Sun conure
Originally from South America, sun conures live for about 30 years and have lots of personality. They love attention and are quite easy to train as long as they are socialised from a young age. Conures do have the ability to talk however it takes a lot of patience and training. Conures are mono-morphic which means that it is very hard to visually determine their sex. The best way to verify the sex of your conure would be to have it DNA sexed or surgically sexed, DNA sexing would be the most cost effective way of determining the gender of your conure. Conure’s often grind their beaks as a form of self grooming, this is very common and should not be of much concern, it is also an indication that your bird is feeling relaxed.
Bird Toys – Like all parrots, it is very important to give conures plenty of toys to play with, they have a tendency to chew as well so toys that are made from natural wood are highly recommended. Toys that have a variety of shapes, colours, materials and sizes are the best for sun conures as this will stimulate them mentally as well. Without toys a conure will develop bad habits such a screeching and self mutilation. Be sure to keep your bird mentally stimulated because bad habits are hard to reverse once they’ve been adopted.
Bird Diet – The diet of a sun conure is broad and should never be confined to the basic “seed and water” feeding routine. A large variety of fruit and vegetables is advised as well as the addition of nuts and “parrot pellets” occasionally. Fruit should be given to the conures daily, with the exception of avocado and lettuce.
Bird Breeding – Conures are relatively easy enough to breed when they are placed in the right environment. A breeding set up for conures should always include a nest box that has been placed high up in the cage. Nesting material is a necessity because most parrots do not make their own nest. Conures will usually lay 5-6 eggs and the incubation period is around 1 month. It is vital that the conures are kept on a healthy diet throughout their breeding cycle.
Hand reared – If you choose to hand rear your baby conure you should begin hand feeding them at about 2 weeks old. Make sure you add a probiotic supplement to the hand rearing formula so that your young bird still gets all the good bacteria from their food that would naturally come from their parents.
