Judging from all I've witnessed thus far with the 3 Eclectus birds owned by my roommate, it seems that they've got a "window" for vocal conditioning. While the male & female have on occasion said "hello," it's quite rare. It's mostly just chirps & squawks from them. Despite all the talking my roommate gives to them, they really don't talk.
But... the juvenile is a totally different story. His name is Ranger. And he's the most vocal parrot I've ever met in person. Her owner talked to him extensively in his rearing phase. He has a really nice repertoire of things to say, plus he "experiments" with all kinds of vocalizations (changing phrases, shortening them, and a myriad of intonations). He also seems to come up with his own phrases. We're not sure what inspires that. Maybe the radio? He's a hoot!
One funny quality about him, is the landline phone. It's an AT&T model and it was set for a certain ringtone. Ranger heard it from his very early days. And it's one of his favorite sounds. He sometimes just makes the tone as if like a cat who purrs for self-soothing. And he's VERY good at it. It's sometimes hard to tell the difference from him and the actual phone! What I did to change things up was to put the ringtone on my cellphone. So now, I can "make it ring" at anytime. Ranger seems to enjoy it and is very responsive. I know I've had an influence as I've introduced shorter lengths of the ring, something the phone doesn't ever do. And now, when I enter the kitchen, sometimes he'll just make one quick 1/2 second ring. Then I'll respond. And then he'll answer with a longer tone. And we'll go back & forth for a while.
Ranger is so interactive that if you're in the kitchen and not responsive to his greetings, he'll often say "Hellooooo???!!!" Another funny thing, when you laugh at something he says, he'll sometimes laugh right back. It's hilarious. I have a recording of him and working to edit it down. I'll see if I can post it later on.
But... the juvenile is a totally different story. His name is Ranger. And he's the most vocal parrot I've ever met in person. Her owner talked to him extensively in his rearing phase. He has a really nice repertoire of things to say, plus he "experiments" with all kinds of vocalizations (changing phrases, shortening them, and a myriad of intonations). He also seems to come up with his own phrases. We're not sure what inspires that. Maybe the radio? He's a hoot!
One funny quality about him, is the landline phone. It's an AT&T model and it was set for a certain ringtone. Ranger heard it from his very early days. And it's one of his favorite sounds. He sometimes just makes the tone as if like a cat who purrs for self-soothing. And he's VERY good at it. It's sometimes hard to tell the difference from him and the actual phone! What I did to change things up was to put the ringtone on my cellphone. So now, I can "make it ring" at anytime. Ranger seems to enjoy it and is very responsive. I know I've had an influence as I've introduced shorter lengths of the ring, something the phone doesn't ever do. And now, when I enter the kitchen, sometimes he'll just make one quick 1/2 second ring. Then I'll respond. And then he'll answer with a longer tone. And we'll go back & forth for a while.
Ranger is so interactive that if you're in the kitchen and not responsive to his greetings, he'll often say "Hellooooo???!!!" Another funny thing, when you laugh at something he says, he'll sometimes laugh right back. It's hilarious. I have a recording of him and working to edit it down. I'll see if I can post it later on.
