Behavioral Traits
I have gathered anecdotal information from various sites on behavior people have seen in their companion Brown-necks. It can be hard to distinguish natural behaviors and traits from learned behaviors. This information assumes that these publications are referring to Brown-necked or Grey-headed parrots, the common species seen in captivity.
- Well regarded as gentle and sweet.
- Incredibly strong beaks for their size, constantly chewing wood and even ruining cages. This is very true- I had to purchase a Macaw-sized stainless cage because my BNP was able to gnaw the powder coating off. She also goes through an ungodly amount of wood.
Via Cape Parrots: A Species Guide:
"Cape Parrots are goofy, sweet, and intelligent, and charm just about everybody with those big ole' beaks of theirs that always look like they're smiling. Their personalities truly match their happy-go-lucky faces: these are wonderful medium-sized parrots that have a zest for playing, swinging, and life!"
"Capes are known for their reputations as "Gentle Giants."
"Otherwise they are very playful, curious, and often mischievous birds that need plenty of wood to chew and keep themselves busy. Capes love to swing, climb, and hang upside down, whether from perches, swings, cages, or even your hair. They are very good at being independent and playing by themselves or keeping themselves busy, but they also have great snuggle and cuddle potential. I have met a few Capes who are on either end of this spectrum though (total velcro birds, or not snuggly at all). They are generally very sweet and accepting of new people. When frightened or threatened, it seems that most female Capes, at least, would rather fly away than lunge or bite."
"Toys are incredibly important to Capes. Most Capes LOVE to snap small wooden beads, and simply foot toys with strands of beads are enough to keep them busy and entertained for hours on end. Foot toys are a MUST-- a stainless steel bucket full of them is a great idea for Capes. They also tend to love thin slices of soft woods, especially pine wood. My Cape is, apparently, unique in that she also loves very hard woods and natural wood slices, but she is a monster woodchipper so there is that potential. She can go through a fully loaded toy packed with wood parts in a single day. I also know many Capes that love to chew on soft plastics. Strangely, Capes do not seem to be terribly avid shredders. As for size of toys, they can handle relatively large toys because of their formidable beaks, but variety is a good thing. Foraging and manipulative toys are also a great idea for Capes to keep their intelligent minds busy. Finally, swings are a must."
Via Guide to Senegal parrot and its family:
"In captivity, Un-Capes have much in common with their smaller Poicephalus cousins. They love playing upside down, both hanging and swinging, and on their backs in their owner's hands and on the floor. They are sometimes fascinated by their feet. Like other Poicephalus parrots, they are crazy about nuts."
"Although individuals are rarely noisy, that big body can provide a big voice. Jean Pattison reports that P. fuscicollis are, unquestionably, the noisiest of her exclusively African collection. We must point out, however, that 'noisy' is relative, and talking to Jean Pattison on the phone is nothing like talking to a cockatoo or Amazon breeder on the phone."
"Pattison also reports that the Un-Cape disposition is quite dependable, with individuals rarely forming problematic bonds. She reports that they change hands, homes, and bonds easily."
Via Coco's Flock:
"In general, she is very cautious around new people, and when somebody she does not know enters the room, she stops whatever she is doing and watches them very carefully. This is the case whether she is in or out of the cage. And this is pretty much the rule with her in most situations: I have never, ever seen her run or fly at somebody to attack them or “defend her territory” — she is the quiet and cautious type, rather than the aggressive type. That said, if you do invade her space, she does lunge. For her, an invasion of space is when somebody comes too close (within a foot) and makes a clear sign that he/she is going to try to touch Lola. If you stand close to her, however, that’s okay. She is fine with sharing, but she doesn’t necessarily want to be bothered."
"Neither of them are loud, but do have times of the day that they go through all their vocabulary. One does sound effects perfectly, and one talks more. Neither have a huge vocabulary, but even at their ages (3&6) are still picking up stuff."
"They are fed a fresh mash, fruit, harrisons pellets, 3 almonds/nuts a day, and offered our food as snacks. They both have stainless cage, and an abundance of toys. One goes through wood like crazy, and the other not so fast. They can be content and keep themselves busy, but need plenty of toys. They are both very stubborn, and you really have to know how to read them. They have and will bite, and a capes bite is pretty bad. "
"I have a two and half year old brown necked female cape named Willow and she is the sweetest bird. She has never bitten me hard and when she does bite it's while we're playing and that's usually when she's on her back playing with my hand and she stops if she thinks she's hurting me. She went thru a stage for several months where she would pinch me thinking it was funny, but I got her to understand that I didn't like it and she has stopped. Like Scotty Willow has a great sense of humor but can be quite stubborn at times. I really didn't socialize her well so she really is a one person bird at this point, but she is not afraid of people, she just hasn't been handled by other people."
Via My own anecdotal information: (My BNP's name is Rhubarb. You can see more of her at my tumblr)
Rhubarb is a very active bird, constantly climbing, flying, and chewing. She is incredibly apt and graceful as a climber, but while a strong flier, she isn't as graceful at landing. When she is not resting, she tends to require something to stimulate her brain, usually being a foot toy or a puzzle toy.Her desire to destroy chunks of wood is very strong, and she loves foot-toy sized slices to break apart.
My BNP has an incredibly strong beak. She can destroy "indestructible" acrylic toys, decimate a wooden toy in minutes, and can easily warp cages and strip the powder coating. She is currently housed in a Macaw-sized stainless steel cage which she uses all of, and it seems to hold her strength well.
Rhubarb had never properly bitten me, although has postured a few times. I am very careful about body language and think she could and would if pushed. She has attempted to bite a houseguest in her space but has never pursued them as some other more aggressive parrots might. She is incredibly gentle with those she is familiar with, never even using the pressure of her beak.
Rhu is not the most interactive bird, and prefers to be an observer in social interactions. She likes music and will dance if you whistle or sing, and enjoys some head scratches. She has never wanted to perch on me, although she is trained to step up and fly to me easily.
She is very quick with trick training and has been trained to trim nails, recall, station, etc, pretty easily. She has a stubborn streak and will only perform her tricks if properly motivated. Social motivation does not work for her.
Her quickness extends to puzzles and she is notorious for escaping her cage. I keep stainless steel trailer hitches on her food and cage doors because she can manipulate the locks open. She is very good at solving most parrot puzzle toys once she is given a chance to learn them, although some are solved by brute force.
She mostly loves fruit, brown/wild rice, lentils, and beans. She is very motivated by all types of nuts. She has no appetite for any small seeds. Cherries and blueberries are an absolute favorite for her. She is able to crack shelled almonds, and I have heard of BNPs who can shell walnuts, although I have not had an opportunity to try.
Rhu is relatively quiet, although her morning or greeting calls can be deafening. She mostly uses small squeaks and whistles throughout the day, with many periods of complete silence. She can talk some, but it is very unclear and she does not seem motivated to learn human speech.
She is very timid and frightens easily to unfamiliar circumstances, but that might be more a result of her unknown past than a species trait.