How Do Parakeets Mate? (Parakeets Breeding)

As someone who’s always been captivated by the world of parakeets, I’ve often found myself curious about the intricacies of their behaviours, especially when it comes to matters of the heart.

One fascinating aspect that often sparks curiosity is how parakeets mate and breed.

These charming little birds have their own unique rituals, and in this article, I’ll be shedding light on the intriguing process of parakeet mating and breeding.

So, if you’re ready to uncover the secrets behind their courtship and nesting behaviours, let’s dive into the world of parakeet romance!

How Do Parakeets Mate?

Parakeet mating is a fascinating process characterized by a series of intricate behaviours and interactions.

It begins with courtship, where the male parakeet showcases his vibrant plumage, sings melodious songs and engages in graceful dance-like movements to attract the attention of a potential mate.

The female responds by displaying receptive behaviours, such as raising her tail and interacting playfully with the male.

As their bond deepens, the male may engage in regurgitation, where he regurgitates partially digested food for the female as a sign of affection and bonding.

Beak nuzzling and mutual preening further strengthen their connection.

Once the pair is emotionally connected, nesting behaviours become evident.

The parakeets explore potential nesting sites, chew on nesting materials, and rearrange cage items to create a suitable environment for reproduction.

This phase transitions into copulation, where the male mounts the female briefly and cloacal contact allows for the transfer of sperm.

This process can take place over several days to increase the chances of successful fertilization.

After successful copulation, the female will lay eggs, usually one every other day, until her clutch is complete.

The eggs are then incubated, primarily by the female, for about 18 to 21 days.

As the chicks hatch, both parents participate in feeding and caring for their young.

They regurgitate food to nourish the chicks and ensure their growth and development.

The intricate dance of courtship, regurgitation, beak nuzzling, and copulation ultimately leads to the rewarding experience of raising the next generation of parakeets.

However, it’s essential to note that not all pairs will successfully mate or reproduce, as factors like health, compatibility, and environment play a significant role.

Parakeets Gender

Parakeets are covered with feathers, due to which it is not easy to recognize which one is male and which one is female.

As the sexual organ of a male parakeet is covered in its feathers, the owner can only detect whether it’s a male or female when the parakeet is grown up as an adult.

But to understand the gender of a parakeet, there are other ways and hints through which you can easily judge whether it’s a male or female parakeet.

A person can judge from the visual clues in a parakeet, such as the colours on the feathers and the behaviour that parakeets keep while staying with their owner.

But the simplest and easiest way to know that whether it’s a male or female is by running a DNA test or blood sample of the parakeet from a lab to know the gender.

Parakeets Breeds

There are different breeds of parakeets, and one of the most commonly known is the American Parakeet.

There are other parakeets, such as Bourke’s parakeets or English parakeets, that all differ from one another in some ways.

These breeds are differentiated on the basis of their colours and behaviour, and they usually don’t mate with a crossbreed or opposite breed, so you should know that there should be the same breed, sex, for mating.

The American and English parakeets tend to chatter a lot, and they create a lot of noise throughout the day, due to which you can understand the breed of your parakeet.

You should tend to keep the same breed of parakeets in the cage as most of them tend to make noise at night and thrash the cage during night fights when it’s dark.

If you can train your parakeets well, they will tend to be quiet and calm, and they will be easier to mate when you keep them in a cage at your home.

Feeding them with healthy food and diet will bring out their positive behaviour.

The other breeds of parakeet include Conures which are really beautiful and have different sizes from 10 to 20 inches.

These beautiful parakeets have multiple colours, which have mostly yellow in them along with orange and green, and these parakeets tend to be very playful and easy to mate.

Their aggression level is low.

During the spring season or mating season, the green cheeks conures become very loud, and they make loud sounds throughout the day that may disturb the owner.

They are not supposed to be good pets at home due to this habit, but they do get loud on mating with their partners.

Parakeet’s Lifespan

Parakeets have a lifespan of about five to twelve years.

Then there are a few other breeds that can live up to 20 years, but there is a difference in species.

Parakeets can start mating after the age of 1-2 years.

They can start to reproduce as long as their life span goes.

Now knowing the basic things about a parakeet, we see how you can differentiate between a male and a female parakeet.

Understanding Male And Female Parakeets

Following are the points that can be observed to know whether a parakeet is a male or a female.

Read these points carefully.

Note that these points should only be observed when the bird is grown enough to reach its sexual maturity.

After that, you can notice these things in your bird to differentiate whether it’s a male or female.

1. Colour of Parakeet

You cannot know the gender of your parakeet easily until it is 8 months old.

Between the ages of 8 months to 12 months, you can notice the beak of your parakeet for a band of raised skin.

That point changes gender-specific colour, and you can judge the gender from that.

The male parakeets have blue or violet colours, whereas the females may have brown colours at that point.

You can also see that sometimes the females may have a light tint cere or a pale blue cere near their beak.

Usually, the colour of females is lighter than that of males.

Through this, you can analyze which one of your parakeets is a male and which one is female.

The sex hormone that causes this difference is also the same hormone that creates a difference in the leg colour of these parakeets.

Usually, the female parakeets have brown colours legs while the male has blue legs.

2. Parakeet’s Behavior

We know that there is always a difference in all living beings when it comes to their male and female differences.

It’s a natural thing to be different due to the opposite gender, and we can analyze the gender of a parakeet on the basis of its behaviour.

Behaviour difference acts as a strong indicator for showing whether a parakeet is male or female.

Female parakeets are those parakeets who tend to be bossy in nature and have very loud noise-making habits.

You know that a parakeet is a male if he tends to sing a lot with his voice and stays active in the cage all the time with his head bobbing.

Males are more friendly with human beings as well, whereas female parakeets are a little bit aggressive and they don’t sing.

3. Baby Clues

You can analyse a baby parakeet, but there’s always a chance that your prediction is true or not at that point.

Usually, at such a young age, the owner can take a closer look at the ring around the nostril of a baby parakeet.

Usually, the females have a white ring around their nostrils, having a light pink or purple tint on it.

You can’t know for sure, but most of the females can be checked on the basis of these rings around the nostrils.

It is not easy to distinguish this if your bird is less than a month old.

4. Habits

As we said females are bossy in nature, and they tend to be more aggressive than the male parakeet, so if your parakeet has a biting habit and the bite is hard and not easy to let go of, it indicates that your bird is a female parakeet.

If the baby parakeet is just nibbling on your finger or hand and doesn’t hurt you or bite you hard, it means it’s a male, and it’s just practising his skills.

5. Laying Egg

It is a common thought that any pair of parakeets tend to mate with each other if there are no other birds present in the cage or around them.

If you see eggs in the cage and want to know which one is the male and which is the female, then you can notice the bird in the café that stays close to the egg is the female parakeet.

If you can’t find eggs in your cage, then it means you have a pair of male parakeets in your cage who don’t tend to mate and reproduce eggs.

There is often also a chance that females may not lay eggs either.

Parakeets Bonding

Bonding is very necessary before parakeets can mate.

Usually, wild parakeets or those parakeets who are new to each other don’t mate even when they are kept in the same cage.

Parakeets need time, and they will find another on their own to bond with.

But in case you are the owner of parakeets, and you want to breed them and get specific colours breeding, then you have to select females and males manually by yourself.

When you get to choose the coloured parakeets by yourself, you can put them in the same cage so that they can get together well to bond with.

Once they get close to each other and develop a bond, you will see the change in their behaviour as they will be behind each other all the time or sit close to one another.

They will let you know their affection towards each other, and you will notice that the male starts to feed the female parakeet.

Breeding Age

Mating requires a mature age when parakeets are ready for breeding, and that age in parakeets comes after 1 year.

When parakeets get older than 1 year, they are ready to breed, and you can know a female parakeet by noticing her cere around the nostril.

The brown crusty-looking cere is the sign that she is a full-grown female parakeet that can be bred with a male parakeet.

To take care of these parakeets during their breeding process or to give them a proper environment, you can have a look at the following tips for breeding and mating parakeets.

Breeding Setup

If you want to mate your parakeets, you can provide them with a proper setup for breeding better which will even bring them closer and breed better.

You need to look at the following things for this.

Breeding Cage

A cage must have the following requirements for better breeding of parakeets.

• More than one roost ought to be inside the cage
• A dish for food and water
• The estimations size ought to be 24″ L x 12″ W x 16″ H
• It ought to incorporate a different doorway to connect the cage box from one side to another
• A clean floor and stripes

Nest Box

You should pick a nest explicitly made for Parakeets.

Pick something that is rectangular with an opening toward the end and a round indent on the floor for the eggs to be laid.

The nest may have different sizes out of multiple varieties.

The next box should be wide enough to hold the eggs or hatchlings so you can keep an eye or watch out for any hazards.

Lighting

You can provide a cage to your parakeets that get proper lighting as parakeets tend to stay active for 12 hours, and they spend 12 hours resting at night time.

Give your birds a proper setup and try to provide them with such a space where the female parakeet can get proper sunlight and synthesise vitamin D to stay healthy and strong.

This will cause the female parakeet to lay strong eggshells, and it will also develop good strong bones in the baby parakeets as well.

Diet

While breeding your parakeets during mating season, it is very necessary to take care of the diet of your parakeet.

You will have to provide them with all the healthy food variety for your little bird so that it can stay fit and active during the breeding process.

Getting a proper healthy diet and nutritional food will more likely make the parakeets nest.

Good food sources are a major benefit to getting your pair to subside into a reproducing condition; another delicate justification food is for the baby parakeets they will before long come to take care of.

Taking care of your parakeets, these food sources will guarantee that they will keep on eating it once their eggs hatch.

Their diet should have the following:

• The diet of your parakeet must contain an abundance of water so that they can stay hydrated during the summer season.
• Make sure to change the water with fresh water every day around 2 times so that your parakeets may not be drinking any bacterial water.
• Feed the parakeets with different foods such as apples, strawberries, or other fruits along with seeds, pellets, broccoli, carrots, peas, corn, cooked sweet potatoes, and bell peppers.
• Seeds can be fed to parakeets during their breeding season as birds love eating seeds. Try to provide your bird with all the necessary food.
• Try using high-quality pellets because they give nutrition to your parakeet with every bite they take.

Fertilization and Egg Production

When the parakeets get to bond with one another, it is the time when they start to mate with each other, or you can say, it’s the start of their breeding process.

Once they have started breeding, you don’t have to train them for anything; otherwise, they will stop their breeding process.

Just let them loose as long as they are breeding.

All you need to do is keep changing their water and provide them with fresh fruit during this process so that they stay healthy and fit.

The male will tend to sing a lot and become jolly or more active in the cage during the breeding process, whereas the female will be more loud and aggressive, and she will show signs of affection to the male parakeet by raising her tail.

She will tend to lean forward on the perch to call the male parakeet to mate.

The male will then get in the position to mate with the female parakeet and rub himself on her to breed.

The male may breed with the female more than once a day, and the female will start to lay the eggs in the next few days.

This process is continued as long as they are bonded with each other.

The female parakeet will tend to give 4-5 eggs every time.

After that, the incubation process starts where the female has to lay the eggs and then sit on them as long as they hatch.

Usually, it takes 18 days for the eggs to hatch.

The female parakeet doesn’t sit on one egg as she has to sit on more than 2 eggs.

Checking for Fertility

Usually, the eggs that are laid by the female parakeet are not always fertile, and the owner has to keep checking on them.

To see the fertility of an egg, you have to place a strong battery or flash at one side of the egg to see a shade of egg inside using a process called candling.

You can simply hold an egg in your hand and place a flashlight behind it to see if there is any yellow glow inside the egg with red lines, which shows that the egg is fertile.

In case you only see the yellow glow and no red lines, it means that the egg is infertile.

You should know that, with time, the eggs become more opaque, and the shell becomes more solid, which will make it difficult or confusing for you to see the fertility of the egg, and you won’t even be able to notice the baby parakeet inside.

You don’t have to check over the eggs often because if the female parakeet gets disturbed by her routine, she might stop sitting on the eggs, and they won’t hatch after that.

Ending the Breeding Process

When you think that it is enough of the mating process for your parakeets, you need to separate them by placing them in separate cages.

This will stop their breeding process, and they won’t lay eggs anymore.

If you put them back together, they will again start the breeding process. So you can follow these tips to stop breeding or minimize it.

• Limiting Type of Food
• Stop Chewing
• Limit Petting
• Limit the Amount of Daylight
• Remove the Nesting Box

Conclusion

In conclusion, the process of parakeet mating offers a captivating glimpse into the world of avian courtship and reproduction.

From the mesmerizing courtship rituals that involve vibrant displays and sweet songs to the tender moments of regurgitation and beak nuzzling, parakeets engage in a complex dance of emotions and behaviours that solidify their bonds.

As their connection deepens, the progression to copulation marks a critical phase in their journey towards parenthood.

Once eggs are laid and the incubation period begins, both parents play vital roles in nurturing and caring for the developing embryos.

Their shared responsibilities in feeding, warming, and protecting the chicks highlight the collaborative nature of parakeet parenting.

However, the intricate process of parakeet mating and breeding isn’t without its challenges.

It’s crucial for potential breeders to thoroughly research and understand the responsibilities involved in raising healthy offspring.

Providing the appropriate environment, nutrition, and care is paramount for successful parakeet breeding.

Observing the journey from courtship to parenting in parakeets not only underscores the complexity of their behaviours but also deepens our appreciation for the beauty and intricacy of the natural world.

By respecting the unique needs and behaviours of these intelligent and charming birds, we can ensure their well-being and contribute to the preservation of their species for generations to come.

FAQ

Last Updated on August 28, 2023 by Lily Aldrin