Cockatiels
Cockatiels are a small sized birds that have fun personalities. They have qualities of the Cockatoo, just in a smaller package. They are not as cuddly as some of the larger parrot but they still love attention and to be close to their favorite person.
Origin: Australia
Family: Parrot
Life Span: up to 20 years
Size: 11 to 14 inches
Family: Parrot
Life Span: up to 20 years
Size: 11 to 14 inches
Cockatiel Coloring
The Cockatiels have yellow, grey and white as its general colors. There are many color mutations and variation of patterns. In most Cockatiel color mutations, the facial area is yellow with orange cheeks. The crest is yellow sometimes with a hint of grey and it moves with the birds mood. These coloring are different for the white-face, albino, silver, etc. The females will usually be more dull in color and are less likely to talk. When the wing is extended on a juvenile Cockatiel, there will be white spots along the feathers. These spots on an adult female will fade back a couple feathers but the adult male's will fade completely. There will also be lines on the bottom side of the tail on the juvenile. On the adult female, the lines will stay however, the adult male will have no lines. By this method of sexing the bird, you will not by able to tell the sex until the first molt, unless you're will to pull one of the indicating feathers. This involves pulling the wing out and pulling the feather cleanly, completely, and strait out. It will be painful for the bird and may be risky since if the feather doesn't come out completely and starts to bleed, the bird could bleed to death. Some people say that this method of sexing the Cockatiel is controversial because the mutations could complicate the sex-color indicators.
Cockatiel Behavior
They can be very personable and sociable; they get along with other birds. They are very curious and enjoy climbing, chewing and playing. They can be very busy bee and will entertain you for many hours. One of the unique characteristics is the cockatiels crest. You can tell what mood the bird is in by the position of the crest.
Cockatiel Noise Level
They are pretty low in noise level when compered to the other parrots. They are not known to be extremely good talkers but they are capable. However, this speech is not always really understandable, at least not to people who do not live with the bird. Although, they are very well known as big whistlers. They can learn many different tunes as long as the owner works with the bird. Sometimes they do yell but it is nothing compared to the big parrots and they don't usually yell for very long.