Breeding Exotic Birds for Enjoyment: The American Shell Parakeet

History

The American Shelled parakeet is a native bird of Australia, and is one of the smaller parrot species. The orginal coloration of the bird was green with a yellow head. Wing and back feathers are black edged in yellow,thus the origin ofthe name Shelled parakeet. Infrequently , blue keets with white heads were seen in the wild flocks.. . The cause for the strange coloration was the hidden blue factor contained in some of the orginal green parakeets.,

The first pair of parakeets were introduced in England in 1838 by naturalist John Gould. Within a few years, due to the popularity of the bird, hundreds could be found throughout Europe. Introduction to the United States was thought to be from Australian sailors bringing the species into ports. American Shelled parakeets are inexpensive and an excellent bird for the beginner.

Sexing

Sexing American Shelled parakeetsis quite simple. Females have a pink to brown cere. Thisis the area above the beak containing the nostrils.Male shelled have blue to a deepblue cere. Ceres of young parakeets are light violet to lavender. Shelled parakeets should be at least six months or older to be properly sexed. One thing to keep in mind is that it can be difficult to sex a stressed bird. I have seen powder blue ceres on stressed females and dark brown ceres on males. However, the edges around the nostrils will usually determine sex of the bird. A stressed female will have a pinkish coloration around the nostrils while her cere is a light blue. A male will show blue around the nostrils with the cere being brown.

Caging

To determine the proper cage size, imagine the bird is sitting on a perch in the center of the cage. The bird should be able to stretch it's wings without coming in contact with the sides of the cage. The cage should be tall enough so that the bird's tail or head does not rub against the top or bottom of the cage. Bars should be close enough so that the bird cannot escape or get his or her head caught between the bars.

Feeding