Every month, I receive several hundred messages via Facebook asking questions about parrots. The queries come from across the globe and can be divided as follows: ➢ 37% concern diet, typically asking if “sunflower seeds and apple” or “pellets alone” can be regarded as a suitable diet for maintenance and/or breeding. ➢ 23% ask about a medical issue; these questions normally come from countries where avian veterinarians do not exist or cannot be accessed. ➢ 21% question me about breeding parrots (primarily African Greys but also macaws and amazons) 19% of the questions can be lumped into the “other” category and tend to be related to specific cases. Because of the number of messages related to diet, I have decided to discuss this most important issue in this informational. Here is my view on a diet for seed-eating birds: Wild parrots feed on a vast variety of foods. In a study that I conducted in Argentina, Paraguay and southern Brazil between 1985 and 1989, I recorded over 59 items that were consumed by Maximilian Parrots Pionus maximiliani, 61 items that were eaten by Yellow-winged Amazons Amazona aestiva and 17 items eaten by Sharp-tailed Conures Thectocercus acuticaudatus, the latter only casually observed and not the focus of the research. The items eaten contained the highest amount of fat when the birds were nesting. The food items tended to be eaten as they became available and until the supply was exhausted, when another item was targeted. I was convinced that many other food items that they fed on were not identified and that from year to year the diet could vary dramatically, perhaps contributing to very good or very poor breeding success. The birds never fed on just one item, but rather fed predominately on one and complemented their intake with the others. In my fieldwork, I found that the parrots consumed bark, shoots, buds, flowers, seedpods, fruit and seeds, occasionally a source of protein (lizards or even nestling passerine birds) and once the fresh droppings of Howler Monkeys. Subsequent research in the Amazon and elsewhere confirmed that different species feed on different items that only they target. Green-winged Macaws Ara chloropterus, for example, feed on hard palm seeds that the Scarlet Macaws Ara macao seem incapable of cracking. This allows both species to occupy the same habitat and not compete with each other. Other food resources may be available for much of the year but will be eaten only at a certain stage of nesting, such as when the young are about to fledge, or only if other food resources become scarce. I can write considerable on wild parrot diets, but the information can be summarized very simply: parrots eat tremendous variety of foods, they are opportunistic (eating what is available) but may avoid certain foods at certain times, and the dietary needs of different species varies, suggesting that no single diet could be used across the board for all parrots. So how does this information apply to the questions on diet that I have been asked? Firstly, while many pellet manufacturers suggest that their diet is complete and nothing else needs to be fed, parrots need variety. The birds may survive on pellets and water, but is this truly optimum for long term? And because most parrots are long lived, we simply do not know. Secondly, pellets are invariably manufactured based on the dietary needs of poultry. Parrots are very different from poultry, which have been bred for a condensed existence—a couple of months for broilers and about two years for egg layers. Parrots are far longer lived, grow slower, are altricial and mainly arboreal—all the opposite of poultry. The other question—that if parrots will thrive and breed on sunflower seeds and apple-- requires a resounding “no!” for a response. Sunflower seeds and apple are terribly inadequate for sustaining a bird healthy long term. Such a diet will lead to deficiencies, malnutrition and without doubt serious illness. Pellets are a better option to a predominately sunflower seed diet, but BOTH require that the diet be broadened significantly. Mixed seed diets can overcome some of the deficiencies seen in only sunflower seed diets, but the problem is that many of the smaller seeds will work their way to the bottom of the food bowl, where they are ignored. In such cases, the birds will eat only the seeds at the top. Offering vitamin-coated seeds is in my opinion worthless, as the parrots shell the seeds; they do not eat the husk. Their mouths are dry. The vitamins thus do not get ingested. For seed diets, my recommendation is to offer as much variety as possible. These seeds should be offered in small quantities in in like-sized groups. Small sunflower, safflower, hemp and shelled peanuts can be offered one day; millets, oats, buckwheat, etc. on another day. If the birds will eat them, items like pumpkin seeds can be included. The intention is to offer as much variety as possible and to encourage the bird to eat everything. The problem then arises in meeting the needs of individual species. A Galah or Rose-breasted Cockatoo Eolophus roseicapillis has evolved to eat small, predominately grass seeds. It becomes obese on a fatty seed diet. On the other hand, macaws require fat in the diet. What this means is that the hobbyist will need to vary the seed mix for the different species. This does not mean that sunflower, safflower and hemp, all very fatty, must be totally excluded from the diet of a Galah, but that they need to be restricted considerably. On the other hand, a large macaw will pay scant attention to a diet of small millets, canary seed and oats. Their diet should contain nuts. In no case should seeds or pellets comprise more than 60% of the diet. While on the subject of nuts, I am always concerned about aflotoxins in nuts but especially peanuts. This is why I recommend that parrots be fed shelled peanuts intended for human consumption. Where in doubt, have the peanuts or nuts tested by a laboratory or health food agency, or look online for methods of detecting aflotoxin contamination. (Aflotoxins cannot be viewed with the naked eye, smelled or tasted.) My opinion on pellets is that they can form the basis of a diet. Like with seeds, pellets can comprise about 60% of the diet. The remainder should consist of other foods, which will be described later. Many readers will be thinking but now that their parrots will not eat anything but seeds or pellets. I simply do not accept this argument. When I was a kid, I hated spinach and steak, but when those two items were served for dinner, I had two options: go hungry or eat them. I ate them. The difference is that parrots can be obstinate. They may reject the other foods initially, but persistence invariably pays dividends. In over 40 years as an aviculturist, I have yet to find a parrot that cannot be coaxed to eating a broader diet. So what can be used to enrich the diet? The list is very long and can incorporate items that may only be regionally available. As an example, we feed the fruit of Spondias mombim, called Hog plums, to our birds. They adore the fruit and will play with the stone for many hours. But this fruit is not available everywhere. I cannot grow dandelions or produce rose hips in the very humid south Florida where we live, but hobbyists in the northern parts of the US and Europe can offer their birds these excellent food sources to their birds. Many weeds that are detested by gardeners can be an excellent food source. Chickweed, dandelion, plantain and many others can be offered whole, with the roots attached. (Look online for the entire list of weeds that can be fed to the birds.) The only caveat is that they come from a chemical free environment. Cultivated fruits have been bred to suit the human palette. This means that they must be sweet. As an example, many cultivated varieties of apple today have as much as 160 grams of sugar per kilogram of fruit. Just 50 years ago, the sugar content was less than half. If you examine wild fruit eaten by parrots, few are rich in sugar and most are eaten long before they ripen, when the birds would need to compete with bats and mammals for the resource. Cultivated fruit should be included in the diet but select varieties that are not packages of sugar. This means seeking out some of the heirloom varieties or picking types intended for cooking. Tropical fruits are excellent. Many have high sugar contents but they are nutritionally superior to temperature fruit and this in my opinion justifies their use. Mango, papaya, guava, carambola, etc are all suitable. The list is long and again can vary from region to region. Vegetables are in my opinion an excellent supplement for caged parrots and are preferred over fruit. Hot peppers, carrot, beets, broccoli, fresh peas, corn on the cob, pumpkin, sweet potatoes, jicama and much more should all be fed. Greens should likewise be available. There are two caveats with vegetables: some greens (namely spinach, chard, beet greens and kale) contain oxalates that can affect calcium uptake and should therefore be offered in limited quantities (though never excluded) from the diet, and some vegetables are better cooked—the beta-carotene content in carrots increases in cooking and cruciferous vegetables (including broccoli, cauliflower and Brussels sprouts) loose their thyroid inhibiting qualities when heated. Steaming is the best means of cooking, but boiling can be considered as long as the vegetables are not cooked to a mush. Other food items that can be included in the parrot diet are cooked whole grain pasta and rice, beans (some, such as black and fava beans, spoil quicker than pinto beans or chick peas), couscous, quinoa and more. Whole grain bread, birdie bread (look online for recipes), nut butter (smeared on the bread) and even certain dry breakfast cereals can be offered to the birds; the latter should not contain sugar or fats and should be derived from whole grains. Germinating changes the nutritional composition of seeds, making them nutritionally much more superior. We sprout seeds, peas, mung beans and more for the birds and they generally eat these before other foods. Flowers, fresh branches, natural foods (palm seeds, pods, etc), green millet sprays and more can be added to the diet as long as they come from a pesticide and insecticide free source. When feeding fruits, vegetables and cooked foods, two important points need to be borne in mind: they can spoil, so should be removed after a reasonable amount of time, and flying insects may be attracted to them. We provide seeds or pellets in the second feeding; the first feeding is invariably the long list of items mentioned above, which are offered in bowls that are removed after two hours. The exceptions are flowers, branches and natural foods, which can be left in the cage. So how do you get a bird that refuses to eat anything but seeds or pellets to broaden its dietary intake? Their food should be removed at night and the fruits or vegetables offered early in the morning; cooked foods should be provided while still warm, which often increases interest and palatability. This food should be left in place for two hours. Offering new foods in the morning is important. The birds will be hungry at that time and more apt to sample new foods. The fruits and vegetables should be offered chopped. They should retain their integrity—mush if rarely eaten. I will never forget when the late John Stoodley recommended that I feed my birds a mash of pulses, vegetables and some fruit. The birds had been accustomed to eating tremendous variety but outright refused to eat the indiscernible mash. Bright colors attract parrots and should always be offered in the daily mélange. Orange, red and yellow are far more attractive to parrots than greens or browns. Beets and carrots are often the first items that a parrot on a will eat. Finally there is the organic and GMA (genetically modified) issue that must be kept in mind. Where possible, I try to feed my birds organic, but not all foods are available from an organic certified source. I often have to be flexible on this subject because some of the items available to me in Miami (i.e., Brazilnuts) have no organically certified source. Genetically modified foods are according to the US Department of Agriculture healthy, but I am not so convinced and avoid them at all cost. These are personal choices. I want for my birds what is good. When feeding, be creative, open-minded and go the extra effort. Your birds will be healthier and if they are set up for breeding will be much more productive.
Posted on: Sat, 28 Jun 2014 16:24:04 +0000
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