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home Back Sept 3, 2000, Issue 1 Next! |
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Issue Number 1 Copyright 2000 all rights reserved no reprints without permission
If you cover your bird at night, uncover him just before you go to bed. That way he will be able to see eat his breakfast, in the morning, while you will get to sleep in!
Do you like to tell stories about your birds, or have an odd bird-related fact or experience to share? Why not write us a short story about your bird or birds to share with other Flock Talk readers? Send your stories to Robirda.
Song inheritance in canaries is sex-linked; most male canaries inherit their song style from their mother's father.
Leave a night light on near your cockatiels, to help cut down on night-thrashing. Scared or surprised 'tiels can hurt themselves if it is so dark they can't see where to land - a night light may very well save a life someday!
Lovebirds carry nesting material to where they want the nest to be by stuffing it into the feathers on their backs... although they lose most of it while flying up to the nestsite, they generally do manage to build quite an attractive nest - eventually! - Home |
 For bird people who care. Hello! Welcome to the very first issue of Flock Talk - I hope you like what you see! If you have comments, criticisms, or stories to share, please send them to Robirda.
 Bird Site Report
This site is loaded with some great information! Created by well-known breeder and canary judge Brian Keenan, who has a world-wide reputation for the excellence of both his stock, and his judging, it is a wonderful example of what a great canary site should be. His articles have been published in many reputable bird magazines, and many of them are posted here ... so if you like to read about canaries, be prepared to spend some time at this site!
Feature Article This week I'd like to discuss the main focus of this e-zine, small companion pet birds. Although such easily found birds as budgies and finches are still considered exotic by many people, the range of small birds species available to us as pets and companions encompasses a dazzling array of personality, colour, song, and behaviour. Even though reliable information on their needs and behaviour is not always easy to find, many of us have found ourselves enchanted by these small creatures and their winsome ways, many of us so much so that we are commonly heard to say... Let's Hear It For The Little Guys!I have always found the smaller species of birds appealing - from the hummingbirds who persisted in believing that my ear was a flower, to the housefinches and swallows who serenaded me as a child from my mother's clothesline (to my mother's dismay) - I found them all fascinating and very attractive. I met my first pet bird at 7... this was an elderly cage-bound budgie, who had lived alone in his cage with rarely any other company than a nearby dog, for 7 or so years. His human (who became my step-dad) was there to feed him and clean his cage in the mornings, and was otherwise never around. He rarely saw anything other than seed and water. However, when the marriage had taken place, Petie of course came along, and I was assigned his care, being the one with the most interest in this 'boring' (as my family said) bird. Watching the slow blossoming and flowering of his stubborn, social little self was my first education in bird psychology, and cemented an original fascination into a lifelong addiction - I already knew that I had a special bond with many creatures, but it soon became quite clear to me that I had an instinctive understanding of these little feathered gems and many of their motivations. I knew without a doubt that I wanted to learn more. I was very surprised to learn how difficult it was to find reliable information on handling, taming, and keeping pet birds happy and healthy. Many pet owners relied on pet stores to instruct them, while the workers in the pet stores were simply told to sell whatever product seemed appropriate to the question being asked - whether it would provide the needed solution or not. But I persisted, and whenever I found someone who could teach me something, I haunted their vicinity whenever possible and asked all the questions I could think of. That habit served me better than any book, and persists to this day. My family, friends, and acquaintances proved over and over to me that my ideas were not common; almost everyone I knew and met seemed to wonder just what I found so interesting about birds - "After all, it's not like they have feelings!" I was often told, or from the few who admitted that it was possible that birds could have feelings, I would hear "Even if they did, how could you tell? They can't express much with only feathers and a beak to work with!" In my life I have kept and sometimes bred all sorts of birds, both small and large, and the one thing I have never found them lacking in was expression! From gold-breasted waxbills to hyacinth macaws, all the birds I have met were capable of an incredibly varied range of looks and calls - but still, the tinier the bird, the more fascinating I seem to find them. Most of these smaller birds seem to consider themselves the equals of any of the larger species - and often the larger birds believe them, too, and will give way when all it would take is one snap to settle the score - and the smaller bird's life. But instead of protest, the larger birds will often defer to the smaller bird's demands - and most love to watch in apparent fascination as these brassy, bossy wee gems go about their daily business. The therapeutic effect of aquariums on the sick, elderly, or bored larger companion bird has often been spoken of - but rarely do I hear mentioned another true fact, that the same thing can be said of small birds kept within range of sight of the bored or infirm larger companion bird. For me the fascination with birds of all kinds, especially the smaller ones, will never end - and if I can sometimes share some of my experience and fascination with others, I will know I have really accomplished something in this life. If you know of any sites which focus on this topic, or have a story you would like to share about a pet or breeding bird you know or have known who is/was small in stature but big in personality, send them to Robirda Be sure to mention whether we have your permission to use your story in a future issue, please!
R C 'Robirda' McDonald |
 This week's question is; "I thought canaries weren't sociable? If this is true, I was wondering why my canaries fly around together and sit as close as they can to each other when they're out and could be miles apart? When I let them out to fly, sometimes they all group together in one little cage like drinking buddies. Is this bizarre behavior or what?"
My answer; "As I have often said, a male canary generally doesn't like to share his cage, and usually won't sing much if at all if he is required to... but outside of these 'owned' areas, canaries may or may not flock together while foraging about through 'neutral territory'... this depends partly on the birds themselves, and their personalities - they each have their own, and, like us, some get along better than others.. "Canary hens, on the other hand, are quite social, except when they are in breeding mode, and outside of the breeding season will almost always want to be with others of their own kind, if given the choice. "Hens tend to be the 'mistresses' of the Flock, and generally dictate what the males will or won't do, when they are around... and a canary flock will do as birds of most other small species will do, and can be seen feeding together in quite dense concentrations, when in their 'feed and forage' mode... "Once you understand that they regard foraging grounds as different than their own personal territory, what they are doing will look a little less like bizarre behaviour, and more like normal canary 'flock politics'... which is actually what you are seeing!" Hope everybody has a great couple of weeks, see you next issue! Until then, may you and your birds stay happy and healthy! R C 'Robirda' McDonald |
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