Abstract
I suspect there is a growing number
of reader of Watchbird who, like I,
dream of someday building wonderful
aviaries and filling them with
prolific breeding pairs of all the
species of birds we have ever desired
while, in reality, we are faced with
the· challenge of providing the best
possible care for our birds in an
indoor and , in fact , a highly urban
setting. We are constrained by busy
work schedules , space limitations,
and the fear that noisy birds will
upset the neighbors next door, or
across the hall. I do believe that, even
in these situations, with careful planning
and careful selection of species,
it is possible to enjoy keeping birds
that will thrive in an indoor environment
and reward their keepers many
times over with good health , fascinating
behavior, companionship, and
breeding uccesses. If you , like I, are
an indoor aviculturist and find yourself
leafing through bird books for
species that catch your eye then may
I sugge t you consider the Australian
long-railed parakeets of the genus
Polytelis: the Barraband 's parrot, the
rock pebbler, and the Princess of
Wales. They are often described as
" the ideal aviary birds" but it is nor
often recognized what affectionate
and gentle pets they can be as well. I
have kept all three of these beautiful
birds as tame pets over the past three
years, and Jove them to no end.
These three species of Polytelis, or
the polytelids, as they are generically
called, range broadly through Australia
: the Barraband 's parrot inhabits
eucalyptus forest to semi-open land
in southwestern Australia, the rock
pebbler is found in similar habitat in
southeastern Australia, and is sometimes
seen in public parks in the
Sydney area. The Princess of Wales, in
contrast , leads a highly nomadic
existence in the arid interior and ,
therefore, is much less frequently
observed in the wild . Each of the
three polytelids have well-established
aviary populations in Australia and
the .S., so any young bird acquired
here will have descended from a
fairly long line of captive-bred birds.