Budgies vs. Bourke Parakeets

Budgerigar Parakeets in a Pet Store.
This is our granddaughter, moving
toward loving birds, we hope!

It's been a while since I've posted any of the many questions that rosie.birds@gmail.com receives almost daily. This one today was fun to answer.

"I have found your wonderful website and am wondering if you might answer a couple of questions regarding the Bourke Parakeet. I have been searching for a young Budgie Parakeet from a responsible breeder, but have not located one near our home ... I recently came across the Bourke and am wondering if they make equally wonderful pets as the Budgies do? It seems they share similar qualities, but can you tell me if they do best with a companion Bourke (or other species) or as a single? We are looking to add either of these to our family and thought you might help us streamline our search. Thank you so much!" 

Our Answer: 
Budgies and Bourkes are approx. the same size and both eat Budgie seed mixes. Budgies are more likely to accept fruit in their diet. Bourkes don't seem to like fruit, but they love veggies. Their personalities are very different. Most Budgies are more active, louder and chew more. They climb and Bourkes don't. Bourkes need to fly for exercise since they aren't climbers. Bourkes are quieter and less messy than Budgies and less active. They love being talked to and, even if not hand tame, most learn to come to the side of the cage to be face-to-face with their owners. They love people.

Budgies can be more clown-like and silly. If not tame, they are more likely to bite, but a frightened Bourke will too. Either will tame down if adopted while very young. But, an older Bourke is more likely to become trusting than is an older Budgie. Bourkes have a sweet song and don't often do any screeching, which a Budgie might.

Bourkes are most active at dawn and dusk and tend to nap during the day. However, they wake and will interact with an owner if approached. Budgies nap too, but less often than a Bourke. Bourke eyesight is sharper in dim light than is a Budgie's. However, Budgies can mimic words or phrases repeated to them and owners will understand them. Bourkes wolf whistle and sing prettily, but their mimicking ability is very low.

We've had both and since we keep a large flock, and are fondest of peace and quiet, Bourkes work better for us than any other species. That said, however, a tame Budgie can be just as affectionate and as much fun as any Bourke. A bunch of Budgies, however, are raucous. By contrast, a room full of Bourkes may sound like a rain forest, but a softly quiet one. :-)

Young Bourke Parakeets we raised.
These four are siblings from same clutch.

All birds are happiest with another of their own kind. Even another bird helps because owners cannot always be present, and having another bird "friend" is advantageous. Bourkes are typically very gentle birds and Budgies can be aggressive, especially Budgie hens. Putting them together successfully depends entirely on the two birds. A Budgerigar hen is likely to be cruel to a Bourke hen. A male Budgerigar, however, might treat his Bourke hen as if she were his mate. They cannot interbreed though. Bourkes are only able to reproduce with another Bourke.

Because Budgies are more abundant, they are typically easier to find than Bourkes and cost less. You'll never find a "pink" or "rose" colored Budgie, in spite of the fake photos on Pinterest. The rare rose of Rosy Bourkes is what drew me to my first pair decades ago. Since then, I've grown to love the Normal (wild-colored) Bourkes and all other shades of Bourke Parakeet. These sweeties are my favorites.  Hope this was helpful.

Peace & Blessings,

Gail

(aka Rosie Bird)