KIMBERLY BIRDIE BABIES

Considered by many to be the most beautiful of the commonly
available conures, the sun conure has enjoyed an elevated
popularity status in the world of companion birds for many
years --- and with good reason. Their multi-faceted
personalities will delight even the most experienced of bird
lovers, and their breath-taking coloring will attract the
attention and pique the curiosity of any non-bird person! If
there's one conure that people will recognize on sight once
they've seen one, I'd have to say it would be the beautiful
sun!
Hailing from the northeastern coast of South America, sun
conures are approximately 12 inches in length, including their
long tail. Their body build is slender, and their feathers are
bright, iridescent shades of orange, blue, yellow and green.
Unlike some other species which have definite coloration
patterns, the sun conures sometimes have a combination of
these colors over almost any part of their bodies. Young suns
tend to have feathers which are predominantly green, while
older birds sport more of the yellow or reddish-orange. This
change of feather coloring from green to the brighter
oranges, golds and yellows is most noticeable on the back,
abdomen and head of the bird as it matures. General plumage
is yellow and green while the cheeks, forehead, abdomen and
down to the lower back are tinged with bright fiery orange.
The outer webs of the primary flight feathers are a deep
blue while the primaries are bright green; the secondaries
are also green. The upperside of the tail is colored an
olive-green with blue tips; the under tail-coverts are green
with a marked yellow tinge; the median and greater upper
wing-coverts are green with yellow edging. All of these colors
become brighter and more vivid as the bird matures, with
some birds sporting almost totally yellow tones in their body
color. The beak and feet are both black.

The personality of the sun conure can best be described as
inquisitive and playful. They are active, spunky and curious,
and love to play with a multitude of toys. Their antics during
play-time are comical, and they are quite entertaining to
watch as they jump, swing, and generally have a wonderful
time, seeming to proclaim to the world that they are happy
to be alive! During play, they seem to prefer wooden toys
that can be chewed up since they have strong chewing
tendencies, and can reduce a medium-sized wooden toy to
shreds in a matter of hours.I always try to stress the
prevention of behavior problems, and most especially with this
species due to their infamous ear-piercing, and seemingly
earth-shattering, screams

Because their activity level is high, I would recommend that
sun conures be housed in a cage that is 20" x 20" with a
depth of at least 36". This allows for adequate placement of
food and water bowls as well as 2 perches and at least 3
toys. Be sure that your chosen cage has the correct bar
spacing (3/4" to 1") for conures, as birds can get their
heads stuck between bars that are spaced too far apart,
and can break tail feathers and catch or injure their wings on
bars that are too close together. A cage that has a
play-gym on top would be ideal for added room. Most sun
conures love water and don't have to be encouraged to
bathe. Many will utilize their water bowls for bathing as soon
as they are placed in the cage, so an extra bowl of clean
water offered on a routine basis will most likely to be used
to splash in! My suns do not like to be sprayed with a water
bottle (though I know of many that do), but will bathe daily
if they are provided fresh clean water every morning.

Sun conures are not sexually dimorphic (males and females
look alike), and should be DNA or surgically sexed if knowing
the gender is important. They are physically capable of
reproducing and raising young at the age of 2 years, though
their first clutch is often infertile. Suns are well established
in aviculture, and are considered by many to be the most
prolific of the Aratinga conures. While there is always a pair
or two that simply aren't good parents, on the whole they do
a wonderful job of raising and feeding their babies. Clutches
usually consist of 4 to 5 eggs, with a normal incubation period
of 23 days. Hand feeding this species is easy for
experienced hand feeders, and babies usually fledge with no
problems at around 50 days of age.