englishbudgerigar

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Blue Budgie Aviary
Sally O'Dwyer
Champion Exhibitor
slodwyer@gmail.com



Member of the
American Budgerigar Society
Maryland Budgerigar Society
99Y

I have been raising English Budgerigars for tens years and occasionally have
birds for sale. I reside in Northern Virginia.

English Budgerigars (Budgies) are exhibited at shows throughout the United States. These birds were originally exported from Australia to England where breeders selectively bred the birds to build and increase the size and to create a number of varieties for show.  This is why the Exhibition Budgerigars are also referred to as English Budgies.  The English Budgie is the same species, although much larger, as the native bird found in Australia (melopsittacus undulatus).

Budgies belong to the parrot family. They have hooked bills and thick tongues and have the reversed, or climbing foot, with two toes facing front, two facing back. They are one of the smallest breeds in the parrot family.

Budgies hail from the grasslands of Australia and were brought to England by the famous ornithologist John Gould. Budgies gained worldwide popularity after WWII.  Today, Budgies are the MOST POPULAR pet bird worldwide.











Amazing Budgie Facts:


  • A budgie has between 2,000 and 3,000 feathers on its body.
  • Budgies have monocular vision, which means they use each eye independently.
  • Budgies have fewer taste buds than humans.
  • Budgies grind their beaks when they are contented.
  • 45% of pet birds kept in the US are Budgies, according to statistics from the American Pet Product Manufacturers Assn
  • Budgies have air sacs in some of their bones (pneumatic bones)
  • The budgie's average resting heart rate is 350 to 550 beats per minute.
  • Budgies can turn their heads 180 degrees (they have more neck vertebrae than humans).
  • A bird can only withstand the loss of 20 percent of its blood (for a budgie, that’s about 12 drops)
  • During breeding season, a female bird's bones become denser as they store calcium--a female's skeleton can weigh up to 20% more during the breeding season that it does during the rest of the year.
  • Vitamin D and protein aid in the absorption of calcium
  • Budgie egg shells are perforated by thousands of tiny holes (pores) that allow the free exchange of gases--mainly carbon dioxide and oxygen.
  • Light plays a large role in stimulating the ovary and bringing the hen into breeding condition.
  • Bird's lungs don't expand and contract to bring in air.  Instead the bird's body wall muscles expand and contract--to force the air out and in.
  • Birds do not have a bladder or a urethra.
  • Budgies have semiplume feathers, which are found on a bird's beak, nostrils (cere) and eyelids
  • Budgies have a 3rd eyelid.
  • In the past, Budgies were also known around the world as Shell Parrots, Warbling Grass Parakeets, Zebra Parrots, Undulated Parakeets, and Canary Parrots.
  • Budgerigar supposedly means "good to eat" in aboriginal language.
  • The average respiratory rate for a budgie is between 65 and 85 breath per minute.
  • The scientific melopsittacus undulatus, means song sparrow with wavy lines.   
  • John Gould reportedly brought the first live budgie to Europe in 1840
  • All budgie colors originate from the green and yellow budgie. The first color mutation to appear reportedly was the yellow bird with faint green suffusion in 1872.
  • The first blue budgie appeared in 1878







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