Anybody speak "Bird"?

[Mary in Florida]

I'm just trying to figure out some body language from Loki, our year old gender to be determined lovebird, in some of his/her reactions to Pixie, our year old Pacific Blue parrotlet female.

They're buddies, mostly, reminding me of siblings playing in a sandbox, with toys, getting into mischief. They play, eat, chew paper, toys mostly side by side, with a squabble sometimes because of course they each want the same toy, food, human shoulder or head to sit on, the "don't scratch HIM/HER, scratch ME" thing. I don't see any particular aggression between them anymore ( there was some when they were younger), although I still wouldn't leave them together unsupervised (and they each have their own cage)because you never know.

So what does it mean when Loki fluffs up his/her feathers, reaches his head out and opens his beak just a little, close enough to Pixie to touch her, and then kind of stays that way,grinding his beak at her? It doesn't look like an aggressive move on his part ; not at all like that threatening stance they take on when they "squat", sort of, with their wings extended, feathers fluffed out, beaks open and either hiss or squawk sometimes. So far, Pixie hasn't responded, she usually either pushes at him or flies away, so if it's a friendly gesture she isn't having any of it. Loki also sometimes makes that same gesture to one of his human flock members.

As for Loki's gender, he/she is keeping us confused. He's stripping paper like mad, stuffing it into his feathers, but he's also "servicing" himself anywhere he feels the urge. So there's no way, I guess, to know his gender short of her laying an egg, or undergoing DNA testing ( not going to happen).

[michael]

Is Loki grinding his beak or maybe making more like clicking sounds? .. Sounds like he's going into a mating stance. The fact that Loki's self servicing also suggests there's a good chance he's really a male. ...... Welp, thats my :2cents:

[thebubbleking]

I speak fluent avian XD
With my flock that means this is my space i am fine with you were you are but no further, when the other bird listens there is usualy a chirp or grinding of contentment, if the other bird moves closer depending on the pecking order the bird that did that either flys away or pushes with thier head or beak, altho my sun conures will lift up a foot instead of useing thier head or beak as if to say speak to the foot XD

[Mary in Florida]

Is Loki grinding his beak or maybe making more like clicking sounds? .. Sounds like he's going into a mating stance. The fact that Loki's self servicing also suggests there's a good chance he's really a male. ...... Welp, thats my :2cents:

The sounds could be a little like clicking, it sounds like grinding, but not quite as fast- at least that's what it sounds like to me.

Actually, I'd be happier to find that Loki is a boy- no hassle with egg laying associated problems that way. But he does strip every bit of paper he can find and manages to get quite a few stuffed into his feathers- I just discovered he can go around the corners of a paper when he strips them, so those pieces he stuffs into his feathers look like little flags.

[Mary in Florida]

I speak fluent avian XD
With my flock that means this is my space i am fine with you were you are but no further, when the other bird listens there is usualy a chirp or grinding of contentment, if the other bird moves closer depending on the pecking order the bird that did that either flys away or pushes with thier head or beak, altho my sun conures will lift up a foot instead of useing thier head or beak as if to say speak to the foot XD

LOL, an expert then! Loki's done this a number of times at Pixie, and she looks at him, he seems to come closer to her, but then she usually flies off, or lets him know he can't come any closer.

[JohnUK]

Mary in Florida: I usually have a good idea of what Vida's different chirps mean. Vida does the tucking strips into her rump feathers. I was never sure of her gender until last night. She laid an egg and this morning I'm hearing different chirps :-)