How viable would it be to free flight train a bird like a macaw from a suburban backyard? I know birds that fly away by accident get lost easily because they don't know the area but could you familiarize a bird with your neighbourhood well enough such that if it were spooked it wouldn't get totally lost? I know parrots aren't homing pigeons but in the wild they seem to navigate back to regular places - nests, water sources, balconies with food etc. - well enough. Sorry if this sounds like a silly question/comparison.We had a very experienced member who flew his Macaw several times a week for years. THe parrot was spooked by something unexpected, got disoriented and flew away, never to be seen again. The best place to free fly is an open space like scrub land, open for miles around. Free flying in spaces like a park or field are just asking for a problem.
The species-dependent mapping skills thing is really interesting thank you - how do birds like cockatiels and budgies find their way back to their nest after being spooked? Do they just not venture too far from the nest/hollow to lessen the risk of losing it?Some smaller birds totally rely on flock numbers for their safety (think budgie) so they have erratic flight patterns, some smaller birds have different instinctual flight patterns and behaviours and do not really use mapping which makes recall less successful, nomadic birds will often just flee in a crazy mad rush left and right when startled (think cockatiel) which is much more dangerous for them than birds who are more territorial being startled as they tend to take off for a bit to get out of immediate danger and then stop and look back- they do not just keep flying away from whatever startled them in a mad panic till they can' t fly anymore. Natural flight patterns, behaviours and mapping skills are a big factor.
I didn't ask this question - I realize that walking the parrot around the neighbourhood isn't going to give it an aerial map if that's what you thought I was implying. I intended the question to be less why wild birds don't get lost and how a domestic bird could become familiarised with its neighbourhood well enough to achieve the same effect. Birds that have flown around the same area many times, have gotten spooked and flown off - I assume because they flew beyond the region they were familiar with. Could this be prevented somehow? I know there are people who keep near-wild birds that more or less just visit them for food.Critical Thinking is a Skill that is not well presented in schools, if at all, now days.
The question of why Birds in their natural range do not get lost is near shocking to me. Simply walking outside and looking around the average North America middle age Suburb area should clearly show why. At ground level, the layout looks clear to you. Take you up a small distance of four meters (approximately 13') and the sight lines change vastly. Birds that fly your neighborhood live in that 3D world and define sight lines at each level everyday.
I'm not- I'm asking hypotheticals on a parrot forum. No parrots were harmed in the making of this post.You seem driven to expose a Parrot to /your wants regardless of what others may recommend. If you are of legal age, simply do it!
I have never heard of free flight trainers suggesting free flight is best done with unweaned babies- all the ones I have spoken to would not even deal with you if you told them you had acquired an unweaned baby... can you possibly post here about who you have heard of that suggests this? I am rather curious now.most free flight trainers suggest getting unweaned and pre fledged babies and training them that way , as this is the easiest time to train recall.
So...I'm against getting un weaned babies as I have suffered here reading of all the ones that die....
But if this is something you have I your heart ..then learn all you can. Birddtricks on youtube, you can purchase their training guide I think or hire them...
The only silly question is the one you never ask and never get the answer to!How viable would it be to free flight train a bird like a macaw from a suburban backyard? I know birds that fly away by accident get lost easily because they don't know the area but could you familiarize a bird with your neighbourhood well enough such that if it were spooked it wouldn't get totally lost? I know parrots aren't homing pigeons but in the wild they seem to navigate back to regular places - nests, water sources, balconies with food etc. - well enough. Sorry if this sounds like a silly question/comparison.
The species-dependent mapping skills thing is really interesting thank you - how do birds like cockatiels and budgies find their way back to their nest after being spooked? Do they just not venture too far from the nest/hollow to lessen the risk of losing it?
I wonder if you could use a flight harness to build a bird's mental map of a neighbourhood - although it seems like this wouldn't work well in suburbia with obstacles everywhere - a country town maybe.Harnesses with flight lines or leash extensions in a fairly large field are generally a safer alternative to free flight. Generally, because some birds have gotten tangled in harnesses and died, but they're much safer than free flight!
I notice in another of your threads, you mention that you live in Western Australia. That being the case, it's not just birds of prey that you need to be mindful of when considering free-flying. There are many other species of smaller birds that are highly territorial and aggressive that will gang up on and chase domesticated parrots out of their range, such as yellow throated miners, butcherbirds, magpies, currawongs, crows etc. They will quickly latch onto a pet parrot, particularly if it's not terribly sure of itself, chase it to the edge of it's range, where the next territorial flock will take over and chase it out of it's range too, on and on and so on and so forth to the point of exhaustion, where a predatory bird may then be lying in wait looking for an easy target. If you do choose to go ahead, please do so only under the tutelage of a very experienced and highly regarded local free-flight trainer. And even then, only with the knowledge and understanding of the risks involved. In all honesty, living in Australia, free-flying is something that I personally would not ever undertake, the risks as far as I'm concerned are simply far too great.Also - I gather that smaller birds are regarded as being a riskier candidate for free flight because they tend to get targeted by birds of prey but I'm wondering if there are any other reasons aside from this.
This has got me wondering about the daily flight averages and ranging areas of different bird species. I'm guessing the further a parrot species typically strays from the nest to get food etc. the better it will be at navigation.The only silly question is the one you never ask and never get the answer to!
The few people I know of with Macs who escaped (not free flight trained or even human friendly) all got their birds back within a few days- the birds all ventured about town and then to another town (between 30km- 50km away) which was confirmed through positive sightings and they all came back and hung about their immediate local area till they got seriously hungry- most stayed out 3 days before voluntarily returning to a spot low enough to be caught or asking to go into their aviaries- they all also had other macaws that kept calling to them.
I follow some accounts on IG that free fly their macaws from their backyards- some in busy built up areas where the birds fly through some neighbours small yards etc and others in more remote newer areas that are still being developed and have lots of open spaces. Most people seem to drive their birds to a safer location to free fly.
As for the budgies and tiels... from my understanding of their natural behaviours, they never go far from the nest when they have young.
Good points - tbh I rarely see birds of prey where I am (which I know doesn't mean they're not there) but I have seen willy wag tails go out of their way to attack cats. I've also been chased halfway across a football field by a magpie. Didn't occur to me before because I'd never seen butcherbirds and magpies harass wild parrots but then again said parrots rarely hang out alone either.I notice in another of your threads, you mention that you live in Western Australia. That being the case, it's not just birds of prey that you need to be mindful of when considering free-flying. There are many other species of smaller birds that are highly territorial and aggressive that will gang up on and chase domesticated parrots out of their range, such as yellow throated miners, butcherbirds, magpies, currawongs etc. They will quickly latch onto a pet parrot, particularly if it's not terribly sure of itself, chase it to the edge of it's range, where the next territorial flock will take over and chase it out of it's range too, on and on and so on and so forth to the point of exhaustion, where a predatory bird may then be lying in wait looking for an easy target. If you do choose to go ahead, please do so only under the tutelage of a very experienced and highly regarded local free-flight trainer. And even then, only with the knowledge and understanding of the risks involved. In all honesty, living in Australia, free-flying is something that I personally would not ever undertake, the risks as far as I'm concerned are simply far too great.