FEATURE W
hen I first considered acquiring Madagascars the usual
comments were “I gave up on them because I never saw them – they hid in the nest box as soon as I entered the birdroom” and “I gave up on them because they produced lots of eggs but never hatched anything.” In my experience neither is true. Certainly, chicks are wild initially (not unusual) but they steady once they are two or three months old. My birds only receive nest boxes when I wish them to breed and even then do not use them as a refuge.
Anyone unfamiliar with Madagascars will immediately be struck by how small and delicate they appear compared with the commoner lovebird species. Most lovebirds take a size M ring – Madagascars take a K, smaller than a grass parakeet. They also have an inoffensive voice – both sexes twitter and chirp, hens (and chicks) also make a growling sound when in the nest box.
SCAR DS
Having now completed eight breeding seasons with them my experiences may be of some interest. To date they have produced 137 young reared to independence – 20+ in each of the last 6 years.
I initially acquired two pairs captive bred and imported from the Continent and subsequently built up the group by exchanging youngsters with two UK breeders – plus a further two pairs from a different European source. With the addition of odd birds from other sources I now therefore have a group with good genetic diversity. Breeding results have not been significantly different across the pairs so – thus far – my management of the birds seems to suit them.
General Management My birds are kept in an insulated timber and block building with no natural light. Lighting is by standard fluorescent fittings with daylight spectrum tubes for 15 hours per day. At night there are 12W nightlights, which are timed to overlap night and morning.
Heating is by convector heaters with high-level fans to aid circulation. The temperature never drops below 60F and above 70F extract fans kick in – in summer the temperature can reach around 80F.
The Madagascar breeding pairs are BIRD SCENE 11
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