Mary Allen
No parakeet has such a decorative crest as the cockatiel. While noisy cockatoos can hardly be kept indoors, cockatiels make ideal fosterlings.
Cockatiels are attractive birds. The gender differences are easy to spot. They are easy to get hold of, get along well with one another, are not so noisy, and are used to living under human care – making them ideal housemates, which cannot be said of the large cockatoos. The cockatiel (Nymphicus hollandicus), the only member of the genus Nymphicus, is the link between parakeets and cockatoos.
Many bird lovers breed them. They can be seen at every exhibition, and breeders sell offspring at stock exchanges. So if you are flirting with keeping parrots and if a budgerigar is too small for you, you should take a closer look at the cockatiel. He’s just a real cockatoo with a hood that he can put tight on his head so that it points backward like a curved line. This makes the male special when courting. However, the crest feathers are usually carried bushy and semi-erect. When excited or when the cockatiel is unsettled by a noise or by something in particular it sees, the cockatiel will erect its crest fully, with the tip even pointing forward.
In their natural color, cockatiels are extraordinarily beautiful: gray nuanced basic plumage, white elytra, yellow head with yellow crest, and red cheek patch. The female’s head has yellow interspersed with gray feathers, the tail feathers are mottled white and not uniform grey. There are many color mutations of the cockatiel. Pied, white, and lutinos, i.e. yellow, are the best known.
Finches and Pigeons Make Ideal Companions
In their natural habitat, which stretches across almost the whole of Australia, the lightning-fast fliers prefer open areas with sparse trees or parks and gardens. They avoid forests or treeless areas. They prefer rather dry areas. This means that they can cope well with the dry heating air in many apartments in winter.
Cockatiels mainly live in smaller flocks. They feed on seeds in trees, but will also fly to the ground to feed. They also take grain from fields – preferably sorghum and wheat. There are ready-made seed mixes for large parakeets on the market. Apple, carrots, fennel, and fresh wild grass are also part of the menu.
Cockatiels can live to be 20 years and older. They are monogamous. A pair can be kept in a cage of 100 × 60 × 80 centimeters but should be allowed regular free flight in the room. A climbing tree outside the cage offers landing opportunities. It is easy to set up yourself by placing fresh branches in a container with stones. However, accommodation in a room-high aviary measuring 2 × 1.50 meters is better and more interesting.
The birds can be socialized, budgerigars, finches, and pigeons are ideal companions. Cockatiels are also kept in the community with galahs. They should only be allowed to breed if there are buyers for the young. The pair breeds several times in succession and has no fixed breeding season. A clutch consists of four to six eggs. The female incubates at night and the male during the day. The young hatch after 19 to 21 days, fly out at five weeks but are fed by the parents for another three weeks. A nesting box should have an inside diameter of about 18 × 24 centimeters, the entrance hole should have a diameter of about 70 millimeters.