Most Commonly Found Pet Birds
Even though the above categories fall in the pet bird group, basically very few are bred as a pet bird. Some of the very, commonly found species are:
African Gray Parrot
The African gray parrot is a highly intelligent and social bird, which interacts easily with the human companions. It grows in a medium-size and is basically found in gray color with a black-bill. It weighs about 400g and grows around 33cm in length. It has a wing breadth of 46 to 52 cm. The male and the female of this species appear similar.
Cage-: The suitable cage for this species must have at least 3 feet wide, 4 feet long and 2 feet deep.
Food-: It prefers nuts, seeds, fruits and leaves as it is a herbivore creature.
Breeding-: These species are mostly monogamous. The female counterpart lays around 3 to 5 eggs and incubates them for at least 30 days.
Amazon Parrot
The Amazon Parrot or more commonly termed as Amazon birdares one of the most commonly bred pet birds. It belongs to the Amazonas genus and is entitled to the name Green Parrots.” It grows about medium to large in size. It is a beautiful green bird with bright color splashes near the neck, tail and wings. The average life of this type is around 50 years. It is very popular due to its talking ability. It grows about 28 to 33 cm in length and attain a mass of 0.25 kg when matured.
Cage-: The apt cage size for the big Amazon species is 32 inches w x 23inches d x 38inches h
Food-: It prefers nuts, seeds, leaves, fruit buds and flowers.
Breeding-: The female parrot lays two to four white eggs, which she incubates for 26 to 28 days.
Caiques
The Caique belongs to the genus Pionites and is basically a parrot species. The profile of these birds is small with short tail. It is considered to be the most beautiful species in the parrot group due to the pure bright colors over its body. It attains about 150 to 170 grams. Its average life span is around 40 years. This species is native to the Amazon Basin situated in the South America and some types are found in the northern parts of the Amazon. The wings of this bird produce a unique whirring sound while flying.
Cage-: The preferable size of cage for this breed is 24w x 18d x 36h inches.
Food-: It prefers seeds, berries and fruits.
Breeding-: When grown indoors, these birds can breed at any time of the year. The female bird lays about 5 to 6 eggs and incubates for 26 to 28 days.
Canary Varieties
The varieties of canary are so innocent looking birds with harmless behavior. They are very small due to which it makes a perfect pet bird in the small quarters. They are very hardy and require very low care and maintenance. It is a best choice for the pet beginners. It grows about 10 to 12 cm. It weighs about 8 to 24 grams and has a wingspan of about 20 to 23 cm.
Cage-: It prefers a rectangular cage with 10 inch width and 17 inch length.
Food-: They prefer eating sunflower and Nyjer seeds. At home, it should be given 80% of pallets.
Breeding-: The female should be more than 1 year old and the male should not exceed 5 years for breeding. The female lays an egg every day, until there are 3 to 6 eggs.
Cockatiel
The cockatiel bird, scientifically known as Nymphicus Hollandicus is native to Australia. It is a highly prized household pet and easy to breed species. In captivation, it can live for 15 to 20 long years. It gains a length of 30 to 33 cm and a weight of 75 to 125 grams. It can be seen in 15 different color combinations.
Cage-: The minimum size of the cage for this species must have 24l x18w x 24 inches
Food-: It should be given safe fruits, green vegetables along with a good parrot mix.
Breeding-: They mature only after 24 months. Sometimes 2 female birds mate and lay 8 eggs, but will be infertile.
Cockatoo
A cockatoo is a type of parrot that belongs to one of the 21 species found in the Cacatuidae family. It is widely distributed in the regions of Australia. The unique feature of these birds is the curved bills and showy crests. The plumage is often in pale colors, but the tail and the crests are very colorful. This species of birds are medium to large sized parrots that grow about 30 to 60 cm long, and attain a weight of 300 to 1200g. The bill of the male counterpart is generally bigger than the female bird.
Cage-: The perfect cage size that fits small to big sized Cockatoos is 38 inches deep, 6 feet in height and 48 inches wide.
Food-: This bird prefers eating tubers, seeds, corms (bulbotubar), insects, flowers and fruits.
Breeding-: Cockatoos are monogamous birds, and its bonding with the pair lasts for many years. Female birds breed for the first time at an age of 3 to 7 years. Some types of Cockatoo lay a single egg, whereas some lays around 2 to 8 eggs. The responsibility of incubation is shared by female in some species and sometimes by both.
Conure
Conure is a species of clever birds that consist of small to medium size parrots. It belongs to the group of long tailed parrots from the subfamily Arinae. It is either a small Parrot or large Parakeet that is native to the regions of the Western Hemisphere. Basically, it grows about 10 to 20 inches in height. The beak of the Conure parrot has been always gray or black and has a small car. It is often referred as the clown of the parrot group due to its attention seeking activities like dancing, swinging back and forth and hanging in an inverted position.
Cage-: The perfect cage size for the Conure species is 24d x 24 h x 24 w inches.
Food-: It prefers eating grains; hence it is considered as an agricultural pest in some places. Other than that it likes fruits, seeds, vegetables and berries.
Breeding-: It lays 3 to 4 eggs in each clutch. The female bird incubates for nearly 26 days. It is ready to breed from the age of one.
Columbidae
Columbidae is a family name of the birds that includes Doves and Pigeons. It has 310 species of birds. The characteristics of pigeons are stout body, slender bills, short neck and fleshy Ceres. The birds belonging to this family are found worldwide, but the most varieties are found in the Australian Eco-zones and Indo-Malayan zones.
Cage-: The minimum cage size should be 3ft long, 2ft in height and 2ft wide.
Food-: They like to eat grains, seeds, fruits and insects.
Breeding-: Female bird lays 2 cream-shade eggs, which is incubated by both the male and female. The eggs hatch in 18 days.
Lories and Lorikeets
Lories and Lorikeets belong to the family of Parrot called as Psittacidae. They are typically small to medium sized parrots with a specialized tongue. These birds have a brush-tipped shape of the tongue which helps them in consuming nectar from various flowers and soft fruits like berries. It grows to a length of about 15 cm to19 cm and weighs around 40-50 grams. It is widely seen in the regions of Australia, Polynesia, Timor, Southeast Asia and New Guinea.
Cage-: The minimum size of the cage should be 36 inches in height, 48 inches long and 24 inches wide.
Food-: It prefers nectar and pollens of the flowers. They also like fruits, blossoms, berries and flower buds.
Breeding-: Female birds lay 2 to 4 eggs twice a year and incubate for 24 days.
Lovebird
A lovebird belongs to the Agapornis genus which consists of 9 species out of which one is this bird. Lovebirds are very social and mingle well with human beings. It grows about 13 to 17 cm long and attains a weight of 40 to 60 grams. The name Love bird was derived from the bird’s monogamous behavior and from the paired birds which spend long hours sitting with each other.
Cage-: The preferable cage size is 18 inches tall, 18 inch height and 18 inch width.
Food-: This bird likes fruits, grasses, vegetables and seeds. Love birds with black wings like to eat small pests and insects.
Breeding-: The female birds lay around 3 to 7 eggs in each clutch, every alternate day. The incubation period is 23 days.
Parakeet
Parakeet is the common name for a large number of parrots that are small to medium size. It falls in different genera and the unique feature is that, these parrots have long tail feathers. The parakeet grows about 7 inches in height and about 28 grams in weight.
Cage-: The minimum size of the cage should be18 inch deep, 20 inches long and 18 inches wide
Food-: It prefers seeds, fruits and vegetables. It should be provided with pellets for 5 to 10% of the diet.
Breeding-: The female bird lays 4 to 8 eggs in same clutch and incubates for 17 to 20 days.
Falcon
The Falcon bird belongs to Falco genus and is a member of Falconidae family. It attains a length of 30 to 36 cm and weighs round 0.14 to 0.18 kg. The wingspan is between 70 and 85 cm in different species. It has a tooth near the beak, which is used to kill the prey. It is known for its strong power of vision. In the olden days, it was used in Falconry.
Cage-: Usually this bird is not kept in a cage, a separate enclosure known as ‘mews’ is suitable for this type of bird to live.
Food-: As it is a wild bird, it prefers rodents, beef, rabbit, insects, pigeon and chicken.
Breeding-: The female Falcon lays 3 to 4 eggs in each clutch.
Eagle
The eagle is a large bird from Accipitridae family. The largest eagle, the Philippine Eagle, weighs 14 pounds or 6.7 kilograms, a total length of 3 feet 3 inches or 100 cm and a wingspan of about 7feet 2 inches or 218.5 cm.. It has a very sharp and hooked beak. The specialty of this bird is its broad wings and large pupil in the eye, allowing it to discern even small prey from long distances.
Black Palm Cockatoos
It is an impressive bird as well as uncommon as a pet. It is a native to Australia. It grows about 2 feet in height. It must be properly trained to be a good pet bird.
Victoria Crowned Pigeon
These are the large striking species of birds. These Pigeons are easy to handle, but require lots of space to live. It is a beautiful bird to breed as a pet.
Australian King Parrots
These birds have a big profile of about 18 inches, and are very rarely found. They make a good companion pet with their social and affectionate behavior. Its bright red and green colored plumage is the most attractive part, and that is why it is more preferred as a pet bird.
Owl
A very difficult bird to breed, with a difficult diet requirements are the attributes of an owl as a pet. It is a very uncommon pet, no doubt, especially due to its versatile diet requirements. To stay healthy, it needs rodent as a main source of food in a daily basis.
Some Amazing Facts about Pet Birds
- Based on the finding of the BBC, a Blue and Gold Macaw parrot is the oldest parrot alive till now. Its name is Charlie and it was Winston Churchill’s pet. The age of the parrot is believed to be around 104 years.
- Parrots alone have over 350 species on the earth.
- A Pygmy species of parrot are the smallest among the group which attains a length of only 8 cm.
- Hyacinth Macaw is the largest among the parrot species that attains a length of 40 inches from the tip of the beak to the tail.
- Studies reveal that around 1 to 2 billion birds are living on this planet at any specific time.
- Quaker Parrot is the only species of birds that build a nest.
Some of the Types of Pet Birds
Having discovered a fondness for insects while pursuing her degree in Biology, Randi Jones was quite bugged to know that people usually dismissed these little creatures as “creepy-crawlies”.
