders offer pinches of calcium-rich grit (like ground oyster shells) to their parrots as a mineral supplement. Offering grit is also quite common among Australian bird keepers. Wild parrots often do consume some clay or dirt, but this is typically to gain minerals lacking in the rest of their diet. A pet (non-breeding) parrot on a pellet-based diet should receive sufficient minerals. However, small pinches of grit (a few grains) will not hurt a healthy bird. Even so, I do not offer it to my parrots or finches. My egg-laying finches receive extra calcium in the form of ground-up egg shells. The egg and shell are cooked, ground up in a food processor with vegetables and given to the finches. I also add “Prime” to their egg mix.
My quail do receive pinches of oyster shell. Avoid offering a bird on a seed-based diet a large amount of grit at once. The bird may eat too much of it and can end up with an impacted crop or badly irritated digestive system.
4. Cedar, Walnut- or Corn-based Bedding
Plain newspaper is perfectly fine to use as a liner for parrot cages. Some places sell other types of liner for animal cages, and some are actually harmful to small animals. Cedar-based bedding, for example, can cause respiratory problems in parrots and small mammals. Other types (such as corn-based bedding) may grow mold if it becomes damp. Walnut litter may actually be ingested by birds, so I do not recommend using it in bird cages.
My quail do require some type of soft substrate since they are ground-based birds. I use a paper-based one such as care fresh or ecobedding. I use the unscented or coloured types. Aspen shavings are also fine as bedding for quail and other birds.
5. Mite Protectors
Mites are actually quite rare in indoor parrots, so avoid using any of the mite protectors that are sometimes sold in pet shops. They generally do more harm than good. If your bird actually appears to have parasites, consult with a veterinarian to figure out the best treatment for your bird. Don’t rely on anti-mite cage protectors.
The types of mites that sometimes infect pet budgies or finches should not be treated with the mite strips sold in pet shops. Such mites include air-sac mites, which are sometimes seen in finches (particularly canaries and Gouldians). These are mites that infest the bird’s air sacs, and birds that have them may breathe with their mouths open, and they often produce a ‘clicking’ sound when breathing. Products such as SCATT (Vetafarm) or S76 can be used to treat this problem.
“Scaly-face mites” sometimes infect birds (primarily budgies) on the featherless parts of their bodies (cere, beak, legs). The mites will burrow in the bird’s skin, which will irritate it and cause it to thicken and develop a scaly appearance. Severe deformities can result, so a bird with a suspected mite infestation needs to go to a veterinarian as soon as is possible. A vet can diagnose the problem by examining a skin scraping under a microscope. The mites can be treated with oral or topically-applied insecticides.
6. Bird bath spray
Many pet birds like to be bathed or showered. However, birds don’t need any special bath solutions, so save your money and offer your birds plain water to bathe in or shower with.
Birds suspected of having a skin irritation should be taken to a veterinarian.
Lineolated Parakeets having a shower.
Items to be cautious with:
7. Toys or perches with rope.
Many bird toys and perches sold at pet stores have rope in them. These can be fine for birds who do not unravel the rope. For birds that do chew ropes, they can present a hazard. A mass of threads from a chewed-up rope can become wrapped around a bird’s neck, leg or foot. This can cut off circulation to the leg or even strangle the bird. My Jenday Conure, Peggy, actually lost a foot she got wrapped up in thread, and she’s not the only bird I know of who lost an appendage that way.
My finches and small parakeets have a few rope perches since they do not chew them. I placed all rope toys of my stronger chewers on the outside of their cages, so I can keep an eye on how they use them. My birds are typically out of their cages only when I am home.
Chiku playing on a rope swing.
Pyrrhura Conures
The Personable Pyrrhura Conures: at Home and in the Wild
The description of Chiku on the rescue group’s website said he needed “someone with experience because he is definitely dynamite in a small package.” Chiku is a hybrid Pyrrhura conure I had offered to foster for a rescue until he could be adopted. However, I later decided to adopt him. He’s a firecracker, but he endeared himself to me anyway. Of course, that’s not difficult for a Pyrrhura conure to do, as these long-tailed, little green birds are among my favourite parrots. They can make engaging companions and display some very intriguing behaviour in the wild.
I wasn’t sure what Chiku would look like when I agreed to take him in. He’s apparently a mix of Green-cheeked Conure, Maroon-bellied Conure, and Crimson-bellied Conure. He turned out to look just like a Green-cheeked Conure, albeit with a few patches of crimson under his wings and some olive shading on his tail. Chiku loves to say his name over and over again in a very excited voice. I was warned that Chiku dislikes men and had even stalked one victim by trying to squeeze under a door. True to form, Chiku flew at my husband and bit his ear upon first seeing him.
Chiku
I cannot say why Chiku dislikes men so. Perhaps he’s more used to women and sees men as rivals that need to be driven away. However, as a result of patience and many offerings of sunflower seeds, my husband can now hold Chiku without ending up with a bird as an earring. Chiku turned out to be a great companion to me, especially when I got a temporary sessional teaching job at a university an hour and a half away from where I live. Chiku was allowed to stay with me in the room I rented there during weekdays so I brought him along. He seemed to enjoy the weekly car trips, especially going through drive thrus. He likes to receive small pieces of American biscuits as a treat, along with drinks of juice. During car trips, I kept him in a small travel cage secured to the passenger seat for his safety.
Chiku’s personality is very different from that of my thirteen-year-old Maroon-bellied Conure, Lucy. Lucy is mellow and a bit shy at times. Before getting Lucy, I had decided to look for a Pyrrhura conure in need of a home, because they are typically quiet, small, smart, and easy-to-handle. However, as Chiku shows, some individuals are little firecrackers and need careful handling.
Lucy, a Maroon-bellied Conure
Pyrrhura Conure Species
“Conures” are actually a large group of small or medium long-tailed parrots from Central and South America, Mexico and the Caribbean. Note that some bird guides will refer to conures as “parakeets.” There are dozens of conure species in several genera, although the genera Aratinga and Pyrrhura are the two largest. There are 30 species in the genus Pyrrhura (see sidebar), and they are generally smaller and quieter than the larger conure species in the genus Aratinga, which include Sun, Jenday, Blue-crowned and Cherry-headed conures. Pyrrhura conures are primarily green, and range from 21-30 cm long, which makes them about cockatiel sized or smaller. The majority of species have a scaly pattern on their chest feathers and some maroon on their tails, with many species having completely maroon-coloured tails. Most also have white eye rings that contrast strongly with their dark faces and deep blue fight feathers.
The vast majority of Pyrrhura conures occur in the northern half of South America. However, the Sulphur-winged Conure (Pyrrhura hoffmanni) occurs in southern Costa Rica and western Panama and the Azuero Conure (P. eisenmanni) occurs on the Azuero Peninsula, in southern Panama. Maroon-bellied (P. frontalis) and Green-cheeked Conures (P. molinae) occur the farthest south, into northern Argentina.
Popular Pyrrhuras
The two most common species of Pyrrhura in captivity are the Green-cheeked and Maroon-bellied Conures. These two species are similar in appearance, although green cheeks have darker feathers on the tops of their heads and solid maroon-coloured tails, while maroon bellies have green feathers on the tops of their heads and olive and maroon-coloured tails. Chiku, having ancestors of both species, has the dark “cap” of a Green-cheeked Conure and the maroon and olive tail of the Maroon-bellied Conure.
Black-capped (P. rupicola), Fiery-shouldered (P. egregia), and Crimson-bellied Conures (P. perlata) are also frequently bred in captivity and their names give useful clues in identifying them. Black-capped Conures do indeed have black caps (along with dark upper chest feathers edged with white) and Fiery-shouldered Conures have orange on the bends of their wings. Adult Crimson-bellied Conures are hard to mistake for any other species, as they have bright, crimson-red bellies. However, juvenile crimson bellies will only have a few crimson feathers on their bellies. Pearly Conures (P. lepida) are also common in avicultural collections and have some blue suffusion on their chests (and sometimes throats) and lack the red on the belly that green cheeks and maroon bellies possess. They also have red on the bend of their wings. Blaze-winged Conures (P. devillei, not to be confused with Fiery-shouldered Conures) are also sometimes seen in captivity and they look very much like maroon-bellies but have red on the bend of their wings. In fact, some ornithological references treat the Fiery-shouldered Conure as a subspecies of the Maroon-bellied Conure.
A Firey-shouldered Conure
Blue-throated (P. cruentata), Rose-crowned (P. rhodocephala), Painted (P. picta), Maroon-tailed (P. melanura), Sulphur-winged (P. hoffmanni), Grey-breasted (P. griseipectus), Emma’s (P. emma) and White-eared Conures (P. leucotis) are rare in captivity but have been bred by some aviculturalists. The remaining Pyrrhura species are either extremely rare or non-existent in captivity.
Most Pyrrhura species can likely be bred together to produce hybrids, although this is not commonly done and is a very controversial practice. I personally would not breed hybrid parrots, although I think that ones like Chiku who are already here certainly deserve good homes as pets.
Cryptic Conures
Most Pyrrhura conures are forest-dwelling birds that live in small or medium flocks, with up to about forty birds. Flock sizes for most species will vary during the year, with large flocks breaking into smaller ones during the dry season (when food is scarcer) or during the breeding season.
Wild Green-cheeked Conure
Pyrrhura conures can sometimes be difficult to view in the wild. This is because they blend in with foliage quite well, may forage in trees tens of meters high, and are usually quiet while foraging. However, they often vocalize right before taking flight and thus are often seen while flying away. When I saw Green-cheeked Conures in Mato Grosso do Sul, Brazil, it was usually a view of their backs and tails as they flew through the trees. They were amazingly fast and agile in flight, due to their long and streamlined shapes. One bird did stand on a tree branch out in the open eating a fruit just long enough for me to take her picture. She and her flock mates appeared to be waiting their chance to grab a meal at a bird feeder that some very noisy Peach-fronted Conures (Aratinga aurea) had monopolized.
Wild Peach-fronted Conures
Compared with other parrot species, few formal studies have been done on wild Pyrrhura conures, although based on what we know, they display many intriguing behaviours that are actually quite odd for parrots. For example, in an article in Bird Talk, biologist Donald Brightsmith reported on some very interesting behaviour in a group of four Painted Conures. First, all four conures – at least one of which was a juvenile – were tending to the same nest. This is unusual, because in most parrot species, only two birds will tend to a nest. However, many other bird species, such as Florida scrub jays, will breed cooperatively. In such species, juveniles may stay with their parents or another pair for a time and help them raise young. Perhaps the group of four painted conures included two parents and two young “helpers”.
The Painted Conures also did something clever when a group of potential nest predators (brown capuchin monkeys, Cebus apella) started to approach their nesting hole. When one of the monkeys started to climb down a vine that would lead it close to the nest, one of the conures flew to a spot above the nest, hung upside down and started to call loudly, perhaps to lead the monkeys away from the nest. One monkey then tried to grab the conure, who flew off just in time. The conure was then joined by its other three flockmates, who flew off through the trees, followed by the monkeys.
El Oro Conures (P. orcesi) may also breed cooperatively, as more than two birds of this species have been seen tending to single nests. The El Oro Conure, which is from Ecuador, is considered endangered because it is found only within an area about 100 km long and 5-10 km wide and deforestation is further reducing the amount of available habitat for it. Conservationists have set up artificial nest boxes for P. orcesi to help boost the population. Like most other parrot species, Pyrrhura conures nest in tree cavities, which means that extensive deforestation can leave them with few suitable nesting spots.
In Colombia, conservationists with the group ProAves (with funding from the Loro Parque Fundación) have also set up artificial nest boxes for Perijá Conures (P. caeruleiceps) and Santa Marta Conures (P. viridicata). The provisioning of artificial nest boxes is a common strategy to increase the populations of endangered parrots and has also been used to increase numbers of wild Blue-throated Macaws (Ara glaucogularis) and Hyacinth Macaws (Anodorhynchus hyacinthicus).
Continuous conservation efforts are going to be necessary to preserve the diversity of Pyrrhura conures. Out of twenty Pyrrhura species evaluated, the International Union for the Conservation of Nature lists one as critically endangered, three as endangered, three as vulnerable, three as near threatened, and ten as least concern (see sidebar for details). Habitat destruction remains the biggest threat to the persistence of endangered Pyrrhura species, with illegal capture for the pet trade also representing a threat to some populations. Many captured conures are sold in local markets, as parrots are often kept as pets in South and Central America.
Fortunately, some Pyrrhura species are still abundant in the wild and actually appear to be quite tolerant of human disturbance. For example, Maroon-bellied Conures can be found in parks and gardens in the sprawling cities of Rio de Janeiro and São Paulo.
Wild Pyrrhura conures are flexible in their dietary habits and will eat a variety of seeds, fruit pulps, sprouts, grains, nectar, and flowers. In regions where figs are available, conures may consume large numbers of them. For instance, in western Brazil, biologists found that figs made up 70% of the diet of a population of Green-cheeked Conures. Some Pyrrhura conures will also eat insect larvae and will dig them out of plant galls. A plant gall is a large outgrowth in a plant produced in response to insect activity or bacterial, viral or fungal infections. Many galls have insect larvae growing in them.
Maroon-bellied Conures have been reported to eat leaves, which is unusual since leaves can be difficult to digest and parrots generally do not eat them. However, the birds may have been eating larvae from leaf galls. Pyrrhura conures have also been seen at clay licks and will consume some clay, possibly for the minerals it contains.
Foraging flocks of Maroon-bellied Conures may contain one or two birds acting as sentinels. These birds will perch on branches above the rest of the flock and will vocalize if a threat (such as a predator) is seen. No one individual will act as the sentinel at all times; rather, birds appear to take turns being on watch duty.
Pet Pyrrhuras
Like wild Pyrrhura conures, captive ones will generally eat a variety of food. I feed Lucy and Chiku! a diet of pellets, supplemented with cooked whole grains and beans, seeds, sprouts, nuts, vegetables and fruit. Both birds also like to sample my herbal teas and they love fruit juice. They will eat most things I offer them.
Chiku drinking herbal tea.
One of the frequently cited advantages of keeping Pyrrhura conures is that they are quiet. This is, of course, relative to other popular parrot types, such as cockatoos, Amazons and some larger Aratinga conures. Any Pyrrhura conure will make some noise, including a bit of squawking. Additionally, the noise a Pyrrhura makes may not include talking, as Pyrrhura conures are not known for exceptional talking ability. Lucy does not talk at all, and Chiku! can say his name and does whistle a bit. However, some individuals may learn to say a dozen or so words.
Pyrrhura conures can be quite active and playful, and should be given large cages relative to their sizes, plenty of out-of-cage time and a variety of safe items to chew on. Pyrrhura personalities seem to be all over the map, ranging from shy and gentle to fiery and possessive. Most are fun, agreeable birds, and I recommend that people interested in a conure spend time with any bird they are considering taking in to be sure that its personality will be compatible with theirs.
I have found that Pyrrhura conures are easy to train and will enjoy training sessions that are kept fun and positive. I have done some clicker training with Lucy and Chiku and both picked up target training very rapidly. Target training involves teaching a bird to touch the end of a stick on cue. Lucy actually learned to target, turn around, lift a foot and ring a bell in about a week with short daily training sessions.
Lucy and Chiku
I often call Pyrrhura conures “macaws compressed down into a handful of bird,” since they are small but have big personalities. In fact, genetic studies suggest that they actually are more closely related to macaws than any other bird type! Pyrrhura conures can also be very interesting to watch in the wild, and for those able to give one the time and attention he needs (which is a lot!), a conure can make a terrific companion.
Safety and the Pet Bird
A couple of weeks ago, the guest speaker at my local parrot association’s meeting was a veterinarian who treats birds. It was an informal Q & A session, and one of the questions asked was regarding the most common accidents that pet birds can get into. I took a few notes, which are the basis of this post.
Here are the most common mishaps and husbandry mistakes seen by this particular vet (along with some of my own comments):
1. Escapes, even by birds with clipped wings.
I don’t want to go too in depth with the wing clipping controversy, but one of the common reasons people clip wings is that doing so can help prevent escapes. To a certain degree, it can. However, sometimes people lose birds that have clipped wings. If a wing-clipped bird gets outside and hits a strong wind, it can be carried quite far. Very light-bodied birds, like conures, budgies, and cockatiels, can even get quite far with clipped wings without a wind. Keep windows and doors closed when a bird is out, even if his wings are clipped.
2. Feet bitten by other birds.
This is a common injury in multi-bird households. Often, when multiple birds are let out of their cages, one will climb on another’s cage. The bird may then get his feet bitten by the bird still inside. Birds frequently bite at anything that comes near their cages.
I try to avoid this type of injury by not letting my parrots loose in my ‘bird room’ (where several of my birds’ cages are). I do let them out frequently, but when they come out, I take them away from their cages and place them on separate play stands outside of their room. Each parrot has his/her own separate play stand, since my parrots are different sizes and do not get along with each other. The exceptions are my ‘aviary’ birds who are not tame with people but do get along with other birds. These birds (a mix of Australian parakeets, Lineolated Parakeets, quail and finches) are housed in large flight cages with other birds.
Be sure to keep birds off of the cages of rodents and rabbits as well. These animals have sharp teeth and may nibble or bite bird toes.
3. Bird perches on top of door; door is closed.
This injury is likely more common with unclipped birds but clipped birds can sometimes end up on door tops as well. Avoid this injury by making all members of the household aware of the need to check door tops before closing them or by not allowing the bird on top of doors.
4. Cats.
Cat bites can easily kill birds and even bites that aren’t very deep can become serious due to the bacteria cats carry in their mouths. Any bird that has been scratched or bitten by a cat, even if the injury is minor, should be taken to a veterinarian as soon as possible (go to an emergency clinic if needed) so an antibiotic can be administered.
Needless to say, cats and birds should never be allowed to interact with each other, even if they appear to get along.
5. Bumblefoot
“Bumblefoot” is the common term for a condition technically called “pododermatitis.” It results from inflammation of the foot and can be manifest as anything from mild irritation and redness to the presence of large, painful abscesses. This condition is generally not the result of a single mishap (though it can be), but is often the result of an inappropriate cage set up and poor overall husbandry. A lack of varied perching surfaces can lead to the formation of small injuries or bruises on a birds’ foot due to some areas of the foot having to bear excess weight. These injuries may become infected and may develop into painful abscesses.
Birds on a poor diet lacking in vitamin A are more prone to foot problems than birds on balanced diets, and obesity can make existing foot problems worse. Filthy perches also increase the chance that a bird will develop foot infections. In finches, foot problems are often associated with very overgrown nails, as birds with overgrown nails will have their weight unevenly distributed over their feet.
Avoid foot problems by providing a bird with a variety of perching surfaces with different textures. Natural branches can make excellent perches for parrots. Do not use sandpaper-covered perches – they can irritate a parrot’s foot and actually do not help keep their nails trimmed (as is often claimed). Give a bird’s perches a good wash every week or as needed. Feeding a pelletized diet will prevent any major nutrient deficiencies.
Bad perch placement can also lead to feather damage. A bird’s tail can also be damaged if a perch is placed too close to the back or the floor of the cage. Take the length of your bird’s tail into account when choosing a cage and outfitting it with perches.
Infrequent Problems
One thing I was happy to hear was that this vet has only rarely seen cases where birds have swallowed pieces of non-food items. In general, birds are apparently pretty good at differentiating food from non-food. My Lesser Sulphur-crested Cockatoo, Mitri, loves to chew everything, including wood, paper, plastic whiffle balls, cardboard, and wicker and I sometimes worry that he’s going to swallow something.
Gouldian Finch chicks
Gouldian Finch Chicks
Gouldian Finch Chicks
Above are photos of two chicks that one of my Gouldian Finch pairs produced. Gouldians are trickier to breed than Zebra or Society Finches, so I am going to outline how I set up my Gouldian pairs for breeding. My second pair that hasn’t produced chicks yet is preparing and spending time in their nest box so I have high hopes for them.
I initially kept my Gouldians in an aviary with several Society Finches and a pair each of Spice and Zebra Finches. This worked just fine initially, but I separated the Gouldians into separate cages when I decided to try to breed them because Society Finches will often meddle with other birds’ nests. Additionally, with each Gouldian Pair in a separate cage, I could know which birds produced which babies.
The Gouldian pairs are in cages like this:
These cages are about 32 inches wide. I do put the food dishes higher up than is shown in the picture.
Gouldian Finches need more protein when breeding than when they aren’t, so to get the birds into breeding condition, I increased the amount of high-protein foods in their diets. They didn’t seem to like the commercial egg food I bought, so I began feeding them whole cooked egg (ground in a food processor) and Orlux insect patee food. I also offered ground greens (usually broccoli flowers), sprouted seeds, dry seeds, and a cuttlebone. Twice a week I also give them a small dollop of peanut butter with some Hagen “Prime” vitamins sprinkled on it.
When sprouting seeds, I generally prepare them in batches that conain sufficient amounts for all my birds for two days. Sprouts tend to grow mold quickly, so keeping fresh batches prevents anything from going to waste. Any eggs I feed are prepared fresh that day and are taken out of the cage a few hours after they are put in. Water dishes for the breeding finches are changed twice daily.
I placed the nest boxes up in the back corners of the cages. Since Gouldians seem to like to perch on top of their nest boxes, I left enough room between the top of the nest boxes and the cage roof for them to do that.
I gave them wooden parakeet nest boxes that can be opened from the top, which makes nest checks easy to conduct. For nesting material, I offered timothy hay, a little disk of nesting string (from a pet store) and non-scented Eco Bedding. Both of my Gouldian Finch cocks added a large amount of bedding of all types offered to the insides of their nest boxes. I had to stop offering nesting material to the pair that bred when nesting material was starting to flow out of the nesting box entrance.
The incubation period for Gouldian Finches is about two weeks. Incubation may begin after the third egg is laid, or after all eggs are laid. Clutches can contain up to seven eggs, although mine laid three (and one was infertile). Both parents will spend time in the nest box and once the eggs hatch, both parents feed the chicks. However, the chick will rely on yolk for the first two days or so. Once the parents start feeding the babies, it is often possible to see the food in the chicks’ crops (expandible food storage sacks on the sides of their necks). These are clearly visible in the top picture in this post. The white specks in the chicks’ crops are seeds they have been fed. It is perfectly normal for the crops to look very distended.
Gouldian Finch chicks have bright nodules on the corners of their beaks (visible in the second picture from the top). These help guide the parents in feeding the chicks in a very dark nest box.
Gouldian Finch chicks fledge (leave the nest) about 24-26 days after hatching. They will still be fed by the parents for about two weeks.
Newly fledged young are no where near as colourful as the adults and will be pale green, grey and cream. After about 6-8 weeks, they will start to moult into their adult plumage. The whole molting process can take a few months. During this time, the young need to be fed a very nutritious diet, composed of egg food, dry seed, greens and sprouted seed. When the young Gouldians start molting into their colourful adult plumage, they have to replace every feather on their bodies and that an is energetically expensive process. Bird feathers are also made primarily of protein, so molting birds need a lot of it in their diets. Once the moult is over, the ration of egg food offered can be cut back so the birds don’t get fat.
