2025
Lorikeet Care
Madonna Livingstone, BVMS MRCVS
Lorikeet Care
Lorikeet Care
The name Lories and Lorikeets are often used interchangeably and there are approximately 55 species belonging to this group of parrots. Lories are generally bigger, with shorter, blunter tails and Lorikeets are generally slimmer with longer tapered tails, however not every species fits neatly into this description.
They evolved to live in Australia, the South Pacific, and South East Asia. These are very playful, energetic, noisy, messy, and intelligent birds making them a high maintenance but amusing pet.
Lories and Lorikeets are specialised feeders (see diet section) and live in large flocks in the wild. They are considered very territorial and can react aggressively to other species of birds especially if there is not enough space.
Rainbow Lorikeets (Trichoglossus moluccanus) are the brightest coloured and largest species of lorikeet in Australia and can live on average 20-25 years with the maximum reported age in captivity being 30 years old. This care guide is written for Rainbow lorikeets but much of the advice is transferrable to the other species.
Enclosure
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Lorikeets are extremely active, high-energy birds which makes them more suitable to a flight aviary as an enclosure rather than an indoor cage. They love to climb and clamber about in the branches as well as fly. A suitable sized outdoor enclosure is: 3.6m long, 1-1.2m wide, and 2m high. Ideally provide a larger aviary and supplementary heating should be available during colder weather. Roost boxes and covered areas must be provided as well as a lot of high perches. Lorikeets are not ground feeders therefore food and water should be offered in various spots off the ground.
Due to their high energy and exercise requirements plus their messy droppings and feeding habits, indoor cage housing is not an option for many people. Indoor cages should only be used for sleeping or while the bird is unsupervised and they must be allowed out of the cage (3 hours daily minimum recommendation) for exercise and play. Failure to provide adequate exercise will predispose to obesity and liver/heart issues as well as behavioural problems.
In the U.K. the absolute minimum cage size a bird can be kept in should allow the bird to stretch its wings in all direction without it being able to touch the sides, but this is not conducive to good welfare and at best should be viewed as a roost or carry cage. Rainbow Lorikeets have on average a 45cm wing span, and some sources recommend the minimum cage size as: 2m long, 1.4m wide, and 1m in height, but larger is always better.
Newspaper is ideal for use to line the cage. It is inexpensive, absorbs fluid, and allows caregivers to observe the droppings clearly which is important for monitoring health. Changes to the droppings may be significant and could be the first visible indicator of a health issue.
Stainless steel is the best material for cages/aviary enclosures to be made from but it is much more expensive. Poor quality cages, or poor quality joins may be galvanised and repeated licking/chewing of the wire could result in zinc poisoning.
Bar spacing is also important to consider to ensure your bird cannot get their head trapped between the bars. The cage should mainly consist of horizontal barring with a maximum gap of 1.9-2.5cm.
Regardless of whether the enclosure is outdoors or indoors it is important that it is easily cleaned as lorikeets are incredibly messy.
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Perches
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Lorikeets are arboreal meaning they enjoy climbing and prefer to be up high! Multiple perches should be placed at varying heights throughout the enclosure.
Natural branches from fruit trees (not cherry tree branches), with the bark and leaves still on, are good options. Natural branches vary in width which provides exercise for their feet and lorikeets enjoy stripping the bark providing some environmental enrichment. Rope perches can also be used but these should be replaced if they become frayed. Recommended diameter of perches is 1.2-2cm. Sandpaper coverings should never be used on perches as they can cause damage to your birds’ feet.
Ensure perches are not placed above feed or water stations to prevent contamination from droppings.
Enrichment
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Lorikeets are extremely inquisitive and playful birds. They need constant mental stimulation as well as a lot of exercise.
It is important to provide a variety of toys daily including toys they can destroy, foraging toys, puzzle toys, climbing toys such as suspended ropes and ladders, and foot toys. Homemade toys from cardboard or paper bags are often the most enjoyed and be easily turned into foraging opportunities.
Parrots have an innate requirement to chew and destroy things being considered the mice of the bird world. Offering branches from bird safe trees not only provides natural perching but allows them to perform natural behaviour of stripping the bark and chewing the wood.
Changing the toys around regularly is important. Constant access to the same toys reduces their value, as essentially the bird becomes bored! Many lorikeets will roll about on their back playing, either with a toy, with their owner, or with another lorikeet (see figure 1).
Lighting
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Unlike us, birds can see into the ultraviolet (UV) spectrum, and failure to provide the full light spectrum could be likened to humans being forced to see only in black and white. Glass filters out most of UV light therefore it is important we supplement with bulbs that provide light in the UVA and UVB spectrum.
Not only does UV light provide some environmental enrichment, it also provides good health benefits.
UVA light helps parrots identify ripe foods, which often have UV-reactive pigments and as lorikeets are reliant on fruit and vegetables in their diet, it is easy to understand why this is so beneficial. As humans we recognise that spending time in the sun promotes improved mental health and improved immune system, UVA lighting can likewise reduce the likelihood of destructive behaviours and promote a more balanced and positive temperament in parrots.
Access to UVB naturally promotes the synthesis of vitamin D precursors allowing the conversion to the active form, vitamin D3. Dietary supplementation of D3 can lead to health issues if too much is given, whereas naturally produced vitamin D3 can not become dangerously high. Birds like other species, need D3 to absorb and utilise calcium.
UV light also has an impact on glandular activity especially the pineal, thyroid, and hypothalamus glands. These glands control many of the most important functions in a birds’ system including (but not limited to): moulting, skin health, reproductive cycles.
Two options for safe, effective bulbs are: Arcadia Bird lamp and Zoo Med Avian Sun. These lamps must be situated above the bird 12-18 inches from where the bird mainly perches. It is important to have the lamps on a timer to ensure it is on for a maximum of 10-12 hours daily. If the lamps are on for longer than this it is possible to cause an excessive release of sex hormones and adrenaline resulting in territorial aggression, compulsive egg laying.
Over time the production of UVA and UVB light degrades but the lamp will still emit visible light. This is why even though to our eyes the lamp still appears to be producing light, it is important to replace the bulbs every six months
Diet
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Lorikeets have several anatomical adaptions to make them efficient at consuming their diet. Their tongues have multiple elongated papillae forming a brush like end to the tongue (see Figure 2) which is great for gathering pollen and nectar (but can feel strange if they insert it into your ear!).
As they consume very little seed in the wild (plus the small seeds they do consume are fresh so are softer), their stomachs are very different from other species of parrots. We should remember in the wild diets vary seasonally which rarely happens in captivity. Wild Rainbow Lorikeets typically consume: 87% of their food from flowers (up to 43 different species of plant!) predominantly nectar but also pollen, 5% fruit, 4% leaf buds, 4% bark and insects.
Most species of parrots have a very strongly muscled stomach called the ventriculus (also known as the gizzard) which helps grind consumed seeds, as lorikeets consume mainly a liquid or powdered diet, they have no need for such a well-developed ventriculus, it is weakly muscled. Their stomachs are literally not developed to digest seed. Luckily it has never been easier to feed these beautiful birds with the development of commercial nectar and pollen diets.
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Figure 2: Note the brush like tip to the tongue.
https://www.reddit.com/r/sydney/comments/jq3niq/ever_seen_a_rainbow_lorikeet_tongue_photo_taken
Several commercial food mixes are available on the market and this will vary on country. Check the vitamin A content of the diet as excess vitamin A can be dangerous. Ideal feeds will contain a maximum vitamin A level of 6000IU/kg. As lorikeets are prone to iron storage disease it is important to only feed a diet with less than 80mg/kg of iron.
In the U.K. the main ones available are: Golden Tropic Lori Nectar, Psittacus Lory Nectar, Psittacus Lory Gel (should be fed alongside the nectar), Vetafarm nectar pellets. Other brands are available and it may be trial and error to find the one that works best for your bird. Pollen mixes are also available. Small amounts of e.g. Harrisons pellets can also be offered.
The powders can be fed wet or dry. Dry mix can be on offer continuously. If feeding wet it is important only to mix small quantities at a time and in hot weather remove the wet mix after a couple of hours to prevent fermentation or spoilage.
In the wild lorikeets spend approximately 70% of their awake time foraging for food. To prevent boredom, it is important to provide foraging opportunities in captivity. Multiple feeding stations should be hidden around the enclosure, hanging jars as seen in Figure 3 from branches increases problem solving skills as the bird has to hang from an angle to access the food. Make sure the feeding station positions in the enclosure are varied regularly.
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Figure 3:
https://aszk.org.au/wp-content/uploads/2020/03/Birds.-Rainbow-Lorikeet-2012RK.pdf
It is important to supplement the diet with a wide variety of fruit and vegetables daily both as a chop and chunks, varying what is offered each day again to prevent boredom and food fixations. Options (not exhaustive!) include: apple, mango, grapes, cherries (with the stone removed), banana, and pear, swiss chard, endive, celery, cucumber, cooked sweet potato, cooked butternut squash.
Spiking fruit and veg onto branches and hiding in enclosure promotes foraging.
Fruits native to their country of origin are higher in protein, slightly higher in fat content and lower in vitamin C content compared to domesticated fruits. Additionally, domesticated fruits are higher in simple sugar content, and water content. As vitamin C promotes uptake of iron, this may explain why lorikeets in captivity are more prone to developing iron storage disease. Limit fruits high in vitamin C such as strawberries, cantaloupe, papaya, and citrus fruits.
Flowers are readily consumed and pesticide free hibiscus flowers, rose petals, dandelion flowers and leaves, and chickweed are good options.
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Water
Compared to other birds, lorikeets drink much more water per unit body weight. This is due to their high sugar diet leading to watery droppings. Medications or supplements should not be given in the drinking water unless advised by a bird experienced veterinary professional as the higher level of water consumption by lorikeets can result in an overdose.
Multiple water stations should be provided which need to be cleaned daily. Even when offered a bath, some lorikeets will choose to bathe in their water bowls!
Sleep
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No one functions well or is their best self when they have had poor quality sleep. Parrots are no different. The current recommended sleep schedule is 10-12 hours a night. Parrots may not sleep the whole time but it does give them the opportunity to rest and decompress. Lack of sleep can result in temperamental behaviour, chronic stress, and immunosuppression. Some lorikeets choose to sleep on their backs which can be alarming for first time owners!
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Bathing
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Lorikeets are voracious bathers (see figure 4)! Given their diet is high in sugars, can be sticky, and they produce very watery droppings it is completely understandable why they evolved to enjoy bathing so much.
Ideally allow your lorikeet to bathe daily either in the sink (some lorikeets love playing in the sink) or shower as they are so enthusiastic the water tends to go everywhere! Alternatively, ensure the water container is big enough for the bird to roll about in it and the ideal depth of the water should come up to the birds’ belly when they are standing.
Basic behaviours/training
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Lorikeets are often referred to as the clowns of the bird world as they are so playful and inquisitive. Some of them learn to talk, others mainly learn whistles and noises. Most will perform pre and post roost calling/screaming sessions to reestablish flock bonds.
Training in most parrots involves positive reinforcement with a food item which for most species involves small pieces of a nut or seed. Given the specialised nature of lorikeets dietary requirements, it is more appropriate to use small pieces of the individuals’ favourite fruits or use a nectar mix in a syringe which your bird can lick from to reinforce the required behaviour.
If using a syringe only allow a single drop to come out at a time (practicing beforehand helps!) to prevent accidentally flooding your bird’s beak with too much nectar. Flooding the beak will at best scare your pet and at worse leading to inhalation and potential pneumonia. Using fruit can be messy, some lorikeets like to suck the juices out and leave behind little bits of the fruit.
Keep training sessions short as they can bore easily, for training to be successful it needs to be fun and engaging for everyone involved.
Some good training resources can be found at: https://www.northernparrots.com/blog/training-behaviour/
Supplements
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Cuttlefish should be provided to as a source of calcium and enrichment.
Other than cuttlefish no other supplements should be provided without discussion with a bird savvy veterinary professional. Nectar and pollen diets are already high in vitamin A, supplementation may very well result in toxic levels of vitamin A. Too much vitamin A has been linked to health conditions such as: poor feather colour and quality, pancreatitis, poor fertility, decreased survival of chicks, and may be linked to iron storage disease.
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Hygiene
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Lorikeets produce spectacular amounts of liquid droppings which they tend to spray outside their cage. The forceful ejection of the droppings ensures that they do not soil their feathers but also leads to a lot of mess that needs to be cleaned daily.
Faecal and urine build up promotes bacterial and fungal growth which your bird will inhale leading to potentially fatal infections. Feeding a maintenance diet of lorikeet pellets will result in less watery droppings being passed.
Bird safe disinfectants e.g. F10 can be used to clean the cage, perches, toys, and surrounding areas. Water and food bowls should be washed in warm soapy water and then rinsed daily.
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Health
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Providing: good quality food (in the right quantities), fresh water, access to UVA/B light (natural or via lamp), exercise, a clean environment, and mental stimulation will go a long way to keeping your bird healthy.
Lorikeets are prey species which means they have evolved to hide illness, essentially our pet birds lie to us, telling us that they are perfectly healthy until they are just so sick they cannot hide it anymore. Due to this, any change in your birds’ habits, behaviour, or voice should be viewed as significant. As soon as you acquire your bird it is very important to register with a bird experienced veterinary practice. Do not wait until your pet is ill as crucial time may be lost trying to find a practice who is able to treat your bird.
Training your bird to allow regular weighing and recording of body weight allows trends to be monitored and weight loss to be noticed before other clinical signs become apparent. Monitor the colour, consistency, and number of droppings produced daily. Reduction in the frequency of produced droppings may be due to reduced food intake and a change in colour may be dietary (some fruits/vegetables will cause pigment changes in the droppings) or may be due to a disease process.
Breathing difficulties, bleeding, or anorexia are signs that should not be ignored and an urgent veterinary appointment is required. As a minimum an annual health check is recommended which should be increased to every six months as your bird becomes aged.
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