The Eclectus Parrot

                       The Jewel of the South Pacific

No, not ‘eclectic’, Eclectus – the Eclectus Parrot, an extremely colorful, easily tamed, and social bird. These birds are fun! Native to Australia, New Guinea, and the islands of eastern Indonesia, they’re extremely large parrots growing up to 15 inches in length.

There are actually nine subspecies of Eclectus parrots each very similar in appearance varying in the size of their heads, brightness of their feathers, and the color of their heads. Regardless, they’re all absolutely gorgeous. If you come across an Eclectus, you cannot help but want to touch them. Their feathers are almost like hair and are tightly interlocked to give them a silky coat that begs to be petted. Their coloring is more brilliant than the most vibrant rainbow.

The males are a vibrant green with a horn colored beak, a cluster of blue on their wings and a bright red under wing. Yep, rainbow! The females are red with brilliant blue underbellies and black beaks. They are among the few birds whose gender is so easily identified; most birds are difficult to sex.

Due to the variety of subspecies, hybrid breeding is common and is strongly frowned upon. The majority of bird lovers, breeders, and environmentalists believe that it is important to keep the gene pool of these amazing birds pure. It is advised, if you are going to purchase a young Eclectus, that you take steps to ensure your bird is not a hybrid. How? Experts advise getting a photo of your bird and consulting an expert.

Beauty is more than skin deep; at least it is in the Eclectus Parrot. They are fantastic birds. Both intelligent and loving, it is difficult to find a flaw. Incredibly social, they’re playful and enjoy hanging upside down, playing with you and your family members, and relish toys and time with their family. Want more? They can talk and quite often develop an extensive vocabulary. Even better, they’re not particularly noisy birds.

The Eclectus is fairly easy to care for too. They enjoy a good shower, and it’s good for their feathers, so you can place a bird perch in your shower and take care of two tasks at once – you’re both clean. Because exercise is very important to this lovely bird, you will want to make sure you have plenty of time to hang with them outside of their cage.

Toys are vital because they can become bored easily and require plenty of activity both in their cage and outside of it. Don’t let your Eclectus become bored because it often leads to feather plucking and those feathers are too gorgeous to be left on the cage floor. Trick training is a great way to stimulate your eclectus parrot and keep him from forming bad habits.

They love plenty of fresh fruits and veggies and have the reputation of being very hearty, and messy, eaters. They’re intelligent, loyal, playful, and gentle birds, they’re practically perfect.

In fact, if an Eclectus has an ideal environment, very little can go wrong. The only time behavior issues come up with an Eclectus is if they’re bored or if they’re in a frantic and noisy household where they experience an abundance of stress. This type of environment isn’t good for any pet regardless of whether it is a bird or a dog. In order to develop a strong bond of trust with your Eclectus, make sure you spend time training them. This training time will virtually eliminate any potential problems.

The ideal Eclectus owner will have a strong love for birds, time to play with their bird on a daily basis, the patience and time to train them, and a desire to bond with a truly wonderful bird. Because they’re easy to care for, they can be taken for granted. Always remember that a bird is only as good as its owner. Proper care and attention is critical for a happy healthy Eclectus. Birdtricks.com provides all training information needed to have a healthy happy eclectus parrot!