The Sun Conure is a vibrantly color creature, and each one has a personality all their own.
While it can be a bit noisy, it makes for an excellent pet.
Appearance
The Conure grows to be around 10 inches with a weight of 3.5 to 4.3 ounces. It a black beak and an orange-yellow body with green underneath on the wings. This bird’s vibrant colors is a big part of what makes it such a popular pet.
Sun Conure Lifespan
The average Sun conure can live up to 20 years if it properly cared for. This makes it an excellent long term companion for many people.
The Sun Conure’s Personality
Sun Conures are known for their playful personality, which will provide you with countless hours of entertainment. They love to hang from ropes and give their owners plenty of affection on a regular basis.
These birds really enjoy close contact with people, and they aren’t very stubborn or finicky. You will definitely need to get them out of their cage for at least an hour or two each day. Otherwise you will have to deal with a lot of noise.
The mellow and friendly overall temperament of this bird makes it an excellent choice for those who have small children. You won’t have to worry about it randomly biting or scratching you or your kids. Just make sure that you handle them with care, like you would any other bird.
Natural Habitat
The Sun Conure is naturally found in a fairly small expansive of land at the tip of South America. This region starts at Brazil and stretches over savannah forests and miles of coastline. These birds are attracted to palm groves when they are ready to create their nests.
Sun Conure Care Guide
1. Sun Conure Diet
It is very important that you give your sun conure a balanced diet so it gets all of the nutrients necessary to lead a long and healthy life. These birds eat mostly seeds, nuts, and fruit in the wild. The diet of captive birds, however, must be a little different.
You can give your conure a standard parrot mix along with a little bit of vegetables. These birds absolutely adore root vegetables and dark leafy greens. You will find that they also take quite well to sweet potatoes when it is put in front of them.
Nuts like almonds and walnuts make for excellent treats, but they shouldn’t be your bird’s primary source of nutrition. Fresh fruits like melon and apple are also good to include in their regular diet.
Make certain that the bird feed or pellet mix you give your bird is packed with a variety of nutrients. This will help to ensure that they get everything their body needs on a daily basis.
2. Environment
Sun conures are very good at adapting to the mild temperatures that most people keep the inside of their homes. The temperature in your house should never go below 65 degrees Fahrenheit, or go above 80 degrees Fahrenheit.
The cage that you get for your conure needs to be at least 30 by 30 by 36 inches. Make sure that it has strong metal bars that cannot be bent. The bars on the cage should be no more than a half inch apart from each other.
Place a metal grate directly over the droppings tray so that your pet isn’t directly exposed to it at all. You should always avoid putting any water or food bowls under the bird’s perches.
You should keep a decent number of toys in your bird’s cage at all times to prevent boredom. These birds are very playful, so you want to keep their mind stimulated when you aren’t interacting with them.
3. Common Health Problems
There are a few different health problems that sun conures are prone to, including:
- Chlamydiosis: This usually presents in the form of nasal discharge, loss of appetite, and feces with a light green coloration.
- Feather plucking: While the occasional feather plucking is not a cause for panic, it can become a serious issue. Your bird could be doing this because it is bored and needs more stimulation. It could also be a sign of illness.
- Polyoma virus: If your bird contracts this virus, it will begin losing weight rapidly and grow lethargic. It is very important that you get it to a veterinarian if you notice these signs.
- Diarrhea: Sometimes these birds will develop problems with diarrhea, especially if they aren’t on a proper diet. You can talk to your veterinarian to find out what sort of food is best for your avian friend.
4. Grooming
You need to make sure that your bird always has plenty of water to bathe itself. The water should be lukewarm. Take the bowl out and replace the water after it is done using it.
It is also a good idea to clip your conure’s flight feathers. This will reduce the chances of it escaping and/or getting injured. You can talk to your veterinarian about whether or not this is a good idea.
You want to take the bird to a veterinarian to get their nails trimmed every once in a while. This too will help reduce chances of injury (for you and the bird).
Sun Conure Price
While sun conures make for great pets, they aren’t the cheapest birds available. They cost an average of $500. You can expect to pay anywhere from $400 to $600, depending on the age of the bird and its overall health. The coloration of the bird is also a major factor that affects price.
Conclusion
- The Sun Conure can live up to 20 years with proper care.
- These birds are known for being very playful and good with people of all ages.
- A balanced diet of pellet mix, seeds, nuts and fresh fruit is best for these birds.
- Make sure that the temperature inside of your house doesn’t fall below 65 degrees or exceed 80 degrees Fahrenheit.
- The cage that you put your Sun Conure in should measure at least 30 by 30 by 36 inches.
- Give your bird the occasional bowl of water in its cage for bathing.
- Take your conure to the veterinarian to get its nails trimmed every so often.
