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| Yellow-naped Amazon parrot. (Photo credit: Wikipedia) |
Looks
Parrots of the South America like the predominantly green Amazon's 27 species have the most recognizable piracy parroty look, the one that comes to most people's minds when they think of the quintessential parrot bird. If you love colors you may consider one of the stunning 16 species of Macaws, ranging from mostly red, green, and blue feathers to combinations like the very popular blue and gold macaw. The little Black Headed Caique can also claim to belong to the colorful family, with his black, yellow, white and green patches. Leaving Central and South America, if you feel too puzzled by the difficulty or even impossibility of telling males from females apart for most species of parrot, why not opt for an Eclectus male, his green body with a little red under the wings and surprising orange beak. Or for a mostly red female and her beautiful blue belly.
Intelligence
What the African Grey parrot lacks in panache, he makes up for in brains. Suffice it to say that the smartest bird ever studied was Alex the parrot, Dr. Pepperberg's famous colleague. But to be fair the African Grey doesn't have a monopoly on parrot smarts since parrots as a whole are no bird brains. A common question is "which is the smartest parakeet?", and to this question I can only answer that they're all amazingly clever for such small birds. Indeed, they can almost rival with the African Grey when it comes to learning tricks or how to talk. Switching to giants, Macaws are usually very good at learning tricks and mimicking or dare I say parroting, their human companion's actions. The Green-Winged and gorgeous Scarlet Macaws are particularly smart, but I wouldn't pick the latter as my first pet bird since he's quite defensive and can be nippy or even bite. The Yellow-Naped Amazon is also very intelligent, but can be moody and have an excessive behavior.
Vocal Talent
I suspect many beginners are drawn to parrots in part because of their amazing talking abilities (I know I was!), while others may prefer a quiet companion. If you belong to the latter category of prospective owners, I'm afraid you won't find an absolutely quiet parrot, since most of them are noisy, albeit in varying degrees. While choosing your new friend according to his species' vocal reputation is a sensible thing to do, remember that it will only increase or decrease the probability your pet parrot will talk, not guarantee it.
Let's start with talkers. The most famous talkative parrots are African Greys and Parakeets. Interestingly, it's easier for male Parakeets to talk and imitate a human voice than it is for females, although the latter can speak but are simply more reluctant to start up a conversation. The Double Yellow-Headed Amazon and the Yellow-Crowned Amazons are excellent speakers and singers! They're also much easier to live with than their yellow-naped cousin. Quaker parrots are also very good talkers but can be a bit loud. As to bigger birds, the Blue and Gold, Military and Severe Macaws are good talkers, but be aware that for them vocalizing a lot is a normal way of communicating. So if you have neighbors and paper-thin walls...
On the other hand for those who'd rather not have a chatty friend the quietest species of parrot birds is probably the independent Eclectus.
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