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b y Doug Bedwell Cage sizes and styles are often as different as the people who make or buy them. There is no consensus on the "right" size cage for breeding lovebirds. The principle that "Larger is Better," probably holds true, but there is enormous disagreement on how large is large enough. As I've mentioned elsewhere, my experience is with indoor aviaries in the American Midwest. Obviously an outdoor aviary can accomodate larger cages, and in most situations the available space will place some limits on cage size and design. I do not colony breed my birds. I set up my caging so that every breeding pair has its own separate cage. There are many advantages to this system. For one, there is no question as the the parentage of chicks that are produced. This is important for several reasons. When I am working with color mutations, it is easier to keep track of which chicks carry which recessive mutations. Also, when I am breeding successive generations, I am able...

By Doug Bedwell There are three different sex-linked mutations (at the time this article was written, the Opaline mutation did not yet exist) in the Peachfaced Lovebird: Lutino, American Cinnamon, and Australian Cinnamon. Though the Lutino mutation is quite common, and is probably familiar to most lovebird enthusiasts, the cinnamons are less common, and consequently less well known. The Lutino mutation acts by removing all of the Melanin, which is a dark pigment, from the bird. The yellow and red colors we see are caused by different kinds of pigments, called carotenoids, which are unaffected by the Lutino gene. In effect, the bright yellow and red colors are actually the pigments "left behind" after the Lutino gene has removed all the Melanin from the bird.  The Australian Cinnamon is a very pale yellow-green, slightly darker than a lutino, though lighter than an American Cinnamon. Expensive and hard to find just a few years ago, Australian Cinnamons are becomi...

By Lisa Parris , eHow Contributor Lovebirds You bought the birds hoping to find yourself in possession of a mated pair. But she seems unimpressed by his posing, and you can tell just by the way he's glaring out through the bars, all he can think is, "Wow, that is one uuuuugly cockatiel." You know what they say about the best laid plans... bear in mind, bonding between birds can take years and breeding only happens during certain times of year. What appears to be a fundamental personality clash can resolve itself over time. One day, you'll walk into the room and find them sharing the same perch, happily cooing at each other. And that's when you begin to wonder, are they or aren't they?    In...