Animal-World > Birds > Conures > Mitred Conure

Mitred Conure

Family: Psittacidae

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Heckel and JeckelAratinga mitrataPhoto © Animal-World: Courtesy David Brough

     "I'm here to tell you... the original Heckel and Jeckel never got into as much trouble as these two!"...Dr. Jungle

For more information about the care of Conures see:
Guide to a Happy, Healthy Conure

Scientific Name: Aratinga mitrata

Distribution:      These birds are native to central and souther Peru south through eastern Bolivia the La Rioja and western Cordoba in north-western Argentina.

Description:      Mostly green but more yellowish on the underparts. The forehead is red with distinctive red markings around the eyes. There are scattered red feathers on the hindneck, mantle, throat, thighs, and bend of wing. The undersides of the wing-coverts are olive-green, while the undersides of tail and flight feathers are olive-yellow. The naked periophthalmic ring is creamy-white. Bill is horn colored. Irises are orange-yellow with and inner gray ring.

Size - Weight:      These birds get up to 15" (38 cm). 8.6 ounces (244 g)

Care and feeding:      A roomy cage is required unless the bird is to be let out for extended periods. Many birds can spend most of their time on a play pen or parrot perch. They eat a variety of sprouts, seeds, nuts, fruits, vegetables, and commercial pellets, as well as the same nutritional foods humans eat.

     See About Conures: Housing and About Conures: Care and Feeding for more information.

Social Behaviors:      In captivity these conures become very tame and will learn to speak. They need attention, patience, and toys.

Activities:   Loves to climb and play. Provide lots of toys.

Breeding/Reproduction:      They breed readily if they have the right size aviary. The hen lays two to four eggs which are incubated for about 23-26 days. The young fledge after about 59 days. The nest box size should be 12" x 12" x 12".

Potential Problems:      As with many Aratinga species, MItred Conures can be noisy.      See About Conures: Potential Problems for more information.

Availability:    This bird is generally available at a pet stores or breeders.

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Latest Comments
I just recently caught a mitred conure in my front yard about 2 months ago. We have no idea how old he is but we do know that he is a boy. He can still fly so I can not take him out of his cage. He bites anything and everything that gets in the cage including fingers. My sister already got bit. I don't know what to do. I want him to be able to get up on to my finger and play with me out of the cage but I do not want him to fly away. I would like to have a great family bird that loves getting out of the cage and playing with the family. What do I do? michelle 2009-07-10
I have 2 cherry headed conures, or mitred conures who are approx 25 years old. One is in great shape, the other is losing his feathers on his chest and head, partly due to the other one constantly picking at him. This is worse than usual because he was only loosing the feathers on his head, but not on his chest. l.brooks 2007-12-01
We are sharing our computer with "Bart", a five-month-old mitred conure from Tango’s flock Aviary (tangosflock.com). Sharing because when he walks across the keyboard he almost always opens a pop-up or turns the computer off completely! We also have a lesser sulfur-crested cockatoo named “Boo Boo Bear” (as in Yogi Bear’s little friend, the story how he received this name is a whole other story, compliments of Burton) and an African gray named “Burton”. Bart has been a magical influence on both of them as well as on us. He is already super tame and talking. He is completely outgoing and already will do tricks. His favorite is “backwards upside down bird” in which he flips over backwards into my other hand and puts his feet up. This to terrific applause and cheering. So of course Boo-boo now also does backward upside down bird with fervor. Get this. Even Professor Burton, our gray, does backward upside down bird if I bend over with him so he is not too far from my chest. Bart loves to wrestle and clamber around and is totally content sitting on my shoulder while I work about the house. He moves back and forth across my shoulders grooming me and making comments like wow, and kiss-kiss. Mitred conures are way under-rated. Check out Tangos flock for a great loving breeder. Phil and Therese Billington 2005-12-10
Joey is only 9 months old and this is his 2nd home but we plan to have him for a very long time. I have only had him 5 days so the trust is slowly being built but he has not shown any agressive behaviour towards me and he loves the pinyada filled with raisins and banana that we bought for him! Emma Wicker 2005-09-10
For a week, in the mornings and evenings, we watched a flock of these birds strip our almond tree bare. We have seen these birds since do a fly over. The flock has to number 25 - 30 here in Upland, CA ben 2005-07-23
Some of the coolest comments:
Sammy is nnow going on 17 years. I bought him when he was 7 weeks old and he had to be hand fed as he was not yet weaned. He has never grown out of being hand fed. Each morning he has a tablespoon of hot cereal with honey and applesauce. I started "potty training" him when he was young so now let me know when he wants down by either saying "Sammy wants to potty" or if I hold him, he nibbles my ear. He says quite a lot but has become quite agressive toward anyone who comes near me if he he feels intimated by them. I would not trade him for anything as he is a great companion but he does get noisy when he wants attention or wants to be outside the cage. We built a Madrona tree for him to climb around on. He would rather be on it than caged. Lorie 2004-11-07
My adult hen Mitred is very friendly but also very cage aggressive. I use a stick (she hops right on) to remove her from her cage and we are both very happy. She steps up immediately once OUT of the cage. She is a sweet funny pet and a great size! These birds should be much more popular! Mongo 2003-12-29

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