Baby Budgie

Photo and post by Ashley Arimborgo

’Parakeet’ is another name for a Budgerigar, and the term that most people are familiar with. What most people probably don’t know is how they look when they are newborns since parakeets use nests in trees to brood their young until they know how to fly. The young budgie in this photo is about 2 weeks old and what looks like small white needles on its’ skin are actually the beginning of feathers. They should start looking like full feathers in another week or two and the young bird will fledge (begin flying) as soon as the feathers grow out.

The Budgie Buddy house at Cheyenne Mountain Zoo is lucky to maintain a steady population of free flighted birds year-round thanks to the dozens of nest boxes that have been placed throughout the exhibit. Stop by next time you visit to see how our birds are doing and for just a dollar you can feed them and have a wonderful family experience!