The day has finally come! It is time to release my flock of parakeets into the aviary for the first time. I moved them into the boxed cages a few days prior to release day so they could acclimate to being outdoors and they could get used to some of the sights and sounds around the aviary before they left the familiar safety of a cage.
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Little did they know, their world was about to get a whole lot bigger.
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I started by opening all the doors on the two cages and seeing what would happen. Not surprisingly, the parakeets were hesitant to leave the cages. No volunteers, willing to take a chance, on an unexpectedly open door, like brave Jasper the Finch.
Fortunately, I had a secret weapon ... millet sprays!
I secured a tempting spray of golden millet on the ledge in front of the cages. And then I waited.
I didn't need to wait very long, either. Kiwi and Snowball are millet fiends. Pretty sure they would hop through fire for a chance at a millet spray. A scary open door was not even going to slow them down.
As soon as the first budgies were out, the rest followed, and in a few moments the millet was covered in hungry budgies. I was about to take a quick photo when something must have startled the birds ... because they took flight abruptly88. Half a dozen budgies launched into the air in all directions, flapping wings and blue tail feathers everywhere.
A few budgies were still in the cages, but most of them were scattered around the aviary, on the floor, on the wire, on the branches. Very confused and frightened. Most of them froze where they landed, not sure what to do next. A few tried to fly, with mixed results, mostly ending up at ground level. They were much slower, but less coordinated flyers than the finches. On the upside, most of them were able to figure out "controlled descent" and made it to the ground safely. Even better, they quickly discovered that the ground was full of cool things to eat and they all got super excited.
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I wish photos could provide sound because these parakeets were making the cutest happy chortling and chirping I've ever heard as they scuttled about on the ground like pigeons.
Most of my parakeets are still quite young and came to me with wings already clipped. None of them have had much flight practice beyond very short "flights" inside a large cage. The three youngest birds have not yet moulted so their primaries are still gone. I had hoped that they would have enough time while I worked on this project, but the aviary was finished before their wings were ready.
So I guess it shouldn't have surprised me when the parakeets decided that the ground was where they belonged. After the initial flight, the budgies all did their best to stay at floor level. Every time they were startled by a strange noise, they would temporarily burst into panicked flight ... then slowly reconverge into a ground-level flock.
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Meanwhile, the finches were curiously watching the budgies' antics from above. In just a few days, the finches had already achieved mastery over their wings and could effortlessly navigate from perch to perch. They had no trouble avoiding the frantic budgies. In fact, Crimson and Blaze seemed genuinely interested in what was happening below them.
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They kept moving from branch to branch above the budgie flock.
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At one point, they even came down to "budgie level" to check them out.
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The quail seemed less thrilled by the new neighbors. I get the feeling they wish all these other birds would just get off the ground and leave them in peace.
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Now for some introductions ....
This is Snowball. She is tiny, but fierce. And always the first to snag a treat.
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This is Cucumber. He is a bold and friendly budgie. One of the first ones to eat millet from my hand.
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This is Big Bertha. Bertha is a regal lady. Not sassy or spunky like some of my other hens. Bertha has a lot of class. She is also noticeably larger than my other budgies. But please do not call her fat. She just has big bones. I suspect she may have some English budgie in her ancestory somewhere.
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This is Sparky. I'm uncertain of his/her gender, due to his age and coloring. I initially named him Sunny, but he has such a fiery temper. Sparky suits him better.
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This is Skye. She is a calm and brave budgie. Rarely the first to approach, but almost always the second. She does not like to be touched but she loves a good bath.
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This is Lemondrop. She quite the character. A very adept climber who loves to dangle upside down.
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Here we have Cucumber on the left and Kiwi on the right. Don't tell the other budgies, but I think Kiwi is my favorite. He is such a friendly little guy and super curious. Always investigating everything around him.
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This is Misty. She is a sweetheart. Easily spooked but willing to trust if you are patient. And she has a soft spot for radishes.
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These two handsome birds are Dip and Dot. I must confess, I have a hard time telling them apart unless I check their leg bands. They are a bonded pair and tend to do everything together.
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Last, but certainly not least, this little gem is named Opal. I think she is female, but still fairly young, so I might be wrong. She is a little sweet, a little sassy. The best of both worlds.
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After a few hours, the budgies are settling in nicely. Still no upward migration, but the birds are getting more relaxed and not so easy to startle.
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Hopefully they can find the courage to perch more than four inches off the ground eventually.