Turquoisine Grass Parakeet

Scientific Name: Neophenta pulchella

Origin: New South Wales, Victoria and South Australia

This brightly colored parakeet is easy to manage, feed and breed. It may be kept with other parrot like species, such as Bourke's Parakeet, if the aviary is fairly large. It becomes active in the evening, but is quiet and lethargic during the day. It needs plenty of flying space. A frost-proof shelter is required for bad weather.

Description:

Size: 20 cm (8 in)

COCK:

Body: green. Lures and cheeks: turquoise-blue. Throat and chest: yellow. Wings: blue and chestnut red. Beak: horn color. Legs: yellowish-grey.

HEN:

Similar, but duller colors. No chestnut red on wings. Less blue on face.

Diet: (Seedeater)

Mixed millets, plain canary seed and sunflower seed form the basic diet.

Green food and a liberal quantity of maw seed are appreciated. Soaked and sprouted seeds should be fed at all times. Grit and cuttlefish bone must always be provided.

Turqoisine Grass Parakeet Breeding:

The courtship display of the cock includes a soft whistling smug. Nest boxes should he provided for breeding pairs and they often use a budgerigar nesting box. The base should be filled with damp moss or wood pulp.

Four to five eggs are laid and the hen incubates alone. The incubation period is17 to 19 days. The cock bird feeds her while she is sitting and for a further few days after the chicks have hatched. Both parents then feed the young. Rearing food should include soaked and sprouted seeds, soaked bread, green food and maw seed. Young birds should not be allowed to breed until they attain two years of age.

Turquoisine Grass Parakeet Information

• The turquoisine grass parakeet is found in the rain forests of Australia, areas like south east of Queensland and northern part of central Victoria. The birds are commonly seen in woodland areas and open grass lands. Generally the woodlands consist of the timber and creeks lined with trees. Though far from being extinct the trading of the bird is protected by the laws passed out by the Australian government.
• The bird stays in small groups but sometimes they can be found in flocks of 30 to 40 birds. The birds have a erratic direction of flight and are often fluttery in nature.
• The bird produces mainly of two types of call. One call has a soft soothing tone while the other is weak twittering sound produced by the bird when feeding itself.
• In wild the breeding season for the bird starts from the month of Augusts and ends in December.
• The bird is very fertile in nature and is capable to breed at an early age of 5 months.
• The male bird becomes very aggressive during the breeding season.
• The bird in wild prefers to build their nests in hollows that are usually at a height of around 1 meter from the ground. The hollow nests of the bird consist of hollows in the tree trunks, dead tree stumps, fence posts and such.

With the aid of selective breeding the turquoisine grass parakeets can be bred into a varied range of colors in captivity.