Forum | Contact | Home

Budgerigar aka "Budgie"

• Budgies as Pets ... Bird Care Requirements / Tips before Buying ... Description / Characteristics ... Talking Abilities of the Budgie



• Breeding Budgies ... Budgie Mutations ... Exhibition Budgerigars



• Budgie Health: Budgie Diseases ... Budgie Feeding & Nutritional Requirements / Budgie Prepared Food Items



• Budgie Store: Budgie Bookstore ... Cages ... Toys ... Budgie Food

The Budgerigar (Melopsittacus undulatus, nicknamed budgie), is a small parrot belonging to the tribe Melopsittacini. Though budgerigars are often called parakeets, especially in American English, this term also refers to any of a number of small parrots with long flat tails. The budgerigar is found throughout the drier parts of Australia and has survived in the inlands of that continent for over 5 million years.

Budgies as Pets

The Budgie is one of the most loved parrots around the world. They are smart, affectionate, and beautiful. The Budgie can make a wonderful addition to any home. The Budgerigar comes in a wide spectrum of color variations and many varieties,

Budgerigars can be taught to speak, whistle tunes, and play with humans. They are intelligent and social animals and enjoy the stimulation of toys and interaction with humans as well as with other budgerigars. A common behavior is the chewing of material such as wood, especially for female budgerigars.

In captivity, budgerigars live an average of five to eight years, but are reported to occasionally live to 15 if well cared for. The life span depends on the budgerigar's breed (show budgerigars typically do not live as long as the common budgerigars) and the individual bird's health, which is influenced by exercise and diet.

These little jewels are thoroughly under-priced and therefore under-appreciated. They are often kept in tiny, boring cages that don't allow them to get sufficient excercise and play, as they like to do. A cage should be accommodate several perches and toys, food and water dishes -- in addition to leaving space for the budgie to fly from perch to perch.

• This webpage has a variety of suitable cages for them.

Budgies are quite entertaining, not as cuddly though as say a cockatoo or lovebird. But nonetheless, they make great "starter pets":

Budgies are often given to kids as pets and neglected once the "novelty" wears off. Thousands of them starve to death or die from dehydration caused by empty water dishes. I strongly believe that if YOU don't like birds, please don't give one to your child as a pet, since in the end there is an excellent chance that you will end up as the primary caretaker. However, if you enjoy animals and love interacting and watching them - you are likely to form a wonderful relationship with one or two of these special little characters.

Adult males usually have dark blue ceres.	Mature females have tan to brown ceres.

Training:

• Web Resources: Budgies are relatively easy to train and this website will provide valuable tips on parrot behavior and training.

• Instructional DVDS:
  • If you are, as I am, a visual learner and prefer step-by-step instructions to train your pet, I recommend the following Cockatiel / Parakeet Training Course to teach your parrot to:
    • Stop Biting
    • Perform Tricks &
    • Tame ANY SIZE bird you could possibly own
  • and/or try the "Teach Your Parrot to Talk" Training Course.

Characteristics

Budgerigars are about 7 inches (~18 cm long) and weigh around 1.1 - 1.5 oz (~30 - 40 grams). Wild budgerigars have green underparts and rumps, while the upperparts are barred with black and yellow. The forehead and face is yellow in adults, and barred black with yellow in young till they change into their adult plumage at 3-4 months of age. Each cheek has a small dark purple patch and a series of black spots across the throat. The tail is greenish blue or purple; outside tail feathers have a central yellow band. Their wings have greenish-black flight feathers and black coverts with yellow fringes. Bill olive grey and legs greyish blue, with zygodactyl toes.

The colour of the cere (the area containing the nostrils) differs between the sexes; blue in males, pale-brown (non-breeding) or brown (breeding) in females and pink in immatures of both genders (usually of a more even purplish-pink colour in young males.) (Source: Wikipedia.org)

Pet Care / Useful Information

Please visit this webpage to learn about nutrition, day-to-day living, toys, home safety, health care for your bird.

• Procuring your Parrot
  • Breeders:
    • Alabama, Calera 35040: Andrea Fisher, email: andreascritters@gmail.com - Species: Budgerigars - English and American varieties. Also breeds: Peachface Lovebirds, Cockatiels, Parrotlets, Greencheek Conures and Quakers
    • Do you breed this species and would like to be listed? Click here to see your options.
• Housing Your Bird
• Training Your Bird
• Bird Nutrition
• Parrot Products

Taxonomy

Genus: Scientific: Melopsittacus ... English: Budgerigars ... Dutch: Grasparkieten ... German: Wellensittiche ... French: Perruches Species: Scientific: Melopsittacus undulatus ... English: Budgerigar, Shell Parakeet, Parakeet ... Dutch: Grasparkiet ... German: Wellensittich ... French: Perruche ondulée CITES Status: Common Distribution: Australia

---

If you would like to add to or correct any of the above information, or would like to share with the AvianWeb visitors your own experiences, please e-mail the AvianWeb Webmaster.
Photo contributions and articles are welcome!