Latin name: Psittacus erithacus

 

Very frequently snatched from the wild and imported. Authorised for sale to individuals as it is listed in Annex II of the Washington Convention. Bred in captivity since quite some time.

 

Height: approximately 33 cm

Weight: approximately 400g

Colour: Uniformly grey, red tail, black beak.

 

No visible sexual difference between the male and female.

 

The eye’s iris is dark grey in young birds.

 

The African Grey is the most well-known parrot and its intelligence is rare. 

 

Its learning abilities, including for speech, are considerable. As with all parrots, one must not adopt an imported bird because it will be fearful and stressed, making any relationship with it impossible.

 

This parrot is affectionate and very sensitive. Interact with it at meal time, while watching television, or when the children are doing their homework. You will need to be patient, gentle, and present in order for its learning abilities to reveal themselves. The African Grey will appreciate participating in family life but will prefer a single member of the family.

 

The African Grey lives in colonies low-altitude forests of West Africa.

 

Its natural habitat and distribution are vast (as shown in the map below), which explains the considerable and regular importing numbers, despite yearly quotas.

 

Its forest habitat is threatened by an intense exploitation of equatorial forests.

The map below is currently available only in French. An English version will soon be made available.