African Grey Congo

Scientific Name:  
Psittacus erithacus
Description:     
There are two species of African Grey generally kept as pets, the Congo (which has a red patch of feathers on the underside of the tail like Rico), and the Timneh (with maroon tail feathers). They make a nice "jungle" sound when relaxed. When threatened or frightened they make a growling sound.
Care and feeding:
See the main African Grey page for descriptions of minimum cage size and diet.
Distribution:     
These birds are native to various parts of Africa including Kenya, Uganda, Liberia, and islands off the west coast of Africa.

Scientific Classification

• Kingdom: Animalia
• Phylum: Chordata
• Class: Aves
• Order: Psittaciformes
• Family: Psittacidae

Size - Weight:      

Congos grow to a length of 13 to 16 inches (32.5 - 40.6 cm). They are usually somewhat larger than the Timneh. Social Behaviors:     
African Grey Congos are tamed easily and are very sociable. However, they can sometimes become a "one person" bird. For an extensive parrot training system that potentially turns your bird into a fun, loving companion as well as learning lots of cool trickls.
Breeding/Reproduction:     
Congos are easily bred under normal conditions. The price of Congos has been coming down because there are so many being bred.
Sexual differences:     
There is no easily visible means of sexing these birds.
Availability:    
This bird is readily available.

Alexandrine Parakeets

Scientific name: 

Psittacula eupatria 

 

Distribution:  

The Alexandrine Parakeet is found in Ceylon, eastern Afghanistan, western Pakistan, through India to Indochina, and the Andaman Islands. They live in lowlands and wooded areas such as forests, jungle, and coastal mangroves.

Description: 

 The Alexandrine Parakeet belongs in the Psittacula genus, that are known as Ringneck Parakeets. This genus has the distinguishing characteristic of a colored collar going around the head in the males, or a pronounced stripe running through the chin area.The Alexandrine Parakeets have a large head and bill, a sleek body and a long tapered tail. The male has a general green plumage with some grayish-blue on the cheeks and a dark purple-red patch on the wing. There is a faint black stripe from the cere to the eye, a black stripe across the lower cheek, and a wide rose-pink collar. The inner tail feathers are bluish-green with light yellow-white tips and a yellow underside. The beak is a deep red with a paler tip. Their average lifespan is 40 years.
 The female is lighter than the male. Females don't have the rose-pink collar or the black stripe across the cheek patches, and they have shorter central tail feathers. These birds grow to a length of 23" (58 cm). 

Care and Feeding:
 Fresh food and water must be provided daily.In the wild, Alexandrine Parakeets eat a variety of seeds, fruits, nuts, blossoms, leaf buds. In addition to these foods, you can offer them vegetables and commercial pellets. They like nuts with the shells cracked, such as walnuts, pecans and almonds. They also enjoy the same nutritional foods humans eat, including cooked chicken. Cooked beans, rice, and grains are also enjoyed, but soft foods like these will spoil in about 4 hours.


Housing:  
A a roomy cage is required as these are large parakeets.

Maintenance:  
The basic cage care includes daily cleaning of the water and food dishes. Weekly you should wash all the perches and dirty toys, and the floor should be washed about every other week. A total hosing down and disinfecting of an aviary should be done yearly, replacing anything that needs to be freshened, such as old dishes, toys and perches.

Social Behaviors:
   In the wild, these birds live in small flocks during the day, and roost in very large flocks at night.


Activities:
     Parakeets are very energetic birds! Besides flying, which is important for all parakeets, these birds love to chew! Be sure you provide them with lots of assorted toys and wood chews, perches and swings.

Breeding/Reproduction:
 Unlike many parakeets, the Alexandrine Parakeets do not bond with a mate for life. Each pair will need two nesting boxes to choose from with wood shavings as a bedding. Once the nest box is selected the female will lay two to four eggs. Both parents will sit on the eggs. The young leave the nest about six weeks after hatching. The males don't reach their adult plumage until the second year.

Potential Problems:   

These parakeets have a loud call.

Availability:   

Alexandrine Parakeets are available

Sun Conure

Scientific Name: Aratinga solstitialis

Distribution:

These birds are native to Guianas to northwestern Brazil.

Description:

The Sun Conure, a small member of the parrot family, is one of the most colorful of the conures. Their nice personalities and their gorgeous coloring make them a favorite pet. There are a variety of conures, and most make excellent pets. They vary in coloring and size, the Nanday Conure, for example, is a larger conure with a black head and green body. For a smaller bird and a great pet, a conure is a great choice.

Size - Weight:

These birds get up to 12" (30 cm).

Care and feeding:

 A roomy cage is required unless the bird is to be let out for extended periods. Many birds can spend most of their time on a play pen or parrot perch. They eat a variety of sprouts, seeds, nuts, fruits, vegetables, and commercial pellets, as well as the same nutritional foods humans eat.

Social Behaviors:

They live in pairs or small groups of 10 to 20 birds. They love to play, and can be fairly destructive if not watched. They can also be rather noisy. Despite all this, they make a real fun pet and are very popular.

Activities:   Loves to climb and play. Provide lots of toys.

Breeding/Reproduction:     

 They breed readily if they have the right size aviary. The hen lays four eggs which are incubated for about 26 days. The young fledge (leave the nest) after about 8 weeks. The nest box size should be 12" x 12" x 12".

Potential Problems:

As with most Aratinga species, this bird can be noisy

Availability:

This bird is generally available. They can usually be found at pet stores and reputable breeders.

Jenday Conure

The Jenday Conure is quite striking with its beautiful colors. They are closely related to the Sun Conure Aratinga solstitialis and the Golden-capped Conure Aratinga auricapilla. Sometimes there is confusion between the Jenday Conure and the Sun Conure but you can easily identify the Jenday by its green wings and back, while the Sun has mostly yellow wings.

     A super sweet bird, the attractive Jenday Conure is very sociable and makes a very tame and loveable companion. They love to "talk", and yes, they are rather noisy little creatures. Being very active, they enjoy playing with toys, climbing, and chewing. Their antics can be very comical and at the same time they are very affectionate.

     If you are looking for a beautiful conure, the Jenday Conure will certainly capture your attention. It is also much less costly than the Golden Conure or the Queen of Bavaria Conure, two conures which are often touted for their beauty.

Scientific Classification

• Kingdom: Animalia
• Phylum: Chordata
• Class: Aves
• Order: Psittaciformes
• Family: Psittacidae

Scientific Name: Aratinga jandaya

Distribution:
     These birds are native to northeastern Brazil.

Description:
     The Jenday Conure is a small member of the parrot family, and is very colorful. The head and upper breast are a golden yellow that blends into a reddish gold on the lower abdomen. Sometimes they will have an olive yellow breast. The wings, upper tail, and upper back are green moving into an orangish red on the lower back. The underside of the tail is black and the under side of the wings are an orangish red. The tip of the tail and the outer wing feathers are blue. The beak and the feet are black.
     A mature Jenday Conure reaches its full coloration at about two years of age. A younger bird will have duller coloration; a paler yellow head and neck with some greens, and a paler red on the breast.

Size - Weight:
     The Jenday Conure will get up to 11 4/5" (30 cm), 4.4 ozs for the male and
5 ozs for the female (125g -142 g).

Care and feeding:
     A roomy cage is required unless the bird is to be let out for extended periods. Many birds can spend most of their time on a play pen or parrot perch. They eat a variety of sprouts, seeds, nuts, fruits, vegetables, and commercial pellets, as well as the same nutritional foods humans eat.

Social Behaviors:
     They live in pairs or small groups of 10 to 15 birds. They love to play, and can be fairly destructive if not watched. They can also be rather noisy. Despite all this, they make a real fun pet and are very popular

Breeding/Reproduction:
     They breed readily if they have the right size aviary. Though these birds will need to be either DNA or surgically sexed for a certain determination, the iris of the female is light brown and they have a grayish white eye ring while the male's iris is darker and his eye ring is pure white.
     The hen lays three to four eggs which are incubated for about 26 days. Both parents will feed the young. The young fledge (leave the nest) after about two months. The ideal nest box size should be 21 1/2" x 10" x 11" (55x25x28 cm), with a 2 3/4" opening (7 cm) which the parents will chew on and alter it to their liking.
     There has been a hybrid conure produced by crossing a Jenday Conure with a Nanday Conure.

Potential Problems:      

As with most Aratinga species, this bird can be noisy..

Availability:
   This bird is generally available. They can usually be found at pet stores and reputable breeders.

Activities:   Loves to climb and play. Provide lots of toys.