That Bird Blog – Bird Care and History for Pet Birds

Australia’s Grass Parakeets (Genus Neophema) are so beautifully colored and graceful in flight, that it almost seems like they “should be” delicate and difficult to keep.  Yet they are very hardy, fairly quiet with pleasant “songs” and quite confiding and easy to tame.  Please see my article Introducing Australia’s Colorful Grass Parakeets to learn about their many good points.  Today we’ll meet a few of the more popular species. Read More »

When ornithologists use the term “finch”, they are usually referring to birds in the Family Fringillidae.  However, the “finches” kept by pet owners are more often of the Family Estrildidae – the waxbills, weavers and sparrows.  Today we’ll take a closer look at the Family Fringillidae, the True Finches.

Classification and Range

The 140+ species of True Finches range across all continents except Antarctica and Australia.  The most commonly-kept birds in this family are the Bullfinch and the European Goldfinch.  The American Goldfinch, is a close relative and, in captivity, interbreeds with its European cousin.  Most True Finches are classified within the Subfamily Carduelinae. They nest solitarily and defend only the area around the nest.  Mated pairs forage with others in loose flocks.  Read More »

The adaptable Ringneck Parakeet (Psittacula krameri) has been introduced to more far-flung places – Egypt, Macao, Singapore, Zanzibar, Great Britain, and California, to name a few – than perhaps any other parrot. To this impressive list I would like to add a population that is little-known and quite unexpected – the tiny flock that lives in New York City.

From Indian Woodlands to Bronx Streets

After catching glimpses of the phantom Ringnecks while birding along the Bronx River as a youth (and doubting what I had seen), I lost track of them until I began working as a bird keeper at the Bronx Zoo.  Shortly thereafter I came upon an injured Ringneck and began seeing the flock of 10-15 birds regularly.  The individual I cared for was missing several toes and showed other signs of battling the long, cold NY winters, but was otherwise in fine shape. Read More »

The colors of North American’s Buntings rival those of any tropical bird.  Several species are popularly kept in Europe, Asia and Latin America, but laws limit the availability of most in the USA (check a local Softbill Society for legal specimens).  I recently wrote about the Painted Bunting (Passerina ciris), one of the most colorful of the group (please see article below). Today we’ll discuss the Rainbow, Indigo, Versicolor and Lazuli Buntings.

In General

There are a few husbandry tips that apply to all Buntings.  One of the least known is that they relish the resin produced by pine and spruce trees.  Branches from these trees will keep your birds busy for hours.  Many aviculturists believe that something in the resin helps to keep the birds in good color as well. Read More »

Among the Waxbills (Family Estrildidae) we find some of the most popular of all cage birds, most of which are referred to as “finches”.  The related Weavers and Whydahs (Family Ploceidae), less commonly kept, are valued for their unique breeding and nest-building habits.  Oddly enough, only a few species of True Finches (Fringillidae) have actually made their way into finch collections. Read More »