Alexandria parrot: description, content and breeding

Alexandria ringed parrots live in the countries of South and Southeast Asia. They are grouped in large flocks, fly quickly, but not for long. They live on trees of tropical forests, nest in hollows and almost never descend to the ground. Poachers catch and resell birds in their home collections. Parrots are smart, beautiful and can be trained, there is a demand for them, and therefore poaching is booming.

According to legend, the first birds came to the European continent thanks to Alexander the Great, who brought them to Greece on his return from another Asian campaign. Since then, the name of the Alexandrian parrots has been assigned to them.

The Alexandria parrot is a beautiful bird with a bird that easily gets used to people, masters various tricks, and after talking it talks without problems.

The parrot is quite large, the largest of all necklaces. From the tip of the beak to the tip of the tail, it reaches 60 centimeters. Birds have a large red beak, a wonderful bright plumage, consisting of different variations of green. Beautiful red-burgundy accents on an emerald background add charm to the appearance of this amazing parrot.

Males are noticeably larger than females. In addition, their gender can be distinguished by a necklace that only males possess. The top is pink, and the bottom is a black line that clearly separates the head and body of the bird.

The nature of the representatives of this species is friendly and quite adequate. If you behave with restraint, but confidently, you can always agree with them.Parrots respond well to people, but they get used to one owner and only he will obey. In any case, the bird decides when it can be caressed.

While the parrot is not used to it, it can sit without movement, refuse food, startle from loud noises and be wary of any movements behind the cage. In order for the pet to get used to it faster, it is necessary to communicate with him as often as possible.

When a parrot gets used to a person, he sits on his head, constantly says, eats from his hands and tries to attract attention by all means.

The parrot responds well to water. In the wild, fleeing from the poo-eaters, he gladly washes his wings in the rain. At home, he will not mind taking a shower from a spray bottle.

In the wild, there are a large number of parrots belonging to the necklace population. In addition to the Alexandrian or large ringed, there are also emerald, Mauritius, pink-breasted, Chinese, Himalayan, red-headed, plum-headed and others.

Different species of these birds live in Asia, Africa, Madagascar and Indochina. The large ringed (Alexandrian) parrot differs from the rest in its dimensions, it is larger, has a stepped tail, a spot of brown plumage on the back.

The small ringed necklace parrot is 50 cm long. It also has a necklace that distinguishes the male from the female. This species lives in India and Africa. The Indian animals (Kramer's parrot) are considered the brightest and most attractive; they are found in colors ranging from bright green to yellowish shades. Birds with blue plumage were bred artificially.

The parrot attracts us not only with the beauty of bright plumage, but also with the opportunity to talk. You need to learn to speak at a young age; it will be difficult to train an adult, and even more so an old bird. At the time of purchase, given the age talents, we ask you to sell a young individual. Instead of a bright handsome man with a necklace, they bring us a pale green bird with big eyes. Do not worry - this is most likely a female or a very young male.

For the first year and a half, gender is difficult to determine. The initial signs of a future necklace can be seen 14-15 months after hatching. A fully formed bright color will appear only in three years. During this period, all the plumage of the male will be saturated green.

The beak of young birds has a pinkish tint and only with age acquires a juicy bright red color. A chick from an adult can also be distinguished by eyes that look large and black, and eventually become small, with an orange fringing.

You can pay attention to the tail. The parrot, which is less than one and a half years old, has not yet grown the two longest feathers, in the future they will create a "step" tail. When choosing a young parrot, one must rely on all of the above symptoms, and not just on the presence of long tail feathers: sometimes in a tight cage an adult bird can break them off. To grow new ones, you have to wait for the molt.

Females, even in adulthood, have less expressive plumage than males.

Necklace parrots get used to captivity. If you love them, take care of them, and devote a lot of time, one owner is able to replace the whole flock with a pet. Who does not mind wallpaper, books and other things, the cell may not close. The parrot will always be next to the owner: ride on his head or shoulders, communicate and demand attention.

For a large ringed parakeet, an ambient temperature of + 20–25 degrees is considered comfortable, but it quietly tolerates lower rates. It is important for him that there are no drafts. Do not install the cage at the radiator, working equipment, in the kitchen with gas stoves (especially under the ceiling). The most inappropriate places are a bedroom and a children's room.

When deciding to purchase an Alexandrian parrot, you should remember that not only a friend and a beautiful pet is bought, but also a very noisy bird with a sharp voice.

A large parrot needs a large cage along which it could move. Dimensions should be at least one and a half meters in length and height. The cage must be equipped with small flutes with a corrugated surface so that the bird's paws do not slip, as well as natural twigs.

In the cage there should be feeders and a drinking bowl, necessarily fixed - this will protect them from overturning during feeding. A parrot is often installed bathing. In order for the bird to always have something to do, the cage is equipped with different toys: pocket mirror, ladders, swings. Bored items are periodically changed. Each toy that gets into the cage for a parrot becomes a new object of study.

The pet should always have a clean and dry habitat - this is the main requirements for grooming. A groomed bird will suffer from lice and other diseases.

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In order for the parrot to feel healthy, it must have fresh water and a varied diet. Feed your pet with special grain mixtures, which are purchased at the pet store, or develop a diet yourself. For independent feeding you will need the following.

• Peas, barley, corn. They should be pre-soaked. Do the same with wheat.
• A parrot can easily cope with dry sunflower seeds. In dry form, oats and millet can be offered. The daily dose of grain feed should not exceed 60 g for an adult bird.
• Fruits, vegetables, greens, nuts for a parrot will be both a treat and vitamins. In winter, he can soak dried fruits.
• At a time when birds sit in their nests, add to the general diet eggs, cottage cheese and white bread soaked in skim milk.
• During molting, a little bit is introduced into the mixture of grains. sesame seeds. The parrot molts about twice a year, the first time in the fifth or sixth month of life. During this period, he can cook porridge in the water without salt and other additives. For cereals use corn, rice, oatmeal, buckwheat. Two tablespoons of a warm product per day is enough for a molting pet.

If it is important to teach the parrot to speak, you should get a very young pet and start training from the age of three months. By this period, the bird should be fully adapted to new conditions, it needs to get used to the owner and feel comfortable. If the bird takes food from his hands and sits on the head of the owner, it can be considered ready for long and exciting activities. Only a trusting relationship will cause interest in the pet and will give a result.

During training, there should be no extraneous sounds and other family members, the bird should not be distracted. It is necessary to patiently and for a long time, in the same tonality, pronounce the same words or phrases.

After the first successful experience, things will go easier. The parrot itself will catch the words that are most often used by family members and will periodically repeat them. Then he will begin to parody laughter, barking dogs, crying baby, if any in the family. And, in the end, there will be a feeling that not a bird lives in the house, but a member of the family with whom you can play, laugh, chat.

Alexandria parrots are difficult to breed in captivity. In the wild, from hundreds of birds, they themselves find a mate. At home, one of the partners may not like the proposed candidacy. Then they will urgently have to be seated, because from good-natured birds they turn into brawlers. Moreover, the female provokes scandals.

If the matchmaking was wonderful, and the birds liked each other, then courtship is expected by January. Nesting takes place from January to March, during this period an artificial nest should be in the cage. For him, choose a box about half a meter in diameter, which is smeared with a peat mixture mixed with sawdust. In a comfortably arranged nest, the female hatches eggs for twenty-five days. The male in this period takes care of her and feeds his girlfriend.

A pair can hatch two, three, or four eggs. After the appearance of the chicks, the parents feed them for almost two months, then the babies become independent. So, it's time to transplant the young in another cage.

Many positive reviews can be found on the Internet regarding communication with Alexandrian parrots. Also a lot of advice was left about their content. It’s recommended to choose a cell of such sizes so that the bird can spread its wings, and it should not be a round product.

It is better to place the cage at household eye level or slightly higher. Toys should be selected harmless, from natural materials, as they will be bitten by a bird. You need to purchase special products for large parrots, they can hold out a little longer than the rest.

Before releasing the bird, you should hang up windows and mirrors, otherwise it may beat about them during the flight. You can’t leave a parrot unattended, it literally chews on everything: books, paintings, wallpapers, a mobile phone - everything that they did not manage to take from him.

You can take a closer look at the Alexandrian parrot in the next video.