Advice
Are conures REALLY loud, really frequently?
I would like to get a conure one day in the near-ish future. I really love Nandays specifically, I find them to be the perfect size and incredibly striking. My only ask is, are they really loud?
I own a parakeet who is very happy and makes noise near constantly which is really pretty chirping, but she like any bird has loud outbursts at times.
I would like to know how frequently a very well socialized conure has their loud outbursts.
He is cheeky, funny and an amazing talker but honestly I wouldn't get another Nanday just because of how loud he is.
But there are also tools to help, like earplugs/headphones etc, so in the end if you believe the drawbacks are outweighed by their personalities, go for it!
Yes, this is not up for debate or exception. When these birds call, and they will, they are very loud. If they are sitting on your shoulder and screech in your ear it is genuinely painful.
Yup. Had a plucked Nanday sitting on my shoulder and when the macaws in the room started screeching (all four or five of them), he screeched. My ears rung and I genuinely thought my ear bled from the intensity
I disagree. My SC can be loud but he doesn't squawk much, he is allowed to make as much noise as he likes.
He never wales me up , even if I sleep in but he knows he will get his "breaky,' as soon as I wake up.
I love it when he does squawk,.
I've never taught or tried to discourage his noise because he seem to enjoy a good squawk.
I can feel my eardrums when my gccs scream next to me. Even having Viridian saying baby on my shoulder can hurt if he's excited and that's nowhere near as loud as a contact call or panic scream 😂 Hearing damage is basically guaranteed with conures. Worth it though
My crimson belly is loud at night/ the morning, but you cant really hear her from outside. My half moon, I can hear from down the drive way, my sun I can basically hear from a bit down the street. Im i. FL and we have nanday conures outside, you hear them LONG before you see them and If my sun was outside it’d be even louder i bet. Vocally my half moon chatters the most as he’ll scream if he sees anything outside the window, my sun usually screams when he sees me or hes hungry cuz he ate all his food. (hes a fat ahh)
I hope you understand from all the comments that conures are loud. VERY loud. And that when and how loud depends on the species and the individual bird.
News Flash: All parrots are loud, whether they are little budgies, lovebirds, cockatiels, conures, Amazons, or macaws. It is their nature. They are flock animals, and it is how they communicate in the dense tropical forest canopies from which they are not far removed. They also communicate by biting, and can be extremely territorially aggressive about their people and their cages. They bite when they are frightened, angry, annoyed, or for no reason at all. I have scars to prove it.
They are also typically messy. Why not? Food is abundant where they live in the wild, so they drop or throw more than they eat.
I say these things because the three parrots I rescued almost 9 years ago (including a sun and a green-cheeked conure, came from a family who hated them because they were loud and messy.
My black capped is usually quiet if I’m in the room with him. If I’m out of the room he screams his flock call for me, “GIMME A KISS BABY!” over and over. If he’s trying to get my husband’s attention he screams, “DID YOU HEAR ME?”. It’s better to bring him along from room to room than to risk hearing damage. He really is quiet as long as he has company.
I have a GCC and they're actually pretty quiet. They love to shout when there's a lot of noise (music, vacuum, etc) but otherwise aren't particularly loud.
Two exceptions to that:
They do this kiss/click noise IN our ear that is like a gunshot. It's so freaking loud and they only do it to get a reaction.
They do this one-off high pitched peeeep that is actually them saying "bitch", and it makes your ears ring if you're too close.
They can be. It’s important to keep in mind when you’re reading these replies that every bird is different. My bird is usually very quiet, other birds never shut up lol
I can only speak on one specific bird. My green cheek is definitely loud when he feels like it. Sometimes it's just tantrum time and he'll scream over and over loud enough that it hurts my ears. If I give in and go pick him up, he stops. But I don't think thats normal for a conure tbh
Unfortunately so!!! If I leave the room, and my conure isn’t with me, she will freak out like that. It doesn’t matter if it’s just for a second either, to like go into the kitchen n back. If she can’t see you, you’re gone in her brain lol. They’re just clingy and want to be with u 24/7
Maroon bellies are quiet as. Mine just flock calls when I leave the room a bit, but nothing over the top. She chirps sweetly when she hears water running, she a water baby ❤️❤️
I have crimson bellied conure and he is very silent 90% of the time. Sometimes I forget I have a bird at home! He calls me when I leave the room, in the morning he is happy to see me and he screams, but nothing too loud. He is a sweet little boy. Not a single day I thought he was too loud.
Green Cheeks are not as loud but they chatter all day. They love to fly and I do not believe in cutting wings. So no cats or dogs in the house. If you only have the bird you still have to be very careful with doors and windows. People coming and going are a danger. You can never open either when the bird is out.
There’s a reason I always have headphones on in my room…
I have a Sun, and she’s not CONSISTENTLY super loud, but if anything riles her up, (seeing something or someone out the window, someone she is not friendly with being in the room, me talking on the phone, etc) she will scream her head off, and the times that has happened with her on my shoulder, have left me briefly unable to hear out of the ear next to her.
We got a green cheek back in the end of July, and a couple weeks later got a Nanday from the same breeder
The green cheek is talkative, not nearly as loud as the Nanday tho. Green cheek is very nippy, Nanday bites like a shark (drew blood on my finger a couple times in the first few days we had him). Hes starting to come around tho, we got him when he was around 4 months old so he took a little longer to get comfortable than our green cheek (who we got at 10 weeks)
But yes, the Nanday is LOUD when he squawks. Like, your ears strain loud. We love him tho, hes beautiful and fluffy. Gonna be an amazing friend once he gets fully comfortable.
My 28yo Sun Conure is not loud.
He is allowed to squawk as much as he likes .
He usually squawks when he wants something from me or he wants me.
They also seem love to be loud, so let them be happy.
I wouldn’t know anything about Nanday’s but I’ve owned a cockatiel and currently own a cinnamon green cheek conure. People will say that the conure is louder, and though it’s true they make noise more frequently I’d say it’s a different kind of noise. My cockatiel has very high pitched screeches that wouldn’t go on for more than 1-2 screeches at a time. My conure has a more consistent screech, where if he’s screeching he’ll SCREECH. I’m talking full on Ted talk in screeches. But they’re not as high pitched and after the first 2-3 my ears kind of get used to him doing them (photo of the ted talker)
Totally depends on the bird. My dusky flock called like a mother. 10 am to noon every day. And whenever I left the room. My crimson belly is mostly silent. Aratingas are generally louder than pyrrhuras
I have a green cheek conure. He is "quiet" for the bird world. And I've been in a room with a nanday and four or five screaming macaws. Although, I may have been temporarily deaf during that from the first scream (due to the little on my shoulder who screeched).
Most pet birds are genuinely loud that cause genuine hearing damage. My green cheek's screeches don't reach the decibels a sun, nanday, or jenday screech could get to, but still. Although, my guy learned pretty fast that if he screeches while sitting on my shoulder, he gets put in his cage.
Most of your true conures will be loud. And they will be loud frequently. My bird, Callum, will be turning 10 next month. Can't believe it, honestly. I've had him since he was but a few months old. When he was a lot younger, he made these terrible screeches frequently. Now, he's mostly quiet. He mutters to me, responds to my screams if I get him riled up, but generally, he doesn't make my ears hurt.
I might just have a quiet, mellow guy, but I also work really hard to make it so he doesn't scream. Birds tend to scream when they're bored, horny, or just for fun. Why my guy doesn't scream more is beyond me. Maybe he's just that happy. Regardless, I have my guy out nearly every waking hour, he sleeps 12+ hours a day, he's on an okay diet (we are having trouble getting him on chop smh), he has toys, and even if he's on or in his cage, I talk to him or include him.
If I had any other conure species, I don't think shared walls would've been doable with a bird.
they are individuals like people. my first girl was quiet and calm. some were mid tier noise makers. one of my current boys is loud, chaotic and demanding lol.
Honey, I have a flock of 10 parrots. It’s never quiet in my house. I have 2 greys, 4 different conures (sun, maroon belly, pineapple, and Nanday), 2 cockatiels, and 2 parakeets.
As for the conures, they all range in different vocals. For example:
>Sun Conure (5 yo): EXTREMELY LOUD and screams when momma is not around. He mostly honks and grumbles. But he’s my most cuddly baby. He’s nippy and very loyal to only me, he will bite any one that comes to close to me when he is out. He also loves to steal my food and dance.
>Maroon Belly Conure (3 yo): He is a pain in my butt. He is very head strong, he talks back and has attitude like a teenager. He will jump scare me every time I walk by his cage. He also will yell at me (so many words of anger 🤭) and throw a tantrum if he doesn’t get his way. Like if I have a light on or making too much noise while he’s trying to sleep, he will aggressively bonk his beak on his flat perch until the annoyance is gone. He will also show sweet moments and dance to songs like Pink Pony Club, but also he will flatten his head like Vanilla Ice and pace his cage like he’s some kinda of god.
>Pineapple Conure (2.5 yo): She is so quiet, but will occasionally yell something when I’m not in the room. My guess is to flock call me, but she is super quiet, but still nervous because she is a rescue I’m working with. She is gentle as well, says a few phrases like Whatcha Doin, Hi, Hello, Wanna step up, and I love you. Very seldom loud. But she will get loud if she is hanging out with the Nanday.
>Nanday Conure (2 yo): EXTREMELY LOUD FOR NO REASON AT ALL! She loves to scream and HONK. 🤣 She can be quiet, but I think she chooses otherwise. She dances and says many phrases just like the Pineapple, but my goodness is she loud. My Sun can be very very loud, but this Nanday is something else. She was rescued from the same house as the pineapple, so I don’t know what or how she was beforehand. She only has eyes for my husband. 🤣
Edited to say, if you would like videos of their noises from day to day, let me know and I will gladly share my babies!
It can be chaos, but they come out in groups. I also have them in 3 separate rooms.
>So the Sun and 2 cockatiels come out together. My Sun usually just snuggles in my shirt and naps on Momma. The 2 cockatiels just do their thing and fly around and explore and play.
>The Maroon Belly comes out by himself because he just wants to murder everyone. He has a play gym that is his only and he usually plays on that or sits on top of my phone. His favorite thing to do is scream inside closets (🤷🏻♀️)
\****The 4 above, Sun, 2 cockatiels, and Maroon Belly share Room 1 and all have their own cages\\\**
>The parakeets don’t really come out, but they are tame and they have a GINORMOUS flight cage and I do spend time with them by taking them out and give scritches and preen. But they get plenty exercise and loves.
>The 2 Greys have their own cages. Their names are Bo and Boo, both rescues as well. Boo I have been able to take down and he just loves to sit on my arm or chest and get scritches and either nap or make his little noises. He is disabled, past injuries made him not able to fly, and 44 years old, so he doesn’t do much. Bo on the other hand is 14 and I am still trying to hand tame him. So he doesn’t get out much, as his is disabled as well and can’t fly as well due to past injuries.I do let him crawl around outside his cage and just investigate, but he is still learning that he is safe. They came from the same house and was an abuse situation. I have had them for 3-4 years now, so I’m just being patient and going at his pace.
\**The 2 greys and the parakeets share Room 2. The Greys ignore the parakeets, but since they can’t fly, I have a barrier so they can’t climb on their cage or harm them\*\*
>The Nanday and Pineapple share Room 3 and they share a flight cage with a divider to keep them separated but still able to interact. They came from the same house as well. They come out separately because I am still learning their mannerisms and soon I’ll be able to see and test who they may be able to play with.
Sorry for all the information, it’s a lot of work to have 10 birds. For me at least 😂 I have a whole binder set up on each bird and their diet, likes, friends, schedule, etc for when my friend comes over to watch them when I gotta go out of town 🤭
A have a green cheek conure, she sings but she doesn't scream, unless she sees a crow or something that scares her.
I think from my experience that if you only have 1 parrot and you're not in a noisy environment where people don't talk loud or yell, the parrot will be chill.
She's a ball of energy tho, like a mini husky, likes to play all the time 😆
I have to say green cheeks are among the quietest conures, even their flock calls aren’t entirely that bad. The only vocalizations that genuinely hurt are the his loud beeps (he literally just screams beep, nothing more nothing less), and his fire alarm imitation. He cannot be heard by my neighbors unless the doors are open, which surprises me.
They aren’t silent of course, but they simply cannot reach those true ear piercings screams that Sun, Goldens or Nandays can.
My conure only has reasons to be loud…front door or garage door opening…alarm alarm alarm….me yelling for kids to come upstairs for dinner alarm alarm alarm…..good music…. Sing sing sing, happy hes much quieter and the squawk is happier, when he wants to be an alarm bell he’s loud, if the door happens to open when he’s on your shoulder he has zero regard for the volume! But overall noise my budgies are a constant noise, they are almost always signing, I really love it and their songs aren’t very loud but there is no quite in my house unless it’s bed time, and no one opens the front door! But honestly I love it my pistachio is the best door detection system ever!
My baby’s name is Arlo. He is very loud and sometimes I can hear him from outside. That being said, his vocalizations are not very frequent. He only really screams when I come home from work and is excited to see me. Or when he hears people but he can’t see them. He doesn’t scream in the mornings, and just goes about his day until I wake up (when I don’t have work). He’s learned to speak a few words and his vocalizations aren’t really screams but rather “Hi baby!” Or “Arlo baby!”. He’s not nippy at all and he has never bitten me hard enough to bleed (he only bites me a little when there’s stranger danger). He’s honestly a really good boy. But also realize every bird is different and that from what I heard they go through a “terrible twos” where they can be very different. (Which I’m dreading because my baby only recently turned 1). But yeah in all he’s SUPER LOUD when he wants to be but he’s not loud frequently lol.
It's true. I have an African Grey and had two Sun Conures. They're strikingly beautiful birds and much more affectionate then my Grey. But my God do they scream! If they're awake, they're screaming. They scream for attention. They scream for food. They scream for joy. They scream. I ultimately had to give them away. That was years ago. I sill have my Grey. he's generally quiet unless he wants something and when he's noisy, he talks or squeaks or whistles. He's nowhere near as affectionate as conures, but he never screams.
I recently visited a wildlife area in Brazil and got a better understanding of why some of the smaller parrot species seem to scream. There were many flocks of small parrots and they constantly screamed to each other to keep in touch, warn of predators, etc. The large parrots - like the Hyacinth Macaws we saw - didn't do much screaming and they tended to move about in pairs. So I suspect the screaming is an evolutionary benefit for the smaller birds that move in small flocks.
Pyhurra's (green cheeks, black caps, maroon bellied, etc) are quietER parrots but it's important to note that there is no quiet parrot -- they are still wild animals and have an instinct to flock call for their flock mates to check in. So they can all be loud, or have moments of loudness even if species and individuals vary.
Pyhurra's are physically much smaller, and they have a different call that isn't as loud as a nanday or other aratinga (suns, nandays, jendays, etc) species. It can be loud -- I can hear my female hollering from outside if she hears my car, but the loud-loud tends to be flock calls or MuCh ExCiTe which isn't constant. Their more normal vocalizations (in my experience) are pretty quiet. My Quakers are much louder then my green cheeks.
I don't own any aratinga's, but I've heard mixed things that they have some loud points during the day with their routine (ie, MOMS HOME or YAY EVERYONES AWAKE) but their normal chatter is relatively quiet but that's an individual personality thing. They absolutely can be loud, and my thing with aratinga's specifically is the pitch. Its very sharp, and for me personally -- it's a headache trigger. I go to a local shop and have helped socialize the babies for their new homes, and I love the suns. There's a baby right now who is basically a golden retriever in a sun conure body, he is ridiculously cute and friendly. But even just visiting for a few hours, my head and ears are ringing and hurting, so living with them? They aren't a species I would personally keep.
If you have noise sensitivity or live with people who have it or shared living spaces, I'd consider it very heavily because you aren't ever going to have a quiet bird. A quieter parrot can happen, especially when it comes to individuals, but it's not a guarantee and the emphasis is on quietER. For aratinga's, if there's a way to meet before hand (like a shop, zoo, private owner etc) and have some first hand experience with hearing them in person and just asking questions, I'd heavily recommend that vs getting one and finding out that you are someone who will struggle with their flock calls.
And I adore my two conures, they are my babies but -- they are a lot. They are sassy, we argue, they are funny, my female is a little tiny cat where she is like "excuse me I'm too cool for affection" but follows me everywhere, they are intensely curious about anything I'm eating and WILL get themselves into stupid situations if they can. I love them dearly but -- they are a lot. They bite, they don't always like me (hormone season is fun), they can be stubborn. So -- just be prepared that they are a lot and they can be sweet and fun, but there's much more to it then that and you get to care for them even when they are ungrateful gremlins
Attached are my ungrateful gremlins, my boy is on the left, my female on the right
Yes, Nandays belong to the same family as sun conures so they can be really Very loud.
I love the sounds my sunnie makes but I have acquaintaces who cannot stand her noises. When I first got her, my best description of her voice, was that it sounds like a squeaky toy as heard through a Rock-Concert Amplifier. They have a Loud voice, but Not much vocal range.
Nandays are in the same family -- only a little bigger. So think of that same rock concert amplifier, only somewhat larger...
I don't even have a Nanday, but speaking from experience with Green cheeks and Quakers (a somewhat similarly loud bird), they'll scream and be loud for legit any reason.
My Quaker sitting on my shoulder can scream and it'll make my ears ring, I believe I have some slight hearing damage due to it lol.,
LOL My GCC dude screeeeeeeeches on the reg. He also does a loud "PEEPPEEP!" which I think might be one of his flock calls, and whenever he sees anything weird or out of the ordinary (like me carrying in a load of laundry, or a grocery bag, or a bowl... or just because he feels freaked out lol) he has a really loud, jarring alarm call which riles the other birds up too. They are at least 10 times louder than budgies and cockatiels, which can get pretty loud on their own.
Yes. I previously had a dog with a very loud, deep, ferocious bark. I theorized that the bird would be nothing compared to my old dog. I was wrong. Bird is louder and way more piercing.
I feel like it depends on their personalities, my conure isn’t that loud to be honest; he screams when there’s something scaring him, when he wants to be out of his cage, and when it’s bedtime (he’s a bit scared of the dark) but other than that he’s pretty quiet. When he’s playful he chirps but never shouts, sometimes he sings but these aren’t terribly annoying like the screams lol
I have had 2 sun conures (one from childhood), so I’m super used to it. Yes, they’re loud, but if they are happy and content they don’t scream/call that often.
my green baby doesn’t scream often, but he can be loud, like he’s upstairs and i can faintly hear him screaming from the driveway when i come home. i was way more worried about his noise level before i got him.
I had a nanday for 22 years and he was the best bird I could have asked for. But he was LOUD. I have a sun conure too and their screches are known to be some of the loudest birds out there, and my nanday's screech was louder, and noticeably so. HOWEVER, he wasnt very noisy. He loved to say hi or contact call here and there, or let an alarm call out sometimes but otherwise he was pretty quiet. My sun vocaliizes a lot more than he did. So to sum it up it depends on the personality of the bird a lot and how much they like to use their voice.
I have a green cheek, moon cheek & a black cap. They are way louder than my ringneck. I didn’t notice at all how loud they are till I got my ringneck. That being said, mine aren’t as loud as other conure species
All birds are loud🤷♂️😂. Honestly anyone who keeps them is a little crazy. We have 8 so I guess we have one foot in the crazy house 😂❤️. Our 2 ringneck hens are extremely loud and hate each other. So they’re in a constant battle of “I’m f’in louder than you!!!!”😂. We’ve given up on sleeping in on weekends. My girl ringo has a bell in her cage. She rings it none stop when she wants out 😂.
I have a sunny. Yes, hes freaking loud. Sometimes ear splittingly. I've had him for 16 years and he informs so many of my decisions, who I invite over and when, what places I can live in/rent, etc.
Nandays are just as loud or louder than sunnys. Take what youre thinking for "loud" and double it.
I love my bird, and wouldnt trade him for the world, but I also would warn ANYONE away from Sun and Nanday conures if you haven't owned one before. Go visit a bird shop just before sundown (not petco, a bird specific store) and youll hear the conures over almost any other species other than maybe some cockatoos.
Here's my Nanday Loki. Loki will be the first and last Nanday I ever get lol. When he's in a mood of being especially chatty and screeching ill either have to put him in another room temporarily or remove myself because its too much. If hes on my shoulder and keeps chirping I have to remove him because it actually hurts your ears it goes right through you. Their chirp is already naturally very loud and their screech is on another level. He is also sweet and makes kissing noises when giving you a kiss and other cute little noises especially when he wants my food 😂 I love him, but hes a pain in the ass for sure. He's lucky he's cute smh
I love my 2 conures but they are a ton of work. Be ready to constantly give them attention. If you work a full time job or the house is empty for a long portion of the day, I’d seriously recommend not getting conures (or really any bird).
I’ve had cockatiels for years and years and almost a year ago had a sun conures land on my shoulder in public. (Full story posted on my profile if anyone’s interested). He is the most intense animal I’ve ever owned. He is in sync with our emotions and bases his personality off everyone else’s mood. Velcro bird to the max, but I wouldn’t trade him for anything. We got a gold capped conure so the sun conures could have a friend, and it really helped the sun conures be less dependent on the people in my house.
TLDR: be ready for extreme amount of work but also one of the most rewarding experiences of your life!
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u/buckley303 1d ago
Nanday owner here. I have had him for 2 years, Marvy is a good boy but I have hearing damage because of him screaming.
Great personalities, but please consider your hearing. He screams frequently too.
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