Terms Every Breeder Should Know - Bird Breeding – Glossary – Basic – Part 1

Bird Breeding – Glossary – Basic – Part 1

This glossary is compiled for beginners that are getting confused and that are not sure what these terms exactly mean.

Why it is important that a breeder knows the terms listed here? As a breeder, you will coming across these terms in various situations. For example, when the bird seller says that it is a closed ring bird or closed band birds, you should know what it means, when the seller says that it is adult pair you should know what he or she means by that and whether the pair that is being sold is really an adult pair or a semi adult pair so that you pay the right price for your birds. Therefore the terms that I have listed here are very significant for bird breeders or someone interested in aviculture. I have tried to include as many terms that I have come across in my personal experience and I don’t claim this list to be an exhaustive one. I have tried to explain each of these terms in simple, lay-person’s language so that someone that is new to breeding birds is not simply intimidated by the jargon used in this field. Some of the terms here are not necessarily limited to Aviculture or just to birds but in this glossary, I have limited the scope of the explanation only to aviculture.

Breeding – Refers to the process of producing offspring or the reproduction process of birds that are considered true pairs. The breeding process involves six important stages namely courtship, laying of eggs, incubating, hatching of eggs, feeding and dispersal.

Mating – Coming together of birds that are of opposite sex for copulation or sexual reproduction.

Courtship or Courtship Rituals or Courtship Dance – The set of acts done by birds to impress its partner before mating. Each bird will have its own set of behaviors including special calls, display of plumage, postures and special movements. To our knowledge it is believed that courtship rituals are performed by the males to impress the females that it is considering as its mate.

Adult Pair – A pair of birds that are considered to be of age for breeding. Or pair of birds that are in their breeding age. The breeding age varies from one species to the other.

Semi Adult Pair – The stage before the breeding age. Pairs that are not yet ready for breeding, but will come to breeding age in a few months time. This again varies from one species to the other.

True Pair – A true pair refers to a set of birds that are actually a male and a female proven either through DNA testing or natural dimorphism or in experience whereby it has been seen to have successfully produced fertilized eggs. 

Compatible Pair – To successfully breed it is not enough to have just a true pair i.e. that is just a male and a female but the male and female that you have should be a compatible pair. In other words, compatible pair refers to birds that accept each other as their mate so as to involve in breeding behavior and eventually breed successfully.

Clutch or Clutch Of Eggs – Refers to the set of eggs produced by a particular pair at a single time. The clutch size or the number of eggs laid by each species and each pair varies. Sometimes the same pair may lay different number of eggs each time or each season depending on its health conditions, general well being and numerous other factors that control the clutch size.

Hatching – The process of the young ones coming out of the eggs, breaking the shells is called hatching.

Brooding – Birds sitting on the eggs for a specified period of time to hatch the eggs. This process is also called incubation and the act, incubating.

Incubator – An electric device that is used to artificially hatch the fertilized eggs. An incubator simulates the brooding conditions.

Nesting – Refers to the set of behaviors exhibited by birds that are in breeding process which includes preparing of the nest box, spending time in the nest box even before the eggs are laid (not referring to birds that have the habit of spending their nights in the nest box) and incubation of the eggs.

Nest Box – A box or other set up that is provided for the caged birds as a special place where the birds can lay their eggs, incubate and take care of the young ones until the young ones are ready to be on their own. 

Incubating / Incubation – The process of the parent birds sitting on the egg to hatch the eggs. This process is also called brooding. The incubation can also be handled artificially using incubators.

Crop Milk – When a parent bird regurgitates the food it eats to feed the young ones the food, the lining of the crop secretes a highly nutritious substance which is important for the hatchlings’ growth and immunity. The secretion from the crop lining of the parent birds is called crop milk.

Bird Leg Rings or leg bands – Metal Rings or plastic rings in general are used to identify one bird from the other in the breeding farms which helps them keep the birds segregated during the breeding season. Leg rings or bands are also important while sexing birds because the DNA results are matched with the numbers or the codes in the leg rings or bands of the birds.

Closed Ring Birds / Closed Band Birds – Birds that wear metal or plastic rings that are of closed nature as opposed to rings that are with cuts or slits. Closed ring or closed band shows that the birds are bred in farms or raised in farms because closed rings can be put on to the birds legs only when they are very young, just about 15 days old.

Cut Ring Birds / Cut Band / Open Band - Cut rings refer to rings that have a slit which can be expanded while putting on the rings to adult birds and squeezed back to ensure that it does not slip out of the bird’s leg. Also check Bird Leg Rings and Closed Ring Birds.

Mutation – Refers to the variations from the original bird traits in terms of physical appearance, for our purposes mainly referring to the color of the plumage. For example, the original color of Indian Ring Neck parrots is Green but through mutation we have Indian Ring Necks in various colors including blue, grey, white, yellow, violet and many more.

Incubation Period – The number of days it takes for a fertilized egg to hatch after the parent birds start sitting on the eggs or incubating. The incubation period varies from species to species.

Gestation Time / Gestation Period – See Incubation Period