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Home > Birds > Blue-Fronted Amazon Parrot: Personality, Diet, Care & Pictures

Blue-Fronted Amazon Parrot: Personality, Diet, Care & Pictures

blue-fronted-amazon-parrot

There are few birds as interesting or as sought after as the parrot. But not all parrots are created equal, and some require more work and attention than others.

But where does the Blue-Fronted Amazon Parrot fit in, and is one of these beautiful birds right for your home? We break down everything that you need to know before purchasing one.

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Species Overview

Common Names: Blue-Fronted Amazon Parrot, Turquoise-Fronted Amazon Parrot
Scientific Name: Amazona aestiva
Adult Size: 13 to 15 inches
Life Expectancy: 25 to 40 years
blue fronted amazon parrot
Image by: Kabomani-Tapir, Pixabay

Origin and History

In the wild, you can find Blue-Fronted Amazon Parrots in Bolivia, Brazil, Paraguay, and Northern Argentina, giving them an extremely expansive natural range.

While their first recorded spotting was in 1758, human populations in South America spotted them far before that date.

Today, you can find a few feral populations in various parts of the world, but this is from pet owners releasing their birds into the wild or having them escape. These birds are highly adaptive to new environments due to their high intelligence.

Temperament

Like many birds, the Blue-Fronted Amazon Parrot tends to bond to one human far more than the rest of the family. However, unlike many birds, they typically are not aggressive toward other family members if you socialize them adequately.

They crave attention and love hanging out with their owners, and they’re typically extremely docile and loving creatures. Additionally, they like being the center of attention and will do tricks and feats to keep your eyes on them.

They are a protected species, but they can become a bit territorial at various points throughout the year. While you can pair them with other Blue-Fronted Amazon Parrots and they do fairly well with other species, it requires a bit of work to socialize them properly.

Pros
  • Docile and loving birds
  • Intelligent and can learn multiple words
Cons
  • They can be loud
  • Requires more space
  • They require a ton of attention and exercise

Speech & Vocalizations

The Blue-Fronted Amazon Parrot is an extremely vocal bird. They love to sing and make noise, and you can teach them more than a few words. However, they are quite loud.

They tend to scream at both sunrise and sunset, and it’s not a quick vocalization. These beginning- and end-of-day screams typically last 10 minutes apiece. This makes these Parrots impossible to own if you live in an apartment or close to neighbors.

Blue-Fronted Amazon Parrot Colors and Markings

While the Blue-Fronted Amazon Parrot is an extremely beautiful bird, they aren’t as colorful as other species or as their name suggests. They are mostly green throughout, including their chest, back, neck, wings, and tail feathers.

They have tips of red and yellow on their very last tail feathers and shoulders, and they have a yellow band around their eyes. They get their blue-fronted moniker from the fact that the area between their eyes and around their beak is blue.

When paired with their black beak, this blue is even more pronounced, and it’s often the front-most part of the bird.

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Caring for the Blue-Fronted Amazon Parrot

While caring for any bird requires a ton of work and attention, the Blue-Fronted Amazon Parrot is easier than most. They still need to be a part of the action at home, but they also can entertain themselves throughout the day.

We recommend a minimum cage enclosure of 3 feet long, 2 feet wide, and 3 feet tall. You should keep their enclosure in a heavily trafficked area of the home because they like to be around their owners throughout the day.

The bar spacing of their cage should be between ¾” to 1” apart to keep your Parrot from getting their head stuck or injuring themselves. Opt for a metal enclosure instead of a wooden one to keep your Parrot from destroying it.

You need to stock the cage with plenty of perches and toys to keep them entertained, and to rotate the toys every few days. Additionally, you need to clean the cage at least once a day because birds are extremely messy eaters.

Keep in mind that parrots need plenty of toys to chew and tear apart to keep the length of their beak in check. You should also consider clipping their wings after every molt to reduce the likelihood of them escaping.

Finally, you need to give your Blue-Fronted Amazon Parrot at least 3 hours outside of their enclosure each day, but you should aim for something closer to 5 or 6 hours.

If your Parrot doesn’t get the time that they need outside of their enclosure, they can resort to self-mutilating or other destructive behaviors.

Blue-fronted Amazon parrot in a cage
Image Credit: GinaundJosie, Pixabay

Common Health Problems

Like most birds, the Blue-Fronted Amazon Parrot is a relatively hardy bird with few health conditions. However, keep in mind that if you do notice symptoms, it’s already severe because birds hide their pain for as long as possible.

Possible health concerns for your Parrot include respiratory problems, nutritional deficiencies, fungal infections, and bacterial infections.

The best thing that you can do to keep your bird healthy is to feed them a high-quality and healthy diet while keeping up with cage cleanings and other husbandry requirements.

You need to remove old food after just a few hours and regularly change out the water bowl to prevent bacterial growth that can make your Blue-Fronted Amazon Parrot sick.

Finally, keep in mind that these are extremely intelligent and social birds, so if you don’t give them enough attention, they are prone to depression and self-mutilation.

Making matters worse, they’ll also start getting aggressive toward you, making it an even more difficult problem to address.

Minor Conditions
  • Respiratory problems
Serious Conditions
  • Fungal infections
  • Bacterial infections

Diet and Nutrition

Since wild Blue-Fronted Amazon Parrots have such a varied diet, it can be challenging to keep up with all their nutritional needs through fresh foods and produce alone.

Luckily, there are plenty of high-quality bird pellets that make this process easier by supplying many of their necessary nutrients. Supplement a pellet diet with the occasional seeds and plenty of fresh fruits and vegetables.

Keep your Amazon parrot’s diet about 75% pellets and 25% fruits and vegetables, while only offering seeds as occasional treats.

While you can choose to feed them other foods, you need to be careful because certain foods,  like avocados and chocolate, can be toxic for your bird.

blue-fronted-amazon-parrot
Image Credit: guentermanaus, Shutterstock

Exercise

Your Blue-Fronted Amazon Parrot needs plenty of exercise to stay happy and healthy. This means you should include plenty of perches and things for them to climb on inside of their enclosure.

However, no matter how many activities that you have for your bird inside their enclosure, you still need to take them out at least two to three times a day for a minimum of 3 hours to let them fully stretch their wings and exercise.

Blue-Fronted Amazon Parrots that don’t get enough exercise are prone to additional health problems and will often resort to self-mutilating behaviors.

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Where to Adopt or Buy a Blue-Fronted Amazon Parrot

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Image Credit: Jana Vodickova, Shutterstock

Finding a Blue-Fronted Amazon Parrot requires a bit of work to track down a reputable breeder, but it’s not impossible. However, always go pick up your Parrot in person, as online scams involving purchasing these birds are common.

Keep in mind that when you track one down, you’re likely to spend a good amount of money. These birds can cost anywhere from $500 to $3,000, depending on the breeder.

Do your research and take your time to find the right bird. Some of these parrots have lived up to 80 years, so taking your time to find the right bird the first time is crucial!

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Conclusion

While caring for Blue-Fronted Amazon Parrots is a ton of work, they make great companions and friends, which is a nice payoff. They’re entertaining and enjoyable and make great additions to the family!

Just ensure that you have the time and energy to care for them before purchasing one because the last thing that you or your Parrot wants is to need a new home down the road.

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Featured Image Credit: aabeele, Shutterstock

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