Jenday Conure Parrot Species Profile Guide: Care, Lifespan, Personality & More (Jandaya Parakeet)

The Jenday Conure is a little parrot indigenous to the woodlands of South America.

Like most parrots, they are very intelligent and quirky...

...and if you aren’t charmed by their comical tricks, then their cute and cuddly disposition will leave you in awe.

Even better, they can live up to 30 years, making them almost lifelong companions.

In any case, if you are fascinated by Jenday Conures or want one as a pet, then this article will be a resourceful guide for your quest.

Additional Names

The Jenday Conure is also known as the Jandaya Parakeet or Jandaya Conure. It also goes by other aliases like Yellow-Headed Conure and the Flaming Parakeet.

The scientific name of the Jenday Conure is Aratinga jandaya. Unlike Green Cheeked Conures, Jendays don’t have a subspecies.

Jandaya Conure Bio Data

Wild Jenday conures have their home in the deciduous woodlands of North Eastern Brazil. In the wild, they move about in a group of about twelve to thirty birds. They nest in hollows of trees that are about 50 feet above the ground.

Though native to the Brazilian woodlands, Jenday parakeets can migrate several miles into other areas for survival.

Physical Appearance

A Jenday Conure is quite larger than its Green Cheeked cousin and can reach a size of 12 inches from beak to tail tip.

Like many other parakeets, about half of its long tail makes up its body length. Hence, the illusion that it appears larger than its actual size.

The Jenday parakeet also has zygodactyl feet - two toes in front and back. Apparently, this is why it able to complete acrobatic tricks, like hanging upside down!

Jenday Conure Colors and Markings

Jenday Conure has colorful feather markings, much brighter than that of Green Cheeked conures. However, Sun Conures are similarly closer cousins in this aspect.

To begin with, its bust feathers (head and chest) strikes a bright yellow color they are well known for – Yellow Headed Conure. Many pet owners, both old and young, fall for this charming, bright plumage.

Then, they have black beaks and gray legs and feet. Its tail feathers and its wings are rimmed with iridescent blue as well:

© 2007 Photo by Danny Chapman and licensed under Creative Commons Attribution 2.0

On the other hand, Jenday conures are monomorphic species. In simple terms, both male and female Jendays have the same color markings.

Unless identified by DNA or surgical sexing, a more hands-on approach is to use their facial markings as identity markers.

With this approach, females have grayish eye rings with light brown irises, while the males have white eye rings and darker brown irises.

Generally, Jandayas are a lot like sun conures in terms of their appearance and size. One sure way to tell their difference is that a sun’s wing is yellow while that of a Jenday is green.

Lastly, a Jenday conure only attains the normal color mutation when its fully grown – about one or two years old.

Talking & Mimicry Ability

Like most conures, Jendays can get noisy. They make a very loud, shrill and raucous call that makes them a pain in the neck at times rather than charming companions.

In turn, this can make them unfit for apartment homeowners who don’t want to get their neighbors pissed off with their noise.

Naturally, Jendays are not the best-talking birds, but they can learn a few phrases, and do this better than Green Cheeks.

Be that as it may, Jenday Conures are not recognised as charming pets for their speaking ability, but for the undying affection, and tricks as pet bird companions.

Jenday Conure Lifespan

Jenday conures kept in a healthy environment with proper care, and fed a well-balanced diet can live for over 30 years.

However, the average Jenday in captivity lives for an average of 20-25 years. Sadly, many parrots meet early deaths due to illnesses and accidents.

Personality and Behavior

Jenday parakeets are very active pets and require a lot of attention.

This is a key factor you have to consider because it means you need to spend more playtime with your bird, so it doesn’t feel bored.

With this in mind, they have tendencies to scream when neglected or destructively chew at anything in sight.

On the flip side, Jendays are cuddly, and you will be more than happy to bond with one if you have the time. I mean, it can stay cuddled up to your shoulder all day if you get close enough.

Sometimes, however, they hit hormonal stages that make them territorial and aggressive to anyone, even their owners. But with proper training, you can make things easier for you and your feathered friend.

On another hand, they need to exercise regularly to stay limber and affectionate. A cage filled with toys and a play swing helps to keep them busy and fit.

For the most part, owners are charmed by the intelligence of Jenday Conures and not their talking ability. In fact, a Jenday may not talk more than five (5) times a year and has only about six (6) words in its vocabulary.

As you already know, what they lack in speech, they make up for in several tricks they can learn. At times, they can also use this wrongly to find ways to break out of their cage like in the video below:

Proper Care For Your Jenday Conure

#1 Housing

A proper environment temperature for a Jenday parakeet is between 60- and 75-degrees Fahrenheit.

At first sight, a Jenday might look small enough to fit in a Cockatiel cage, but it needs much more space to contain its kind of energy and stay active. Even much bigger if you are getting a pair.

The least recommended size you should get is 24x24x30 inches with a 1/2 inch bar spacing.

In short, an ideal cage will give the bird enough space to move freely or even fly around a bit.

Here are some standard conure cages with different designs you can check out along with some swings and toys. Also, I’ll advise you to get some indestructible toys, asides the wooden ones to meet their chewing cravings.

#2 Feeding

These birds need a balanced diet that mainly consists of pellets and seeds, to ensure they get their required nutrients.

You can supplement their pellet meals with fresh fruits and vegetables like kiwis, apples, carrots, and broccoli.

Keep the feeders and cage clean and disinfected regularly, to reduce their risk of transmitting fatal infections to the birds.

#3 Bathing

Parakeets, in general, like to bath and Jenday parrots are no different.

Try bathing them every other day in a shallow basin with clean water. In case a bird doesn’t enter the bath, use a spray bottle to mist the bird.

#4 Breeding

Breeding a Jenday Conure is restricted in some areas, so you need to contact your local Fish and Wildlife Commission to see if you need to get a permit.

To an extent, they are easy to breed at any time of the year. However, you should avoid months with high temperatures, because the babies have a hard time surviving extreme heat.

© 2014 Photo by pixieclaire001 and licensed under Creative Commons Attribution 2.0

#5 Exercise

If you think I’ve stressed the need for exercise enough, then you are wrong.

Jenday conures are active birds and need a lot of movements to stay happy.

First, you can’t miss getting them a cage, large enough for them to play and fly around a bit. On top of that, there’s a need to have an out-of-cage time and bonding to avoid feelings of depression.

While in the cage, a Jenday Conure needs to have enough fun activities to do and not just a large and void cage.

To go about this, you need to install toys, ladders, and swings to give your bird that “Jungle Gym” experience.

Again, provide a variety of chew toys to exercise their beak and curb their destructive chewing tendencies.

Jenday Parakeet Cost

A Jendaya conure could cost you up to $600.

Keep in mind that this price doesn’t include other charges for the cage, food, and accessories.

Health and Common Conditions

Conures, generally, can become prone to feather picking.

But to avoid the risk of suffering other possible health conditions, you have to make sure they stay active in a clean environment.

Some of the possible health conditions are:

• Proventricular Dilatation Disease (PDD)
• Psittacine Beak and Feather disease
• Psittacosis
• Beak malocclusion and Aspergillosis

In the end, regular visits to the avian center can detect these diseases early on and prevent fatal cases.

Also, you can help a bird when it becomes itchy by regularly bathing it.

Should You Get A Jenday Conure?

If you’ve already confirmed whether you can buy one, remember it also requires a lot of time and attention keep your bird happy and active.

In other words, you will have a great long time experience with one, only if you can squeeze out time for its attention needs and not just feeding it.

You can buy one at most large pet stores or by ideally opting for adoption at an avian rescue or adoption organization.