The Colorful, Friendly Lorikeet
The colorfulness and friendliness of Lorikeets may easily entice aspiring bird owners to bring one of these delightful birds home after a visit to the pet shop. However, it pays to do careful research about what is involved in keeping Lorikeets before embarking on this adventure.
Lorikeets are actually native to the coast of Australia. There are six different species of Lorikeet and each is strikingly different from the next. Despite the fact that there are so many different varieties of Lorikeet, the two most commonly kept species are the Scaly-breasted Lorikeet and the Rainbow Lorikeet. Potential bird owners should be aware that it is illegal to collect native birds from the wild. Fortunately there are fairly large populations of captive Lorikeets which usually supply pet shops with their stock. Since these captive-bred birds are often hand-raised, they are usually tamer and easier to handle and care for than wild birds. The average pet Lorikeet will live between 7 and 9 years and they may cost relatively little or a small fortune.
Up until recent years, Lorikeets were considered to be high-maintenance birds that could only be owned by experienced bird keepers since their diet is specialized and hard to imitate. In the wild Lorikeets feed mainly on nectar and pollen and today commercial brands of wet feeds (nectar) and dry feeds (pollen) are available to make feeding these birds much easier. The result is that even amateur bird keepers can now take a Lorikeet home and care for them with relative ease. However, potential Lorikeet owners should be aware that caring for this bird’s diet is not the only challenge that will they will need to prepare themselves for.
Pet Lorikeets are also highly gregarious and if you do not have another Lorikeet to keep your bird company it will make friends with virtually any other creature in the household that will accept it. At times it may seem to the owner that his bird’s need for company is insatiable since the bird seeks constant companionship and stimulation. Therefore it is often wise to keep two birds so that they may keep each other company and this will limit the amount of time you will have to spend with the bird. Unfortunately doing this also has the downside of the birds not forming a very close bond with their owners, as a single bird would. These birds are also quite intelligent and many have learned to talk.
Keeping a Lorikeet is certainly not child’s play, but modern methods of bird keeping have made it easier to do so than ever before. If you’re looking for a constant companion who is friendly, colorful and trainable, why not consider a Lorikeet? It may just prove to be just what you were looking for.
