The following is some information about a few specific softbill species, as found in David Alderton's book Birdkeeper's Guide to Softbills from Tetra Press. the hill mynah is here because of its popularity, the other birds are corvids.
HILL MYNAH Gracula religiosa
Distribution: Ranges from India across southeast Asia, including offshore islands.
Size: 30cm (12in)
Diet: Softbill food, mynah pellets, diced fruits, and livefood.
Sexing: no visual distinction possible between the sexes.
Compatiblility: can be housed in a group, but pairs are best kept individually.
The hill mynah is highly valued as a talking pet, since its powers of mimicry are unrivaled and its intonation is extremely clear. Hill mynahs are rarely shy, compared with parrots, and will talk freely, even in front of strangers. If you want a hill mynah as a companion, be sure to obtain a young bird—known as a ‘gaper’ because of its habit of begging open beaked for food. Young birds can be distinguished by the relative absence of the fleshy folds of skin, kno9wn as wattles, on the back of the head. Adult birds are usually available at a lower price than gapers, because there is often less demand for them.
surgical sexing will enable a pair to be identified with certainty, and the birds should then be given a nestbox. Clutch size is usually two or three eggs, with the incubation period extending for 15 days. Some hill mynahs may be reluctant to sit, leaving the nest at any hint f disturbance, so try to avoid this. Once the chicks hatch, provide a good supply of livefood. Cock birds can become quite aggressive in defense of then nest and may attempt to attack their keeper, so you should exercise a degree of caution when entering their aviary. The chicks will normally leave the nest when they are about one month old.
RED-BILLED MAGPIE Urocissa erythrorhyncha
Distribution: from the himalayas across southeast asia into china.
Size: 60cm (24in).
Diet: mynah pellets, diced fruit, livefood, and similar items.
Sexing: no visual distinction possible between the sexes.
Compatiblility: best kept apart in pairs. Never with smaller birds.
These magnificent corvids need a suitably spacious aviary , where their lively natures will have free expression. They are relatively easy birds to cater for and are quite hardy. Various subspecies are recognized throughout their extensive range and this accounts for slight variations in appearance, which may initially be mistaken for sexual distinctions. The red-billed magpie is sometimes described as the occipital blue pie, not to be confused with the yellow-billed blue pi (Urocissa flavirostiris) which, as its name suggests, has a yellow rather than a red bill.
three to six eggs form the usual clutch, and these should hatch after a period of 17 days. Avoid disturbances at this stage and provide a high level of animal protein in the diet while the chicks are being reared., they will fledge about three weeks after hatching.
WHITE-TAILED JAY
Cyanaocorax mystacalis
Distribution: arid areas of southwestern ecuador, extending into northwestern peru
Size: 30cm (12in).
Diet: omnivorous, requiring fruit and sofbill food, plus mynah pellets, livefood and similar foodstuffs.
Sexing: no visual distinction possible between the sexes.
Compatiblility: pairs can be aggressive so do not house them with smaller birds.
Various species of jay are occasionally available. These birds make attractive aviary occupants, since they will become quite tame in captivity and possess highly inquistitve natures.
Pairs frequently attempt o breed, building a nest of twigs and similar material in a shrub. You may be able to persuade them to use a suitably disguised artificial platform, which will provide a more secure base for the nest. Four eggs usually from the clutch. These will hatch in 16 days and the young birds leave the nest about three weeks later.
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