Читать книгу Birds For Dummies - Gina Spadafori - Страница 56

One of the more interesting pet birds and certainly among the most beautiful, Eclectus have a few characteristics that make them less than suitable for beginners. They can be more sensitive to their environment than many other parrots, and you may need to feed them a higher percentage of fresh fruits and vegetables to keep them healthy. Seed-only diets are particularly hard for the Eclectus parrot to survive on for long, one of the reasons why the Eclectus rarely did well in captivity until humans developed a better understanding of optimal nutrition for these wonderful birds.

Unlike many companion birds, with the Eclectus, the female is more often the “boss” — and certainly more beautiful (at least if you like red). Four common subspecies of Eclectus parrots are available for the pet trade — the red-sided, vosmaeri, grand, and Solomon Island. Prices start at around $1,000 and can go up to $2,500 for these showstoppers.