LIFESPANS OF POPULAR BIRDS

The following lists are approximate life spans for various species of birds (keep in mind that how long your bird lives has a lot to do with proper diet and good veterinary care):

Macaws
Macaws have been known to live well over 50 years in captivity. With proper diet and veterinary care, they should live 30 to 50 years easily. The smaller "mini" macaw's life span is at the lower end of this range.

Cockatoos
Cockatoos have been known to live well over 40 years in captivity. With proper diet and veterinary care, they should live 30 to 40 years easily.

Amazons
Amazons can live 50 years or more with excellent nutrition and veterinary care. Average life span is probably more around 20 years. Amazons are very prone to obesity and fatty liver disease, which can lead to death.

African Greys
African greys have been known to live 50 years or more in captivity. With proper diet and veterinary care, they should live at least 25 years. They are highly intelligent and prone to feather picking and self-mutilation, due to boredom or stress, which can reduce longevity.

Conures
These noisy little mischief-makers can live anywhere from 15 to 20 years, sometimes up to 35 to 40 years.

Pionus
Pionus can live up to 30 years with proper care. Their average life span is probably around 15 years.

Lories and Lorikeets
These birds usually live 15 to 20 years. Females have a lower average life span than males, due to reproductive problems such as chronic egg laying.

Parrotlets
Parrotlets have a life span of approximately 15 years. You may see them having birthdays up to 20 years.

Parakeets
Parakeets can live up to 18 years.  Depending on the type of parakeet, the life span may range between 15 to 18 years.

Lovebirds
Lovebirds live an average of 10 years. Occasionally, you'll run across a lovebird that's 15 to 20 years old. They can be prone to  and associated problems.

Canaries
Canaries may live 20 to 25 years with an average life span of 10 to 15 years.

Finches
Finches can live 15 to 20 years; however, the average is probably closer to 5 to 10 years.

Pigeons
Pigeons usually live 10 to 15 years.

Ducks/Swans

Depending on the species, ducks and swans can live anywhere between 10 to 30 years.

When you are thinking of getting a pet, you could also consider adopting a bird friend.  Of course most people think of a dog or cat when considering pet ownership, but birds can be loving, affectionate, and very interesting companions as well.    Pet lovers are

 Birds are unlike dogs and cats and need very different care, but they too have unique personalities.  They can have their temper tantrums where they squawk like crazy, or they can cuddle and kiss you when in an affectionate mood. 

Selecting a bird, though, can be a huge investment in time.  Although some birds, like the little canary, live only about five years, others like the African Parrot can live up to 50 years while other birds can live up to 90 years.

Here is a sampling of types of birds you may want to consider:

Canary – There are many varieties of canary including the Yellow Canary, the Red Factor Canary and the Crested Canary.  Although canaries can make great pets, they do not like a lot of handling.  These birds are generally kept to be looked at within their cage element and heard for their beautiful singing. 

Canaries are active and amusing little birds, and the males tend to have a soothing song. It is best to be careful when mixing varieties because all breeds do not get along together. The canary has a very active metabolism and needs to be fed regularly, as they could starve to death in as little as 24 hours if they do not eat.

Canaries can live up to five years if properly cared for.

Cockatiels – As with the canary, cockatiels also have various sub-groups, the most common being the Grey Cockatiel.  They are smaller members of the parrot family with brilliant colors and patterns.  They are easy to train, relatively small in size (averaging about 12 inches in length) and make excellent pets.  They are gentle, docile, inquisitive and friendly to both humans and other birds.  These birds also have the ability to be talkers and whistlers.

The average life span of a cockatiel, if cared for properly, is about 30 years.

Cockatoo – Cockatoos are extremely social birds, which is the appeal of having them as pets.  These birds are loving, affectionate, mischievous and playful.  They need to be played with, held and petted by their owners.  They need a great deal of socialization and stimulation on a daily basis in order for them to be happy and healthy.  Sometimes, these birds can become one-person oriented.  They are not normally loud or noisy birds, but will respond when startled or something unusual occurs.  

The Cockatoo is a long living bird, and can live up to 70 years. 

Finch – The finch is a small colorful bird that makes quite a beautiful little pet.  As with other birds, finches have many sub-varieties, the most popular being the Zebra Finch, an active, hardy finch which is easy to breed in captivity.

Finches typically do not like to be handled and can live up to five years.  They, like the canary, are kept to be looked at and heard, with males believed to have a soothing song.  They are social birds that like to be kept in a community setting, so having multiple birds in one cage would be advised. They also needed feeding regularly.

Lovebird – This type of bird is a smaller version from the parrot family, with colorful plumage and patterns.  The average size is 4-6 inches in length and they are relatively easy to train.  Common varieties of the domestic lovebird are the Peach-faced, Fisher, and Masked, with the most common being the Peach-faced Lovebird.

A Lovebird, if properly cared for, can live up to 20 years.  But, Lovebirds are one of the sturdiest and healthiest birds around.  They do not like to be with mixed varieties of other birds or even other varieties of Lovebirds. 

Although you can keep the same variety of Lovebirds in pairs, single Lovebirds tend to be more affectionate and less noisy.   They enjoy being picked up, petted and stroked on a daily basis. These birds are generally inquisitive and friendly to humans when kept as a singly.  They are largely territorial and do best when kept as a single pet bird with their wings kept clipped.

Parakeet – Again, this bird is a smaller member of the Parrot family.  It has striking colors and is relatively easy to train, making it one of the more popular bird pets.  Some Parakeets can be trained to talk.  They can have large vocabularies and can sometimes whistle short tunes.

Parakeets are social birds and love companionship.  They also like to be kept in a colony setting.  If properly cared for, Parakeets can live up to 20 years.  They again have very active metabolisms and need to be fed regularly to keep them from starving.

Macaw – There are several varieties of this member of the Parrot family.  They are a medium to large bird which can measure anywhere from 12-34 inches long, and are brightly colored.  Macaws can live to about 40-90 years.

Macaws are intelligent birds that can be trained to do tricks.  They are not, however, great talkers although sometimes they can be trained to have limited speech.  Like other large birds, they are confident and typically do not mind being held by strangers.

This breed of bird tends to bond with one person or a given territory.  They need a great deal of socialization and stimulation to be happy and healthy in the family setting.

Parrot – There are two main groups of Parrots, the African Parrot, which is divided into two sub-groups, the Congo African Grey, which has a solid black beak, grey feathering and a bright red tail, and the Timneh African Grey whose beak is dark black with a pink cast, has darker grey feathering and a maroon tail.  This bird measures about 10 inches long and weighs about 10 ounces.

The African Grey Parrot can live up to 50 years and is known for its talking ability.  They are not cuddly birds and tend to spook easily.  Although they will endure being handled and pet, they do not really enjoy it.  These birds tend to bond more with one person or territory.  They require a great deal of socialization and stimulation to stay a happy, healthy in the family environment.

Doves – There are many varieties of doves that vary in color.  The White Dove is most well-known, but another popular variety is the Ring-Neck Dove which is light grey in color.  It is not a good idea to mix varieties of doves as all varieties do not get along well together.

Doves are docile, gentle and hardy bird that do not like to be handled much.  These are birds that are more often kept to be looked at and for their soothing song.

Doves are social birds that like to be kept in a colony setting.  If cared for properly, doves can live up to 15 years.

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