Conures as Pets: The Good, the Bad and the Ugly

Conures are one of those groups of birds that are very easy to fall in love with. They are funny, clever, colourful, ridiculously curious and often incredibly affectionate. They tend to want to know what you're doing, why you're doing it and whether they can somehow involve themselves in it.

But there is something I think is really important to understand before we go any further: a conure isn't one species.

A Green-cheeked Conure and a Sun Conure are both called conures, but living with them can be a very different experience. Then you have Jendays, Nandays, Blue-crowned Conures, Mitreds and Patagonians, and suddenly the word “conure” is covering everything from a little 60-gram Green-cheek to a Patagonian that can weigh several hundred grams.

They do share some common traits. Most are active, social parrots with busy beaks, plenty of personality and a real need for things to do. The differences in noise, size, strength and overall intensity, though, can completely change whether a particular species is going to fit comfortably into your life.

So this isn't really a guide to finding the “best conure”. It's a guide to understanding what you're actually choosing.

What is a conure?

“Conure” is a common name used for a number of long-tailed parrots from the Americas. They aren't all members of one genus, which is part of why there is so much variation between them.

Green-cheeked Conures belong to the genus Pyrrhura. Sun and Jenday Conures are Aratinga. Nandays are also currently placed in Aratinga, while Blue-crowned Conures sit on their own in Thectocercus. Mitred and Red-masked Conures are Psittacara, and the Patagonian Conure belongs to Cyanoliseus.

That sounds a little technical, but it explains something useful. When someone asks, “What are conures like as pets?”, there isn't one completely accurate answer.

A little Green-cheek and a large Mitred may have some very recognisable conure qualities in common, but their voice, beak strength, housing and physical presence are not the same.

Conure species compared

Those numbers are useful, but they aren't personality descriptions. Two birds of the same species can still be completely different little individuals.

That is something babies remind me of all the time. You can have two young conures sitting beside each other, raised in the same environment, and one is already trying to climb onto you, investigate your jewellery and interfere with everything you're doing. The other one is sitting back quietly watching the first bird make questionable life choices before deciding whether it wants to participate.

Species gives us a starting point. It doesn't give us a personality guarantee.

The good: why people love conures

Conures can be incredibly engaging companion birds. They tend to interact with their environment rather than simply sit and watch it, and that makes them great fun for people who genuinely enjoy sharing their day with an animal.

They climb, chew, forage, wrestle toys, hang upside down and investigate anything new that enters their space. Quite a few of them seem to have an impressive level of confidence for animals that could comfortably sit in one hand.

I've handed a conure something new and watched the whole thought process happen. First there is the suspicious sideways look. Then the cautious beak touch. Five minutes later, that same object has apparently been accepted into the family purely so it can be dismantled piece by piece.

That curiosity makes enrichment fairly easy to build into their lives. It also makes training rewarding because many conures genuinely enjoy working things out.

Recall, target training, stationing, stepping up and simple tricks can all become useful parts of everyday life. Training isn't just about teaching a bird to perform. It gives you a way to communicate and allows the bird to participate in things like moving between areas, going back into its enclosure and cooperating with routine handling.

Conures are also often very social. Many form strong bonds with their people and enjoy being close to the household activity. For the right person, that's a huge part of their appeal.

The bad: noise, mess, chewing and attention

Conures can be messy, destructive and demanding. How much of each depends heavily on the species and the individual bird, but they are all fairly normal things to expect from a parrot.

Chewing is a good example. Their beak isn't just something they use for eating. It is also a climbing tool, an extra hand, a way of investigating objects and, sometimes, a very efficient household renovation device.

I've definitely had those moments where a bird ignores three perfectly good toys and becomes completely fascinated with the one thing nearby that clearly wasn't provided for it.

Apparently that's how these things work.

Giving them plenty of things they are allowed to destroy helps a lot. Bird-safe wood, paper, cardboard, palm products, safe branches and suitable chew toys all give that natural behaviour somewhere useful to go.

It doesn't mean the furniture is now guaranteed safe. It just gives the furniture a fighting chance.

Then there is the social side. A lot of conures genuinely enjoy interaction, but it is useful for them to learn how to do things without a person attached to them as well.

Foraging, independent play and time on a play stand give a bird different ways to occupy itself. That doesn't replace social interaction, but it does mean the bird's entire day doesn't depend on someone being available to provide entertainment.

The ugly: when things aren't working

This is where I think bird articles sometimes go wrong. Either they make parrots sound terrifying, or they leave this part out completely.

The reality is somewhere in between.

Conures can develop difficult behaviours. Screaming, biting, territorial behaviour and feather damaging behaviour can become significant problems in some birds. Lack of stimulation and boredom can contribute to unwanted behaviours including screaming, biting and feather pulling, although behavioural changes can also have medical causes and shouldn't automatically be treated as a training problem.

Sleep, fear, hormones, social environment and how the bird's day is structured can all affect behaviour as well.

Then there is adulthood.

Baby conures can be ridiculously trusting. You can have a little bird happily climbing all over you, falling asleep against you and accepting just about everything without much objection.

Then they mature.

Sometimes the changes are subtle. Sometimes the bird suddenly has very definite opinions about who can touch it, where it wants to sit and why you have apparently committed an unforgivable offence by moving one particular toy.

That isn't necessarily the bird “turning nasty”. It is an adult parrot behaving differently from a baby.

Knowing that beforehand makes the transition much easier to understand.

Are conures loud?

Yes, but this is one of the areas where the species makes an enormous difference.

Green-cheeked Conures are generally quieter than many of the bigger conures. They still call, chatter and make themselves known, but Pyrrhura conures are considered relatively quiet compared with some of the louder Aratinga species.

A Sun Conure is another story.

Sun Conures have a powerful, piercing voice. Their natural calls can be loud and repeated, and the pitch is often what people notice most. A Jenday has a similarly strong reputation, with wild calls described as loud, metallic and screeching. Nandays produce clamorous screeches and shrill chatter as well.

You can read “Sun Conures are loud” a hundred times and still not quite appreciate it until one lets out a full contact call a few metres away.

There is always that tiny moment where everybody in the room stops what they were doing.

Then the Sun looks perfectly pleased with itself.

Some people hear that sound and genuinely don't care. Others know immediately that it would become difficult for them to live with every day.

Neither person is wrong. Noise tolerance is very individual.

The important part is hearing adult birds before deciding, especially if you have close neighbours, live in a townhouse or apartment, work from home or have anyone in the household who is particularly sensitive to sharp noise.

“Quiet for a conure” and “quiet pet” are not the same thing.

Are conures cuddly?

Many can be, particularly Green-cheeks. Some conures genuinely love sitting close to their people, having head scratches and being involved in whatever is happening.

But “cuddly” can create slightly unrealistic expectations if it is taken to mean that every conure will always want to be touched.

A baby may want to curl up against you every chance it gets. That same bird may grow into an adult that still adores you but prefers playing beside you, sitting on your shoulder or coming over for scratches when it chooses.

That is still a very strong relationship.

Physical preferences can change with maturity, hormones and mood as well. One of the nice things about living with parrots is learning the individual bird rather than trying to make it fit the description you read before bringing it home.

Affection also doesn't need to involve stroking the entire bird. Head and neck scratches are generally a much better choice than repeatedly stroking down the back, under the wings or around the lower body, which can encourage sexual responses in some parrots.

Do conures bite?

Yes. They also use their beaks constantly for things that aren't biting.

Young conures in particular can be incredibly mouthy. Fingers are interesting. Fingernails are interesting. Jewellery is fascinating. The tiny piece of skin beside your nail that you hadn't even noticed apparently requires urgent attention.

Watching babies learn how much pressure is appropriate can actually be quite funny, right up until one becomes slightly too enthusiastic.

That sort of exploratory mouthing is different from a defensive bite.

A frightened, hormonal, territorial or overstimulated bird can deliver a proper bite, and size changes how serious that bite feels. A Green-cheek only weighs around 60 to 80 grams, while a Mitred can weigh 200 to 240 grams and a Patagonian considerably more.

A larger bird isn't automatically more likely to bite. It simply has more beak behind the decision if it does.

Body language helps enormously. A bird that leans away, stiffens, moves away repeatedly or becomes increasingly agitated is already giving information before it reaches the stage of using a hard bite to end the conversation.

Can conures talk?

Some can talk surprisingly well, but I wouldn't choose a conure if speech was the main goal.

Green-cheeks sometimes learn a collection of words and phrases, although their voices can be a little raspy. Sun and Jenday Conures can learn words too, but neither is generally known as a standout talking species.

Blue-crowned Conures are one of the more interesting exceptions. They have a reputation for being among the stronger talkers within the conure group and may develop a reasonable vocabulary, although clarity still varies from bird to bird.

Talking is one of those things I would always treat as a bonus.

You can talk to one bird constantly and get silence in return, while another hears you say something once from across the room and decides that is apparently the phrase it wants to repeat for the next ten years.

Parrots like keeping us humble.

What should a conure eat?

Nutrition is one of the biggest parts of long-term bird care, and it is also an area where old information hangs around for a very long time.

A bowl of mixed seed isn't a complete conure diet. Seed-heavy diets can allow birds to selectively eat their favourite high-fat foods while missing important nutrients, and nutritional disease is still common in companion birds. Veterinary references identify all-seed and selectively eaten seed-heavy diets as common causes of poor nutrition.

A nutritionally complete formulated parrot food is commonly used as the foundation of a companion conure's diet, together with appropriate vegetables and smaller amounts of other fresh foods. Seeds and nuts can still be useful, particularly as enrichment or training rewards, without needing to form the bulk of what the bird eats.

I don't love giving one magic percentage and pretending it applies perfectly to every conure species, every commercial diet and every individual bird. Avian nutrition has improved enormously, but exact nutrient requirements haven't been completely established for every species.

The individual bird matters too. Age, activity, body condition, breeding status and health can all affect nutritional needs.

Fresh water should always be available, and bowls need regular cleaning because conures have an almost supernatural ability to put food into water approximately thirty seconds after you've changed it.

Diet changes also need some patience.

A bird raised entirely on seed might look at a pellet or vegetable as though you have placed an unidentified building material in its food bowl.

I've seen birds refuse something repeatedly and then suddenly decide it is delicious because another bird ate it first. I've also seen a vegetable become acceptable purely because it was chopped differently.

During any major diet conversion, the bird still needs to be eating. Gradual transition and monitoring body weight are useful because birds shouldn't simply be forced onto unfamiliar food by removing everything they recognise.

What kind of cage does a conure need?

The answer depends on which conure we're talking about.

A Green-cheek and a Patagonian can't sensibly have the same cage simply because both products happen to be marketed for “conures”.

The enclosure needs enough usable space for the individual bird to move comfortably, stretch its wings, climb and use the perches and toys without everything being packed together. Safe, supervised out-of-cage activity is also part of keeping an active parrot physically and mentally engaged.

Horizontal room matters because birds fly horizontally. A tall narrow cage can look enormous while providing surprisingly little actual flying or moving space.

The larger species also need heavier equipment. Perch diameter needs to suit larger feet, cage construction needs to handle a stronger beak and toys need to be appropriately sized and durable.

Inside the enclosure, I like variety.

Natural perches of different appropriate diameters, safe chewing materials, foraging activities, climbing options and toys give the bird different ways to use the space.

And the cage is only one part of their world.

Conures are active parrots. Safe opportunities to fly, climb, play, train and explore give them exercise and choices that simply sitting on one perch can't provide.

Enrichment and exercise

If you've ever bought an expensive bird toy and watched your conure ignore it in favour of the cardboard packaging, congratulations. You have experienced parrot enrichment.

Good enrichment doesn't need to be elaborate. It just needs to give the bird something safe and worthwhile to do.

Shredding, chewing, climbing, manipulating objects and foraging all work well with natural parrot behaviour. Hiding food inside paper or suitable toys, spreading feeding opportunities through different areas and providing safe materials to destroy can turn ordinary activities into something the bird actually has to think about.

Foraging is especially useful. Wild parrots spend a considerable part of their lives locating and processing food, while a captive bird can otherwise meet most of its energy needs by walking ten centimetres to a bowl.

Training is enrichment too.

A short recall or target session gets the bird moving, thinking and communicating. It can also make practical care much easier later.

Toy rotation can help keep things interesting, but there is no need to replace the entire cage every few days. Sometimes an old toy disappears for a few weeks and returns as though the bird has never seen such an incredible invention in its life.

Sleep, routine and hormones

Conures benefit from a predictable day and a genuine opportunity to rest.

There isn't one sleep number that magically suits every parrot regardless of species, season and environment, but uninterrupted sleep matters.

Where the bird sleeps can make a difference. A bird in the middle of a busy room with lights, television and people moving around late into the night may not be getting the same rest as a bird with a genuinely quiet sleeping environment.

Hormones are another normal part of living with an adult parrot.

As a conure matures, you may see increased territoriality, nesting interest, stronger opinions about handling or changes in who and what the bird becomes protective of.

Sometimes the trigger is wonderfully obvious.

A completely innocent cardboard box suddenly becomes the most valuable property the bird has ever owned, and your access to the area has apparently been revoked.

Understanding that nesting spaces, sexual handling and environmental cues can affect reproductive behaviour makes those changes easier to recognise without treating adulthood as a behavioural failure.

Do conures need baths?

Most conures enjoy some form of bathing, although they may have very specific opinions about how it should happen.

Some will throw themselves enthusiastically into a water dish. Others prefer misting, running water or a shallow bath. Some seem deeply offended by whichever option you provide first and then happily use a different one five minutes later.

Regular opportunities to bathe support normal feather care and preening. The bird usually tells you quite quickly which method it prefers.

Are conures messy?

Yes.

Even the little ones.

Expect droppings, feathers, bits of shredded toys and food travelling much further than you thought possible.

There is something particularly impressive about finding a piece of capsicum stuck somewhere across the room and looking at a 70-gram bird wondering how it generated the required launch velocity.

The bigger conures simply scale the experience up. Bigger bird means bigger food pieces, bigger toy debris and larger droppings.

Washable surfaces, sensible feeding areas and regular cleaning make life much easier.

A spotless-house person can absolutely own a bird, but they will be doing quite a lot of cleaning to maintain the spotless part.

Are conures good with children?

Conures can live very successfully in family homes, but I prefer thinking of them as family pets rather than children's pets.

A child can absolutely build a lovely relationship with a conure. Learning to watch the bird's body language, wait for it to step up and respect when it moves away can actually teach some really nice lessons about interacting with animals.

Younger children need closer supervision because small conures are physically delicate even though they have strong little beaks.

The larger species introduce more beak strength into the equation as well.

The other consideration is lifespan. Conures can be long-lived parrots, and a bird that comes home for a child may still be there long after that child has finished school and moved out.

That isn't a reason not to have one. It is simply part of planning for the bird's whole life.

Can conures live with dogs, cats or other birds?

They can live in homes that contain other pets, but that doesn't make every interaction safe.

A dog or cat doesn't need to be aggressive to seriously injure a small bird. An excited grab, playful swat or instinctive reaction can cause enormous damage very quickly.

That means management matters more than whether the animals look adorable together in a video.

Other parrots aren't automatically compatible either. Birds can become wonderful companions, tolerate one another or simply decide they would rather maintain separate households.

Introductions need to take the individual birds into account, and not all birds are suitable to share the same enclosure.

Conure household hazards

A bird makes you look at an ordinary room very differently.

The ceiling fan is suddenly a hazard. The open door is an escape route. The phone charger is chewable. The hot stovetop is somewhere a curious animal could land.

Air quality is especially important around birds. Cooking fumes and smoke can be dangerous, which is one of the reasons birds shouldn't be housed where they are exposed to cooking fumes.

Bird-safe household management also means thinking about aerosols, unsafe metals, toxic plants, electrical cords, open windows and anything small enough to swallow or interesting enough to chew.

The funny thing about conures is that their curiosity is one of the best things about them.

It is also the reason you end up looking around a perfectly ordinary room and thinking, “What could a tiny flying toddler with bolt cutters get into here?”

Veterinary care

Finding an experienced avian vet before something goes wrong makes life a lot easier.

Birds can hide illness well, so knowing what is normal for your own bird matters. Appetite, activity, droppings, breathing, posture, behaviour and body weight can all provide useful clues when something changes.

A little gram scale is one of my favourite simple pieces of bird equipment for exactly that reason.

A conure can look completely normal to you while the scales reveal a gradual change that would have been very difficult to notice by eye.

Regular veterinary care also gives you somewhere appropriate to discuss nutrition, reproductive behaviour and health changes rather than trying to solve everything through social media.

Green-cheeked Conures as pets

Pyrrhura molinae

Green-cheeked Conures sit at the little end of the conure scale. They are around 26 cm long and usually weigh about 60 to 80 grams.

They are probably one of the first birds many people picture when they hear “pet conure”, and they have become incredibly popular for good reason.

Green-cheeks can be playful, funny, affectionate little birds. Many enjoy being close to their people and have a reputation for clownish behaviour, hanging upside down and investigating absolutely everything.

I always think there is something slightly ridiculous about the level of confidence in such a small body.

A Green-cheek can weigh less than some people's morning coffee and still enter a room behaving as though it owns the property.

Are Green-cheeked Conures quiet?

They are quieter, which is an important distinction.

Compared with Suns, Jendays, Nandays and many of the larger conures, Green-cheeks are generally less loud and less frequent callers. That can make them much easier to live with in homes where noise is a concern.

They can still yell.

A Green-cheek looking for its person is perfectly capable of making sure the person knows about it.

But their voice is generally much less intense than a Sun Conure's.

Green-cheek personality

Many Green-cheeks are affectionate, curious and fairly physical in their play. They climb all over things, wrestle toys, hang upside down and often enjoy sitting close to people.

They can also be quite mouthy, particularly as babies.

That stage can worry people because every finger seems to end up in the beak. Often what you're seeing is a young parrot exploring and learning pressure rather than an aggressive bird.

Individual personalities vary enormously, though.

Some are fearless little lunatics. Others are surprisingly cautious and want to observe something new before getting involved.

Green-cheek colour mutations

One particularly confusing part of Green-cheek ownership is the huge number of colour mutations and combinations available in captivity.

Cinnamon, Yellow-sided, Pineapple, Turquoise and Violet variations can make birds look dramatically different from one another.

They are still Green-cheeked Conures.

The mutation changes the colour. It doesn't create an entirely different species or guarantee a different personality.

That becomes particularly useful to understand when you start seeing names like Violet Turquoise or Double Factor Violet. The colour genetics may be different, but the basic care needs remain those of a Green-cheeked Conure.

Sun Conures as pets

Aratinga solstitialis

Sun Conures are bigger than Green-cheeks at around 30 cm and 120 to 130 grams.

They are also one of those birds that barely look real when you see an adult in full colour.

Yellow, orange, red, green and blue all somehow end up on the same animal without it looking ridiculous.

The colour is what catches people's attention.

The voice is the part I want people to hear before bringing one home.

How loud is a Sun Conure?

Very.

That doesn't mean a Sun Conure necessarily spends every waking minute screaming. It means that when it does use its full voice, the sound is powerful, sharp and difficult to ignore.

Suns are naturally vocal parrots, and their strong calls are part of the species rather than something that can simply be trained away.

There is a very specific experience that comes with being near a Sun when it decides to contact call.

You don't need to ask whether it made a noise.

Everyone knows.

For some households that is completely manageable. For others it is the exact reason this otherwise lovely bird isn't a good fit.

Sun Conure personality

Suns can be incredibly social, playful and affectionate. They are energetic birds that enjoy interaction and tend to be very aware of what is happening around them.

They have plenty of the silliness people associate with conures.

It always makes me laugh that such an impressive-looking bird can spend thirty seconds sitting there looking absolutely magnificent and then immediately flip upside down and start fighting a toy.

They can form strong bonds with their people, but like other conures, they still benefit from being able to play and forage independently as well.

Sun Conures in the wild

There is another side to Sun Conures that I think is really interesting.

They are familiar birds in captivity, which can give the impression that they must also be common in the wild.

They aren't.

The Sun Conure is classified as Endangered, and published conservation assessments describe a very small remaining wild population, with trapping for the bird trade having contributed heavily to historic declines.

I think knowing a little about where our companion birds actually come from makes keeping them even more interesting.

They aren't just colourful pets. They are a wild species with a history of their own.

Green Cheek Conure vs Sun Conure: what's the difference?

This is probably the comparison that matters most for people looking at conures as pets.

A Green-cheek is much smaller. At around 60 to 80 grams, it can be roughly half the body weight of a Sun Conure, which is generally around 120 to 130 grams.

The biggest everyday difference, though, is usually noise.

Green-cheeks are generally the quieter option. Suns have a much stronger, more penetrating voice.

Both species can be affectionate, playful and intelligent. Both need enrichment, appropriate housing, social interaction and exercise.

So I don't really think of this as choosing between the “easy conure” and the “hard conure”.

It's more about choosing the set of traits that works better in your home.

If someone loves the conure personality but noise is high on their list of concerns, I would usually suggest they spend more time researching Green-cheeks.

If someone genuinely loves Suns, has heard the voice properly and knows that level of noise isn't going to bother the household, then the equation changes completely.

Jenday Conures as pets

Aratinga jandaya

Jenday Conures are very closely related to Suns and are a similar size, at around 30 cm and 125 to 140 grams.

Adults are fairly easy to tell apart once you know what you're looking for. Jendays generally keep green across their wings and back, with bright yellow, orange and red across the head and body.

The important difference for a pet owner isn't really colour, though.

A Jenday is not the quiet version of a Sun.

Their calls can be loud, metallic and screeching, and they can be very vocal companion birds.

They can also be affectionate, social and playful. If someone loves everything about a Sun except the volume, a Jenday probably isn't the solution they were hoping for.

Nanday Conures as pets

Aratinga nenday

Nanday Conures are another roughly 30 cm bird, generally weighing around 140 grams. Their black head makes them very easy to recognise once you know the species.

They feel more substantial than a Green-cheek in the hand, and you notice that difference in the feet, the beak and the way they interact with larger toys.

Nandays are social birds in the wild, sometimes gathering in large groups around feeding and roosting areas. Their calls can be clamorous and screeching in flight, with shrill chatter while perched.

So again, quiet isn't really their selling point.

For someone who enjoys a confident, interactive conure and doesn't mind a strong voice, they can be incredibly interesting birds.

Blue-crowned Conures as pets

Thectocercus acuticaudatus

Blue-crowned Conures take another step up in size.

They reach around 37 cm and approximately 165 grams, with their long tail giving them even more physical presence. The Blue-crowned is currently the only conure placed in the genus Thectocercus.

They aren't as dramatically colourful as a Sun, but I think they have a completely different sort of appeal.

The soft blue across the head and all that green gives them a slightly more understated look.

They also have a reputation for being among the better talking conures. Some learn a surprisingly good vocabulary, although the words aren't always as crisp as those of some of the better-known talking parrot species.

The bigger body changes the setup too.

You're now dealing with a stronger beak, larger feet, a longer tail and a bird that needs equipment sized accordingly.

Blue-crowned Conures can also represent a commitment of several decades, so the long-term side of ownership is particularly worth thinking about.

Mitred Conures as pets

Psittacara mitratus

Mitred Conures are where I think the word “conure” really starts catching people out.

These birds reach around 38 cm and 200 to 240 grams.

That can put a Mitred at roughly three times the weight of a smaller Green-cheek.

They are mainly green with varying amounts of red across the face and head, and they have much more physical presence than the little conures most people are familiar with.

This is also where saying “I've had a conure before” needs a little context.

Someone who has lived with a Green-cheek already understands a lot about parrot behaviour and care. But moving from a Green-cheek to a Mitred doesn't mean buying the same setup one size larger.

There is more bird.

The cage, perch size, toys, noise and bite potential all need to reflect that.

For someone specifically drawn to the larger conures, though, that more substantial presence can be exactly what they love about them.

Red-masked Conures and other larger conures

Red-masked Conures, also called Cherry-headed Conures, are another larger species. They reach around 33 cm and roughly 165 to 200 grams. Their natural calls are loud and rasping, and they have a capable beak to match the larger body.

Like Mitreds, these aren't little Green-cheeks in another colour.

They are larger parrots with stronger equipment requirements and more physical capability behind their beaks.

There are also several other Psittacara conures. Availability varies enormously depending on where you live, so some species will be familiar in one country and rarely seen as companion birds in another.

What they all demonstrate quite nicely is why choosing a cage, toy or diet simply because it says “for conures” on the packet isn't always particularly useful.

You need to know which conure.

Patagonian Conures as pets

Cyanoliseus patagonus

Then we get to the Patagonian Conure.

If a Green-cheek shows us how small a conure can be, the Patagonian shows us how large the label can stretch.

Patagonians reach around 45 cm. Depending on subspecies, reported weights range from around 256 to 390 grams.

That is a completely different physical scale to a Green-cheek.

Housing, perch size, enrichment and general space all need to increase accordingly.

Patagonians are fascinating in the wild as well. They are also known as Burrowing Parrots because they excavate nest burrows into cliffs and banks rather than relying entirely on tree cavities.

A major colony at El Cóndor in Argentina has been documented with tens of thousands of active nest burrows.

I love facts like that because they give you a completely different picture of the bird sitting in front of you.

It is very easy to think of companion parrots in terms of cages, toys and head scratches.

Then you remember that the animal itself comes from a species capable of living in enormous social colonies and digging nests into cliffs.

It puts some of their needs into perspective.

What about other small conures?

Green-cheeks aren't the only smaller Pyrrhura conures.

Black-capped, Maroon-bellied, Crimson-bellied and Painted Conures are some of the other species people may come across.

They deserve to be treated as their own species rather than just Green-cheeks in different colours.

That becomes particularly relevant because Green-cheeks themselves already come in so many colour mutations that it is very easy for someone new to parrots to assume every similarly sized colourful conure must simply be another mutation.

It isn't.

A Violet Turquoise Green-cheek is still Pyrrhura molinae.

A Crimson-bellied Conure is another species.

Colour mutation and species are two completely different things.

Which conure makes the best pet?

There isn't one.

There is a conure that may fit one household beautifully and drive another household absolutely mad.

If noise is a major concern, Green-cheeks and some of the other smaller Pyrrhura species are usually the first place I would look.

If someone has heard the louder species properly, enjoys that bigger personality and isn't bothered by a powerful voice, Suns and Jendays may be a fantastic fit.

Nandays give you another slightly heavier medium-sized option with plenty of voice of their own.

Blue-crowned, Mitred and Red-masked Conures start moving towards a more substantial parrot experience. More beak, more equipment and more physical presence come with them.

Then you reach Patagonians, where the amount of space and bird you're dealing with has changed considerably again.

The useful questions aren't really “Which one is prettiest?” or even “Which one is friendliest?”

I would think about noise, available space, neighbours, social needs, cleaning, the strength of bird you are comfortable handling and the amount of interaction you genuinely enjoy.

Those things affect everyday life far more than feather colour.

Are conures good pets?

For the right household, they can be fantastic companion parrots.

They are often intelligent, affectionate, entertaining and genuinely interested in interacting with the world around them.

They also chew things, make mess, need mental stimulation and can be noisy.

The species changes how much of each you're likely to experience, but those are all fairly normal parts of living with conures.

What is the quietest conure?

Green-cheeked Conures and other smaller Pyrrhura species are generally considered quieter than Suns, Jendays, Nandays and many of the larger conures.

That doesn't mean they are silent.

Individual Green-cheeks can still be vocal, and anyone who needs a genuinely quiet pet may find that even the quieter conures are more noise than expected.

Are Sun Conures louder than Green Cheeks?

Generally, yes.

This is probably the single biggest practical difference between them for many homes. Green-cheeks are known for being relatively quieter, while Suns have strong, piercing calls and are widely described as highly vocal.

If you're deciding between the two, hearing adult birds in person is incredibly useful.

Are conures good first birds?

They can be.

I don't really love the term “beginner bird”, though, because it can accidentally make a living animal sound like something you practise on before getting the bird you actually want.

A well-researched first-time parrot owner may be perfectly capable of caring for a Green-cheek, Sun or another conure.

The better question is whether that particular species suits the person's home, lifestyle, noise tolerance and expectations.

Being your first bird doesn't change what the bird needs.

How long do conures live?

There isn't one lifespan for every conure species, and lifespan figures for parrots are less precise than they sometimes appear online.

General conure references commonly place many companion species somewhere around the 20 to 30-year range with good care, while some larger species have documented or reported longevity beyond that.

Genetics, nutrition, veterinary care, exercise and general husbandry all influence how long an individual bird may live.

The useful takeaway is that even the small conures can represent decades of responsibility.

Lulu's verdict

I completely understand why people fall in love with conures.

They're funny, clever, affectionate little characters, and there is something about their confidence that makes even the tiny species feel like much bigger birds.

But I don't think “I want a conure” really tells us enough.

A Green-cheek can be a small, busy little companion whose noise is manageable in a lot of homes. A Sun can give you many of those same playful, affectionate qualities with considerably more volume and almost twice the body weight.

Move into Blue-crowns, Mitreds or Red-masked Conures and you are dealing with another jump in size, strength and equipment.

Then you reach the Patagonian, and suddenly this group of supposedly “small to medium parrots” contains something approaching 400 grams.

None of that makes one conure better than another.

It just makes them different.

And that is really what I want Learn with Lulu to be about.

Not convincing everyone that a particular bird is amazing. Not trying to scare people away from owning parrots either.

I want you to know what living with the bird actually looks like.

The cuddles and the screaming. The funny things they do and the things they destroy. The incredible relationships they can build with people, and the work that goes into giving an intelligent little parrot a genuinely interesting life.

Because when you understand the whole bird, you have a much better chance of choosing one whose needs actually fit your life.

Learn the bird before you buy the bird.

Learn with Lulu provides general educational information about companion bird care. Individual birds can vary considerably. Health, nutritional and significant behavioural concerns should be discussed with an appropriately experienced avian veterinarian.

Sources and further reading

• World Parrot Trust: Green-cheeked Conure
• World Parrot Trust: Sun Conure
• World Parrot Trust: Jenday Conure
• World Parrot Trust: Nanday Conure
• World Parrot Trust: Blue-crowned Conure
• World Parrot Trust: Mitred Conure
• World Parrot Trust: Red-masked Conure
• World Parrot Trust: Patagonian Conure
• LafeberVet: Basic Information Sheet for the Conure
• Merck Veterinary Manual: Management of Pet Birds