Ringneck Parakeet

(Psittacula Manillensis)

Common Names: Indian Ring Neck Parakeet, Indian Ringneck Parrot, IRN

Description: In the normal form Indian Ringnecks are mostly apple green with a pale yellow-green under belly. A slight black line from cere to eye can be seen on mature birds. Males at 2-3 years of age will also form a black ring under the chin which extends across the lower cheek area on both sides. A pink collar shows on the lower nape of the neck of males as well as a blue suffusion on the head and slightly below the ring. Hens show a slight light green ringing but it lacks the blue, pink and black color of the males. They have a very long tail which is about 8 inches in length by itself. Indian Ringnecks can be distinished from African Ringnecks by size and beak color. Indian Ringnecks are larger with red beaks while African ringnecks have darker plum-black colored beaks. All other coloring is the same.

Size: The average size for this species is 16in (40cm).

Origin: This species is abundantly found accross northern Africa, India, Burma, Pakistan, Nepal and Sri Lanka.

Sexing: Sexing young birds can prove difficult unless DNA sexed as all young birds resemble hens. Ringneck Parakeets can not be visualy sexed until they are 2-3 years of age at which time the male will molt into adult plumage and get his colorful ring. Some mutations such as Albino can only be DNA sexed as males of this color mutation do not ever get a ring since they are void of all color pigment. Hens show a slight ringing which is a lighter color version of there body color but lack any blue, pink or black ring color like the males.

Mutations/Sub-species: There are many Indian Ringneck mutations but the most common here in the USA are Cinnamon, Lutino, Blue, Turquoise, Grey and Albino. Pied is one of the newest mutations being bred here in the USA and we are just starting with this mutation.

Diet: A good Ringneck Parakeet diet should include a mixture of canary seeds and millets along with safflower, sunflower seeds and dried red peppers. They also enjoy fresh fruits & veggies such as brocolii, swash, sweet potato, corn, apples, oranges, cucumbers, peaches and mango. Sprouted seeds, kale, boiled egg can also be offered. All our hookbills also recieve Roudybush pellets in addition to their seed and fresh food diet.

General Care: These birds love to dunk their food in the water dish so be sure to give them frequent water changes to prevent diease.

Compatibility: It is best to keep mature males seperated from each other during the breeding season as they can become aggressive exspecialy in the presence of hens. It is not wise to house this spieces with other species either.

Housing: They are best housed one pair per flight in which pairs can not see each other. The reason for this is Ringnecks do not form very strong pair bonds and are known for flirting and distracting mates of other pairs. These birds if acclimated properly can withstand colder climates but we do not subject ours to temps below 50 degrees. If you do not supply heat for them be sure to give them frost free housing during winter so they do not get frostbite. Handfed pets can be kept in med. size parrot cages as long as they are allowed time out of the cage each day. Parent raised birds will do much better in a large flight or aviary then a cage as they can be active flyers.

Song: This species has no song just vocal squawks and whistles though not as shrill as Conures. They are however capable of talking and whistling tunes.

Breeding: The regular breeding season for Ringneck Parakeets is October-Febuary. They normaly do not breed until 2-3 years of age but established pairs can make reliable breeders producing 2 or more clutches a season if babies are pulled for handfeeding. This species prefers deep nestboxes. We use 18 deep x12wide nestboxes for our pairs. The hen normaly lays 2-6 eggs in which she incubates for 24 days. The male will accompany her at times inside the box but spends most his time outside the nestbox feeding the hen frequently. After the babies hatch they remain in the nest until 35-45 days old. They are normaly weaned by 56 days of age. All juveniles resemble hens but males will get there ring at about 2-3 years of age except for the albino and most pied mutations.