Letter
I thought I saw a response
posted by you regarding telling sexes of GC conures by how they
acted...I have maroon bellies, and would "assume" pretty much that GC
info applies...my question is thus...how do you tell sexes apart? what
in particular to look for to tell. I have 2 sibs from last year, I had
them sexed and have 1 of each. They arent banded (my fault) and they
were ID'd by clipping 1 foots toenails (thus righty and lefty!) well,
it has been about 6 months, and nails have grown out! I'm pretty sure
I can still tell which one is which one by how they act as they have
different personalities, but I am interested in getting 2 unrelated
mates for them, and breeding them next year and wanted some clues in
behaviour to be sure I am putting appropriate one with appropriate one!
Any help or info you may share with me will be greatly appreciated!
Reply
First a couple tricks of the trade I learned from a ringneck breeder: If you want to ID a bird
by sight in a large cage of flight were there are many other birds you can just cut half of the
tail off. The bird can still fly normally it just looks a bit funny. Some people will use
lipstick but this has a tendancy to wear off fast. Aslo, this breeder bands her chicks on BOTH
legs. Then when she finds out the sex of the bird she cuts off a band accordingly. Say banded
right leg for hens and banded left leg for cocks. She sexes all her birds by behavior (they're
pieds and males don't get a ring).
Sexing by behavior is what I usually use on pets but it can be used for breeders. It relates
to the way the birds exhibit their sexual behavior. Hens have a tendancy to crouch and tremble
their wings. They may do so when touched on the back by their owner (if handfed) or accidently
stepped on by another bird. Males in most species (Vasa, Eclectus and ringnecks are exceptions)
are more aggressive and vocal. They are usually the ones regurgitating, initiating preening and
mating. Pet males can often be caught mounting toys or their owner's hand/head. If it's kind
of a shady area with your birds and you're not sure you can always get one sexed and then you'll
know which is which.
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