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The 9 Species Of Lovebird

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The 9 Species Of Lovebird

Postby lutino » Sun Jul 10, 2011 8:58 am

The Big Nine

Lovebirds come in 9 species and are broken into three groups: The white-eye ring group, the intermediate group, and the sexually dimorphic group. Within these groups are many different colors and types of lovebirds.
The white-eye ring group consists of Masked lovebirds, Fischer's lovebirds, Black-Cheeked lovebirds, and Nyasa lovebirds.

The Masked lovebirds (Agapornis personatus) have a blackish brown head, the chest and lower neck are yellow and the beak is red. They have a green body with a bluish rump and they are about 6- 6 1/4 inches (15-15.7cm).

Mask

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Fischer's Lovebirds (Agapornis fischeri) have an orange forehead, cheeks and throat, with a red beak, green body, and blue rump. The beak is red and they are 4 inches (10cm) long.

Fischer's

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Black Cheeked lovebirds (Agapornis nigrigenis) have an overall colour of green, with brown/black cheeks and forehead. The back of the head is yellow/green, and the throat is orange. They have a red beak and these birds are 4 1/2 inches (11cm).

Black Cheek

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Nyasa lovebirds (Agapornis lilianae) are mainly green birds with a red beak, red forehead, and an orange/red throat and cheeks. The beak is red and these birds are 4 1/4 inches (11cm).

Nyasa

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The Peach-Faced lovebirds (Agapornis roseicollis) are the only type of lovebirds in the intermediate group. They have a green body with a vivid red face and throat. They have blue rumps and a green tail. For the hobbyist, the peach face lovebird sports over 75 mutations. They are 6-7 inches (16-18cm) long.

Peach-Face

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The last group, the Sexually dimorphic group (meaning that the adult sexes can easily be distinguished by appearance) includes Abyssinian, Madagascar, Red-Face, and Swindern's Black-Collared lovebirds (although in this group, the Swindern’s sexes are very similar).

The Abyssinian lovebird (Agapornis taranta) is mostly green, with the males having a red brow. The eye ring in males is redder, while the female has a green eye ring. The beak is red and they are 6- 6 1/2 inches (15-16.5cm) long.

Abyssinian

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In the Madagascar lovebirds (Agapornis canus), the male has a gray upper body and head while the female has a lighter green. The rest of the body of both sexes is varying shades of green with black feather tips and a hazy yellowish color on the chest. The beak is grey and they are medium sized lovebirds at 5 1/2 inches (14cm).

Madagascar

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The Red-Face lovebird (Agapornis pullarius) is green with some yellow on the under parts. The forehead is red in males, but the females have a lighter orangish red. The rump is bright blue and the beak is red.

Red-Face

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Swindern’s Black-collared Lovebirds (Agapornis swindernianus) are without a doubt the most rare lovebirds of all. They have a green body with an unmistakable black collar around the back of the neck.

Swindern's

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Notice how all the above photos show these brilliant little parrots in cages “EXCEPT” for the Swindern, very special lovebird this one.
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lutino
Lovebird
 
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Re: The 9 Species Of Lovebird

Postby zazanomore » Sun Jul 10, 2011 9:06 am

Fischer's has, and always will be my favorite lovebird species.
Bonnie - :budgie2:
Clyde - :budgie:
Einstein - :greycockatiel:
Alyssa - :thumbsup:
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zazanomore
African Grey
 
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Budgies
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Re: The 9 Species Of Lovebird

Postby liz » Sun Jul 10, 2011 4:18 pm

I have the peach faced. Can't tell them apart.

:amazon: Rambo :blinking: Myrtle :greycockatiel: Shadow :pied: Sweetie :pied: Lemone' :greycockatiel: Twinkle :greycockatiel: Tommy :greycockatiel: Tammy :swaying: :swaying:
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liz
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