Grey Breasted Parakeet

Brazil's Grey-breasted Parakeet is in trouble and may face extinction. Habitat loss and poaching have reduced the global population of this species to just 250 adult individuals and almost all of these birds rely on one isolated hilltop forest in Brazil. ABC and partner Aquasis are urgently working to save this Critically Endangered species by reducing poaching, increasing reproductive rates and expanding the bird's habitat range. We can help the Grey-breasted Parakeet bounce back – but we need your help to make it happen.

Snowy Owl

The snowy owl was one of the many bird species originally described by Linnaeus in the landmark 1758 10th edition of his Systema Naturae, where it was given the binomial name of Strix scandiaca.^[2] The genus name Bubo is Latin for the Eurasian eagle-owl and scandiaca is New Latin for Scandinavia.^[3]

Snowy owl calls are varied, but the alarm call is a barking, almost quacking krek-krek; the female also has a softer mewling pyee-pyee or prek-prek. The song is a deep repeated gahw. They may also clap their beak in response to threats or annoyances. While called clapping, it is believed this sound may actually be a clicking of the tongue, not the beak.Until recently, the snowy owl was regarded as the sole member of a distinct genus, as Nyctea scandiaca, but mtDNAcytochrome b sequence data (Olsen et al. 2002) shows that it is very closely related to the horned owls in the genus Bubo. However, some authorities debate this classification, still preferring Nyctea.^[4]This yellow-eyed, black-beaked white bird is easily recognisable. It is 52–71 cm (20–28 in) long, with a 125–150 cm (49–59 in) wingspan. Also, these owls can weigh anywhere from 1.6 to 3 kg (3.5 to 6.6 lb). The average lifespan in the wild is 9.5 years.^[5] It is one of the largest species of owl and, in North America, is on average the heaviest owl species. The adult male is virtually pure white, but females and young birds have some dark spots; the young are heavily barred, and dark spotting may even predominate. Its thick plumage, heavily feathered taloned feet, and colouration render the snowy owl well-adapted for life north of the Arctic Circle.

Black Phoebe

The Black Phoebe is a dapper flycatcher of the western U.S. with a sooty black body and crisp white belly. They sit in the open on low perches to scan for insects, often keeping up a running series of shrill chirps. Black Phoebes use mud to build cup-shaped nests against walls, overhangs, culverts, and bridges. Look for them near any water source from small streams, to suburbs, all the way to the salt-sprayed rocks and cliffs of the Pacific Ocean.

© Lois Manowitz

American Robin

The quintessential early bird, American Robins are common sights on lawns across North America, where you often see them tugging earthworms out of the ground. Robins are popular birds for their warm orange breast, cheery song, and early appearance at the end of winter. Though they’re familiar town and city birds, American Robins are at home in wilder areas, too, including mountain forests and Alaskan wilderness.

© Christopher L. Wood

Osprey

Unique among North American raptors for its diet of live fish and ability to dive into water to catch them, Ospreys are common sights soaring over shorelines, patrolling waterways, and standing on their huge stick nests, white heads gleaming. These large, rangy hawks do well around humans and have rebounded in numbers following the ban on the pesticide DDT. Hunting Ospreys are a picture of concentration, diving with feet outstretched and yellow eyes sighting straight along their talons

 B.N. Singh

.

Black-capped Chickadee

A bird almost universally considered “cute” thanks to its oversized round head, tiny body, and curiosity about everything, including humans. The chickadee’s black cap and bib; white cheeks; gray back, wings, and tail; and whitish underside with buffy sides are distinctive. Its habit of investigating people and everything else in its home territory, and quickness to discover bird feeders, make it one of the first birds most people learn

 Christopher L. Wood

.

Northern Cardinal

The male Northern Cardinal is perhaps responsible for getting more people to open up a field guide than any other bird. They’re a perfect combination of familiarity, conspicuousness, and style: a shade of red you can’t take your eyes off. Even the brown females sport a sharp crest and warm red accents. Cardinals don’t migrate and they don’t molt into a dull plumage, so they’re still breathtaking in winter’s snowy backyards. In summer, their sweet whistles are one of the first sounds of the morning.

© Kevin Bolton

Pileated Woodpecker

The pileated woodpecker is one of the largest woodpecker species in North America and its look is unmistakable—a large black bird with white on each side of its neck and a red crest on its head. When it flies, white flashes are visible under its wings. 

The sound of the pileated woodpecker's hammering carries a long distance through the woods where they live. They drum to attract mates and to establish the boundaries of their territory—warning other males away. 

They use their beaks to peck and dig under bark to find carpenter ants, beetle larvae, and other insects and will often dig large, rectangular holes in trees to uncover their meals. Some holes are so big that they weaken small, young trees. The birds also strip pieces of bark from trees looking for food. Generally, however, pileated woodpeckers help keep a forest healthy by eating wood-boring insects. 

A nesting pair of pileated woodpeckers usually makes a nesting hole in a large, older tree. During the day, both parents take turns incubating, or sitting on, the eggs to keep them warm. At night, only the male incubates the eggs. They generally lay four eggs at a time, which take about two weeks to hatch.

Red-Tailed Hawk

The red-tailed hawk is a top predator. The hawks use tall perches to spot their prey in the open spaces next to highways. 

Red-tailed hawks also hunt from the air. As they circle and soar, they can spot a mouse from 100 feet (30 meters) up in the air—about ten stories high. When a red-tailed hawk spots a rodent, rabbit, lizard, or other prey scurrying, it swoops down and grabs its meal in its talons—the big claws on its feet. Once the hawk grabs its prey, it usually flies back up to its perch to eat it. 

They were named for the variety that has a brick-red tail. Male and female red-tailed hawks basically look alike, though the females are larger. 

Red-tailed hawks often mate for life. The pair makes a stick nest in a tree, high above the ground. They will use the nest year after year, so it grows bigger and bigger. 

The female hawk lays one to five eggs—which are white with brown spots. The parents take turns sitting on the eggs, keeping them warm and safe. 

Baby red-tailed hawks are covered with white, downy feathers. The hawk parents feed their young until the young birds can leave the nest, usually when they're about six weeks old.

Indian Peafowl

Indian peafowl are a species in a group of birds called pheasants. The males are called peacocks, while the females are called peahens. Together, they are peafowl.

Peafowl are among the largest of all birds that fly. (Ostriches, emus, and other such birds are bigger, but cannot fly.) The beautiful feathers that cover the tails of a peacock are 5 feet (1.5 meters) long—longer than the bird's body—and can be displayed in a spectacular fan of brilliant colors. These long feathers actually grow from the bird's back not the tail. He elevates them by raising the much shorter tail feathers underneath them. Peahens are more drab than their male counterparts, with mostly brown on their back with a white belly. Females don't have long tail feathers, but they do have a crest on their head and green neck feathers.

Indian peafowl are native to India and Sri Lanka, in South Asia. They've been introduced to other countries, usually as exhibits in parks, zoos, and nature centers or as domestic pets. The head and body of adult peafowl range from 3 to 4 feet long and their tail can be 5 feet long.

Flamingo

Flamingos are famous for their bright pink feathers, stilt-like legs, and S-shaped neck. When a flamingo spots potential dinner—favorite foods include shrimp, snails, and plantlike water organisms called algae—it plunges its head into the water, twists it upside down, and scoops the fish using its upper beak like a shovel. They are able to "run" on water, thanks to their webbed feet, to gain speed before lifting up into the sky. 

Flamingos build nests that look like mounds of mud along waterways. At the top of the mound, in a shallow hole, the female lays one egg. The parents take turns sitting on the egg to keep it warm. After about 30 days, the egg hatches. Flamingo young are born white, with soft, downy feathers and a straight bill. The bill gradually curves downward as the flamingo matures. Both parents take care of the newborn flamingo, feeding it a fluid produced in their digestive systems. The young leave the nest after about five days to join other young flamingos in small groups, returning to the parents for food. The parents identify their chick by its voice. After about three weeks, the adults herd young flamingos into large groups called crèches where they start to look for food on their own.

Most flamingo species are not endangered, although the Andean flamingo is listed as Vulnerable, and the Chilean, Lesser, and Puna flamingos are Near Threatened.

Peregrine Falcon

Swoosh! A peregrine falcon can dive up to 200 miles (323 kilometers) an hour to capture prey in flight, striking in midair with its outstretched talons, or claws. Peregrines usually hunt with either a swift chase or a fast dive. Starlings, pigeons, and doves are among their favorite meals.

A common bird of prey (a group of hunting birds that includes such birds as hawks and eagles), the peregrine is an adaptable falcon that can be found in almost any habitat. Peregrines live from cold tundra to hot deserts, from sea level to high in the mountains. Their adaptability even allows them to thrive in cities. They live in a greater variety of habitats than almost any other bird of prey. Some peregrine falcons migrate in the winter from their nesting grounds in the Arctic all the way to South America—a round-trip distance of up to 15,500 miles (24,945 kilometers). They make the return trip north when it's time to mate and lay eggs.

Peregrines don't build nests. They usually just find a shallow dip in some rocks or scrape a depression in the soil on the ledge of a cliff, or even use the ledge of a building. Female peregrines lay two to four eggs at a time. Parents incubate the eggs for about a month until the eggs hatch. Peregrine chicks stay in the nest for up to six weeks, by which time they've learned to fly.

Peregrine falcons in the United States were listed as an endangered species after their numbers dropped dangerously low between the 1950s and the 1970s. Certain pesticides used by farmers—including DDT—harmed the peregrines by causing their eggshells to be dangerously thin—so fragile that they broke when the parents tried to incubate them. Laws were enacted to ban DDT and, fortunately the ban, along with other conservation efforts, led to the recovery of the species. In fact, scientists think there now may be more peregrines in some parts of their range than there ever used to be!

Great Horned Owl

The great horned owl has no horns! It is named for the tufts of feathers that sit on top of its head, called plumicorns. Scientists don’t know why these owls sport the tufts, but they do have a few theories. The tufts might help members of their own species to recognize each other among the forest around them, or they may use the tufts to blend into their surroundings, making them look more like broken tree branches than a tasty meal. 

The great horned owl is one of the most common owls in North America, found in a range of habitats that includes forests, swamps, deserts, tundra edges, tropical rain forests, cities, suburbs, and parks. If you live in North America, there’s a good chance you’ve heard the deep, soft, stuttering hoots of this owl: hoo-h’HOO-hoo-hoo. This owl uses this hoot to advertise its territory. It can also make a variety of other sounds, including whistles, barks, shrieks, hisses, coos, and wavering cries. 

You are most likely to hear an owl hoot at night because they are nocturnal birds. They have big eyes and wide pupils that allow them to spot their prey. Unlike people’s eyes, their eyes don’t move in their sockets, but the owls can swivel their heads to look in any direction. Their short but wide wings allow them to fly through the forest, and their soft feathers help them approach prey very quietly. 

Great horned owls eat a wide variety of prey—from small rodents to skunks and geese. Like other owls, these birds sometimes swallow their prey whole and later regurgitate pellets composed of bone, fur, and other unwanted parts of their meal.

These fierce predators are also great parents. Mated pairs will find a nest—usually a disused nest from another large bird species—and will defend it from intruders at all costs. Baby great horned owls are ready to fly at between 10 and 12 weeks old.

Text by Allyson Shaw / NGS Staff

Snowy Owl

When you see a snowy owl, it's clear how the bird probably got its name: they're snow-white. Males are generally whiter than females. As males grow older, they get whiter. The females never become completely white—remaining brownish with darker markings. 

These large owls mainly live in the Arctic in open, treeless areas called tundra. Snowy owls perch on the ground or on short posts. From there they patiently watch for prey. Their favorite target is lemmings—small mouselike rodents—but they also hunt for other small rodents, rabbits, birds, and fish. 

Snowy owls have excellent eyesight, but they obviously can't see their prey when it's underneath snow or a thick layer of plants. To capture those meals, the owl relies on its other keen sense: hearing. 

In flight, snowy owls generally cruise low to the ground. Once they spot their prey, they approach it from the air, and snatch it up using the large, sharp talons, or claws, on their feet. 

Most owls sleep during the day and hunt at night, but the snowy owl is active during the day, especially in the summertime. They tend to be most active at dawn and dusk. 

Snowy owl pairs usually mate for life. Female snowy owls lay from 3 to 11 eggs at a time, in a nest built on the ground. When there is plenty of food available, snowy owls tend to lay more eggs than when food is scarce. 

Lemmings make up the main part of the snowy owls' diet, and lemming population numbers rise and fall naturally. Sometimes, if there is not enough prey around to feed baby owls, the adult pair won't lay any eggs at all until the supply of food improves. 

The female snowy owl sits on her eggs until they hatch. The male feeds her while she keeps their eggs warm and safe. After about one month, the eggs hatch. 

Babies are covered in soft white down when they hatch. As new feathers replace the down, the birds become light brown. 

The young leave the nest less than a month after they hatch. By the time they're about a month and a half old, the young owls can fly well, but their parents take care of them for another ten weeks or more.

American Crow

If you live in the contiguous United States, you’ve almost certainly seen (or heard!) an American crow. Crows range from southern Canada throughout the United States. As an adult, this bird is entirely black from bill to tail, except for its brown eyes. Adult crow feathers have a glossy sheen. These noisy birds are often recognizable by their distinctive, loud cry, called a caw. They are often mistaken for the common raven, but ravens are larger, have differently shaped bills, pointed wings and tails, and hoarser cries.

American crows often live in family groups. Both members of a breeding pair help build the nests, and the female crow usually lays four or five eggs in the spring or summer. After about five weeks in the nest, the young birds begin learning how to fly and catch prey. Crows sometimes stay near the place where they were born to help raise other young crows. 

Crows gather in large groups during the winter. They congregate late in the day in areas with large trees. This behavior is known as winter roosting.

Crows will eat almost anything, from insects and small animals such as frogs to fruit and nuts. They prefer open areas with access to trees and can sometimes be found around vegetable gardens. Crows also frequently live in suburban neighborhoods and in parks.

Crows are considered to be very intelligent birds.

Text by Sara Zeglin / NGS Staff

Bald Eagle

A bald eagle's white head may make it look bald. But actually the name comes from an old English word, "balde," meaning white. These graceful birds have been the national symbol of the United States since 1782. 

Bald eagles were on the brink of extinction because of hunting and pollution. But laws created almost 40 years ago have helped protect them, and they've made a comeback. 

Female bald eagles are a bit bigger than males. Their bodies can be three feet (one meter) long, and their wingspan can be eight feet (2.4 meters) across. That's about the distance from the floor to the ceiling! 

Eagle nests are called aeries (AIR-ees). Bald eagles build their nests at the very top of tall trees so the eggs will be safe. Some parents come back year after year to the same nest, adding more sticks, twigs, and grass each time. 

Babies, called eaglets, are born light gray then turn brown. When they are four to five years old, they develop their normal white heads and tails. In the wild, they can live to be 35 years old or more. 

Bald eagles can soar over 10,000 feet (3,048 meters) high, and their great eyesight lets them see fish up to a mile (1.6 kilometers) away. When they attack, they drop down at up to 100 miles (161 kilometers) an hour! Then they glide just above the water, snag a fish with their feet, and fly off to eat it.

Free Flight

Our Weekly Free Flight.
We Let the Birds Fly, We Give Them there Natural doing.

This what we love our Birds

Ideal age of African Grey Parrot for training

9 weeks old baby African Grey

The African grey parrot is a medium-sized, predominantly grey, black-billed parrot. Their average weight is 400 grams (0.88 lb), with an average length of 33 centimetres (13 in) and an average wingspan of 46–52 cm. The Congo subspecies is a lighter grey, with darker grey over the head and both wings, while the head and body feathers have a slight white edge to them. The tail feathers are red. The Timneh subspecies is a darker gray and has a dark maroon colored tail as well as having a portion of their beak being light pink in color. Due to artificial selection by parrot breeders, some Congo African grey parrots are partially or completely red. Both sexes appear similar. The coloration of juveniles is similar to that of adults, but the eye is typically dark grey to black, in comparison to the yellow irises around dark eyes of the adult birds. The undertail coverts are also tinged with grey. The adults weigh between 418 and 526 grams.

African grey parrots may live for 40–60 years in captivity, although their mean lifespan in the wild appears to be shorter at about 23 years.

Ideal age of Cockatoo for trainging

A cockatoo is a parrot that is any of the 21 species belonging to the bird family Cacatuidae, the only family in the superfamily Cacatuoidea. Along with the Psittacoidea (true parrots) and the Strigopoidea (large New Zealand parrots), they make up the order Psittaciformes (parrots). The family has a mainly Australasian distribution, ranging from the Philippines and the eastern Indonesian islands of Wallacea to New Guinea, the Solomon Islands and Australia.

Cockatoos are recognisable by the showy crests and curved bills. Their plumage is generally less colourful than that of other parrots, being mainly white, grey or black and often with coloured features in the crest, cheeks or tail. On average they are larger than other parrots; however, the cockatiel, the smallest cockatoo species, is a small bird. The phylogenetic position of the cockatiel remains unresolved, other than that it is one of the earliest offshoots of the cockatoo lineage. The remaining species are in two main clades. The five large black coloured cockatoos of the genus Calyptorhynchus form one branch. The second and larger branch is formed by the genus Cacatua, comprising 11 species of white-plumaged cockatoos and four monotypic genera that branched off earlier; namely the pink and white Major Mitchell's cockatoo, the pink and grey galah, the mainly grey gang-gang cockatoo and the large black-plumaged palm cockatoo.

Cockatoos prefer to eat seeds, tubers, corms, fruit, flowers and insects. They often feed in large flocks, particularly when ground-feeding. Cockatoos are monogamous and nest in tree hollows. Some cockatoo species have been adversely affected by habitat loss, particularly from a shortage of suitable nesting hollows after large mature trees are cleared; conversely, some species have adapted well to human changes and are considered agricultural pests.

Cockatoos are popular birds in aviculture, but their needs are difficult to meet. The cockatiel is the easiest cockatoo species to maintain and is by far the most frequently kept in captivity. White cockatoos are more commonly found in captivity than black cockatoos. Illegal trade in wild-caught birds contributes to the decline of some cockatoo species in the wild.

Ideal age of Macaw for training

Of the many different Psittacidae (true parrots) genera, six are classified as macaws: Ara, Anodorhynchus, Cyanopsitta, Primolius, Orthopsittaca, and Diopsittaca. Previously, the members of the genus Primolius were placed in Propyrrhura, but the former is correct in accordance with ICZN rules. Macaws are native to Central America and North America (only Mexico), South America, and formerly the Caribbean. Most species are associated with forests, especially rainforests, but others prefer woodland or savannah-like habitats.

Proportionately larger beaks, long tails, and relatively bare, light-coloured, medial (facial patch) areas distinguish macaws from other parrots. Sometimes the facial patch is smaller in some species, and limited to a yellow patch around the eyes and a second patch near the base of the beak in the members of the genus Anodorhynchus. A macaw's facial feather pattern is as unique as a fingerprint

The largest macaws are the hyacinth, Buffon's (great green) and green-winged macaws. While still relatively large, macaws of the genera Cyanopsitta, Orthopsittaca and Primolius are significantly smaller than the members of Anodorhynchus and Ara. The smallest member of the family, the red-shouldered macaw, is no larger than some parakeets of the genus Aratinga.

Macaws, like other parrots, toucans and woodpeckers, are zygodactyl, having their first and fourth toes pointing backward.

Ideal age for African Lovebirds for training

African Love Birds

A lovebird is one of nine species of the genus Agapornis (Greek: αγάπη agape 'love'; όρνις ornis 'bird'). They are a social and affectionate small parrot. Eight species are native to the African continent, and the grey-headed lovebird is native to Madagascar. Their name comes from the parrots' strong, monogamous pair bonding and the long periods which paired birds spend sitting together. Lovebirds live in small flocks and eat fruit, vegetables, grasses and seed. Black-winged lovebirds also eat insects and figs, and the black-collared lovebirds have a special dietary requirement for native figs, making them problematic to keep in captivity.

Some species are kept as pets, and several color mutations were selectively bred in aviculture. Their average lifespan is 10 to 15 years.^[1]

Ideal age of Cockatiel for training

 15 days old baby Cockatiel.

This is the ideal age of cockatiel to start handfeeding and to train for free flight

The cockatiel (Nymphicus hollandicus), also known as the quarrion and the weiro, is a bird that is a member of the cockatoo family endemic to Australia. They are prized as household pets and companion parrots throughout the world and are relatively easy to breed. As a caged bird, cockatiels are second in popularity only to the budgerigar.^[2]

The cockatiel is the only member of the genus Nymphicus. It was previously considered a crested parrot or small cockatoo; however, more recent molecular studies have assigned it to its own subfamily, Nymphicinae. It is, therefore, now classified as the smallest of the Cacatuidae (cockatoo family). Cockatiels are native to Australia, and favour the Australian wetlands, scrublands, and bush lands.

How to Train Your Brids For Free Flight

This Video well  help you to train your Birds for Free Flight