Rosellas?

[mandy]

Hi everybody! A friend of mine is exploring Rosellas... can anyone help in sharing info? What do they eat? Do they make good pets? Is the Mealy Rosella a mutation of the Eastern Rosella? Any info will be very helpful. Thanks a lot!

[Katy]

DESCRIPTION 9!/2 inches (22cm). Blue primaries, red shoulder patch, black crown and nape of neck, blue forehead, green underside, brown throat, grey cheek patch.

NATURAL DISTRIBUTION South America.

HABITAT Forests near coastal and river regions. Usually in pairs. Nests in tree hollows.

DIET Seeds, fruit; needs calcium source such as eggshells.

SPECIAL NEEDS Satisfactory community birds with other species, except those of the same genus. Thrives in large, outdoor aviary.

CAGE LIFE Initially shy, but warms quickly to its owners. Nest box should be 9 X 13 inches (22.5 X 32.5cm) with entrance hole diameter of 3 inches (8cm); can be replaced with a hollow log. Lays 3 or 4 eggs. Incubation 26 to 28 days by female. Fledging 42 to 56 days.


source: http://www.bird-breeds.com/Mealy_Rosella.htm

[mandy]

Hey Thanks Katy! your reply is very appreciated.

[Elle]

The only experience I've had with these birds was a golden Rosella. We got it before it was completely weaned and mom spend a lot of tie at home then. It was very friendly and would visit with everybody.The bird got very attached to my mom and really resented when she started working. It became very aggressive and would bite everybody. With my mother, it had a different behavior. He would litteraly attack her. He would fly to her and bite her until she bled inthe back of the neck or attack her in the face.
My mother was devastated. She tried to work with it, spend all her free time with it while at home but it wasn't enough. She kept being attacked.

The day came that mom gave us an ultimatum. The bird had to go or she had to go. She was scared of it. She didn't think it was fair for it to be locked in its cage and but she was terrorised to let him out and being attacked once again. After a lot of thinking, my sister and I agreed that mom was more important. We had to let the bird go.

I'm sure not all of them are agressive like that. But before I would consider getting one, I would have a hard look at my life style and think if any big changes were to come just because of what my mother had to go through.

[cassysmiley]

Hiya
I used to keep Rosella`s, they do better in large avairy than a cage, i had an indoor avairy, with pair of Rosella`s Kakari`s and love birds.
They can and will get mean. They are not really suited to a small cage, they are active birds to. Even if you can tame them etc, they can be very Unpredictable. Why not try and Persuade your friend to get a Lovie then get her to join the site. ;)
So follow others advice. Also they are not so hardy as Lovies etc. But as i said they do really well in very large aviaries. hope this helps you.
take care
cassy.

[Eliza]

Rosellas are from Australia, not South America ;)

I have to agree with Cassy -- from the research I've done I've been led to believe that rosellas are better suited as aviary birds than a hands-on pet. That's not to say that a rosella can't make a good companion, of course. Birds USA (the 2006 issue) indicated that the eastern rosella (golden mantled) tend to be the friendliest of the bunch but again, that's just a generalization.

As with anything, I'd imagine that locating a hand-raised and hand-tamed bird would give you a better chance.

Best of luck to your friend,

-e-