African Grey

Psittacus erithacus · Psittacidae

The most cognitively capable parrot commonly bred, and CITES Appendix I.

Native range: West and Central Africa

Length: 33 cm
Weight: 400–550 g
Lifespan: 40–60 years
Maturity: 4–6 years
Incubation: 28 days
Clutch: 2–4 eggs
Ring size: 11.0 mm
Fledge: 75–85 days
Weaned: 14–16 weeks
CITES: Appendix I
IUCN: EN
Taxonomic family: Psittacidae

Diet

Pellet base with vegetables, and calcium supplementation taken seriously: greys are uniquely prone to hypocalcaemia. Nuts as training treats only.

Housing

180 × 110 × 190 cm minimum for a pair; a walk-in flight for breeding. Bar spacing 22–25 mm.

Temperament

Intelligent, cautious and slow to trust. Requires genuine enrichment; a bored grey plucks.

Breeding

Slow to mature and particular about a partner. Pairs need visual privacy from other pairs to settle, and a deep box high in the flight.

Established mutations

Almost none established. Occasional red factor birds occur but are not reliably heritable.

Watch for

–Hypocalcaemia and seizures: supplement calcium and provide UV lighting

–Feather plucking, very common in under-stimulated birds

–CITES Appendix I: permits required for any movement or sale

–Aspergillosis in damp or dusty housing

CITES Appendix I since 2017. Every transfer, sale and export needs paperwork, and closed-ring records from hatch are what make a bird saleable at all.

Sources

Run a pairing for this species Work out hatch dates Check the ring size

All twelve at a glance

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Species	Incubation	Ring	Clutch	Lifespan
CockatielNymphicus hollandicus	19 d	5.5 mm	4–6	15–25 years
BudgerigarMelopsittacus undulatus	18 d	4.0 mm	4–6	6–12 years
Peach-faced LovebirdAgapornis roseicollis	23 d	4.5 mm	4–6	10–15 years
Green-cheeked ConurePyrrhura molinae	24 d	5.5 mm	4–6	20–30 years
Indian RingneckPsittacula krameri	23 d	7.0 mm	3–5	25–35 years
Gouldian FinchChloebia gouldiae	14 d	Not recorded	4–8	5–8 years
Quaker / Monk ParakeetMyiopsitta monachus	24 d	6.0 mm	4–6	20–30 years
Bourke's ParakeetNeopsephotus bourkii	18 d	4.0 mm	3–6	10–15 years
EclectusEclectus roratus	28 d	Not recorded	2	30–50 years
Sun ConureAratinga solstitialis	25 d	7.0 mm	3–5	20–30 years
African GreyPsittacus erithacus	28 d	11.0 mm	2–4	40–60 years
Blue & Gold MacawAra ararauna	27 d	14.0 mm	2–3	50–70 years

All 94 species, with the dates scheduled against your own birds.

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