Breeding of the Blue-rumped Parrot

The Psittinus cyanurus, is commonly known here in the U.S. as the Blue-rumped Parrot or Malaysian Blue-rumped Parrot. They are also referred to in some books by the names of Little or Rainbow Parrot. The Blue-rumped is a small type of parrot, similar in size to the Peach-faced Lovebird. The adult plumage of these birds is very striking, especially in the males. Like the Eclectus Parrots, males and female are colored quite differently from each other. The male has a head, with a dark color on the lower back and rump. The wings are green with each feather edged in a light yellowish color. A small maroon patch is on the upper wing coverts. The flanks and under the wings are red, The upper mandible is bright red, with tl1e lower brownish. The iris is a yellowish-white. Feet and legs are grayish. The males have more of a wash over their body, where the females' color is slightly yellowishgreen. The female has some of the same characteristics in color as the male, such as the yellow feather edging, red under the wings, feet color and iris color. My hen has a solid dark brown head. As young birds feather into adult plumage, they will either start to blue in the head feathers or go brown. As my domestically raised birds approached a year old they lost their baby coloring and have a solid dark brown head, just like their mother.  The Blue-rumped Parrots are distributed from south-western Thailand and southern Burma, through Malaysia to Borneo and Sumatra, Indonesia. They inhabit forested areas feeding on fruits, seeds and blossoms. I've been told that where these birds nest is ve1y warm. The temperature stays at about 95° with the humidity about 90% day and night. Many years back, I purchased some Blue-rumped parrots from an imp01ter who brought a small number of these birds into the U.S. They were young birds, not yet in their full adult plumage. Visual sexing did not well on these birds. I had some surgically sexed to find that one of the hens with somewhat of a brown head was a young male. It took almost a year for the Blue-rumpeds to color into their full splendor. After years of intense and study of these birds, beautiful healthy chicks were finally produced. I successfully reared two youngsters to weaning. When I say the word work with these birds, I do mean it. Lots of close and observation went into breeding these birds. Here is how it all went ... Success and true pairing just was not happening. I tried to observe them close up and from afar. But the birds would just usually sit motionless, not doing much. A video camera is what told the real story on these birds. After much observation, studying tapes of the Blue-rumpeds and changing mates  around, a true pair did finally form. I now had a pair that was truly compatible. Now it was just a matter of patience and time, along with making sure this pair was completely happy and at ease with their surroundings. The pair was set up outdoors in a wire cage, no added heat or cooling (I live in Southern California in an area where the weather usually does not drop below 40°F). The cage measured 36 wide, 33 tall and 23 deep. A wooden nest box measuring 9 x 10 by 14 deep having a 3 in diameter hole was offered to the pair. The nest box was lined in a dark cork, which was adhered to the inside with nontoxic glue. To the bottom of the nest box three inches of pine shavings was added to use as a base. I now use the cork lining for many types of birds with great success. As a safety precaution their cage is inside a large wire enclosure. This wire building has many pairs of birds set up in individual cages for breeding. They do not seem to be bothered by their close neighbors of different species, and the neighbors do not mind the Blue-rum peds either. Next to the Blue-rumped Parrot's cage are Philippine Blue-naped Parrots. Spectacled Amazons, Timneh Gray Parrots and Plum-crowned and Whitecrowned Pionus (all of which are breeding). The diet I provide for the Bluerumpeds is very similar to the diet I offer to most of my other parrots. They have available to them at all times a variety of dry seeds consisting of medium size gray sunflower seed, safflower seed and a parakeet mix containing 42% canary seed. Along with the chy seeds the pair is given daily a bowl of fresh cut up fruits, vegetables and greens. Corn on the cob and cranberries are their favorite foods which are always the first to be eaten. I find it amazing that two little birds can quickly devour an entire ear of corn and seem to be waiting for more. In early spring, the male courts the hen into breeding with his melodious singing.