Lovebird: Winged Romancer

“Eight days a week, I love you, love you, love you,” goes the Beatles hit song. It could well have been dedicated to the lovebird for whom it’s Valentine’s Day every day of the year!

Lovebirds are the smallest parrots in the world, with a stocky build, a short, blunt tail and a disproportionately large beak - no wonder it is such a smoocher and loudmouth! But it puts the beak to good use too: for cracking open seeds and stripping bark for nesting material.

Also known as Les inséparables in French, a pair will form an extremely close bond for life. For this reason, many people feel strongly that lovebirds in captivity should be kept in pairs.

They show each other their affection by cuddling up together and scratching each other’s heads. And you don’t have to be a peeping Tom to catch them in their cages beak-to-beak, eyes closed, blissfully unaware of the self-imposed restrictions of public display of affection on their ‘free’ captors. Guess that’s what the Beatles meant in their song, “Free as a bird.”

But even lovebirds cannot live on love and fresh air alone - they need to eat too. Since they are non-migratory, they have to find seeds, grains, berries and fruits in their home range itself, sometimes even having to eat insects and grass. But there are at least two species that are very particular about their diet: the black-collared lovebird eats wild figs off treetops while the grey-headed lovebird humbly eats grass seeds off the ground.

These garrulous birds are sociable, living in colonies ranging from 20 to 100, chattering and twittering as they work together in search of food and caring for their young.

Lovebirds breed once a year in trees and cliff faces, building nests or lining tree hollows with twigs, grass, feathers and even bark from trees.

The female lays one egg on alternate days until the clutch of about 3 to 4 eggs is complete. The eggs hatch in 3 weeks’ time.

Lovebirds are popular pets despite legal protection, which is nevertheless helping to increase wild populations. While the lifespan of the lovebird is six to seven years in the wild, it is about 12 in captivity! The Beatles were right - “All you need is love, love, love...”

Copyright © 2007 Noël Gama
www.noelgama.com