Are you looking for a colorful feathered companion to have as a pet? Perhaps the lovebird would be a great choice for you. These birds belong to the parrot family and can live up to 10–12 years.1 They thrive when bought in pairs because they develop close-knit bonds with each other and even with people, hence their name. Lovebirds are intelligent, affectionate, and well-known for their vibrant colors. In fact, their blend of colors is often what catches people’s eye when they’re considering which bird to adopt.
A lovebird’s plumage consists of a combination of colors on their body and face, ranging from green, yellow, peach, orange, violet, and teal to white. Their beaks can even vary in color! Here is a list of the most common color blends of lovebirds, any of which would make great pets.
Top 5 Lovebird Color Mutations
1. Peach-Faced Lovebirds
The peach-faced lovebird, or rosy-faced lovebird, got their name due to their distinct coloring. These lovebirds have rosy pink or peach-colored faces and throats. This color gets darker as the plumage reaches their foreheads, changing to an orange or red color. The plumage on the rest of their bodies is a vibrant to dark green. Some of these lovebirds have yellow-colored chests. Their beaks are a bone or horn color.
2. Fischer’s Lovebirds
Also known as the eye-ring lovebird, this bird has a color combination of green, yellow, and orange. Both sexes usually have the same color pattern. The plumage on their backs, chests, and wings is a vibrant green, slowly fading to golden yellow and then a dark orange color at their neck. Fischer’s lovebirds have a signature white circle around their eyes. The tops of their tails can have some blue or purple feathers.
3. Black-Masked Lovebirds
Like other lovebirds, the black-masked lovebird gets their name from their distinctive black masking on their face with prominent white rings around their eyes. However, these birds are also known as yellow-collared lovebirds due to the yellow plumage on their necks and upper chests. The rest of their bodies have the signature bright green plumage, with their tails sometimes having some blue accents. Their beaks are a vibrant red.
4. Violet Lovebirds
The violet lovebird’s plumage varies from light lavender to deep purple. They also have a white collar of plumage around their neck and upper chest. Depending on the mutation of the violet lovebird, they might have a white face of plumage or a black mask. They will also have a light, peach-colored beak.
5. Australian Cinnamon & Orange-Faced Lovebirds
Australian cinnamon and orange-faced lovebirds have similar color patterns to Fischer’s lovebirds. They have red and dark orange plumage on their faces, which changes to yellow around their necks and part of their upper chests. The rest of their bodies is the signature lovebird vibrant green. What makes this lovebird stand out is the ruby-red eyes they have when they are young. The eye color fades as they get older, but the plumage remains bright.
Final Thoughts
There are other lovebird colors, but these are the most common among the lovebirds available as domesticated pets. Other species of lovebirds live in the wild and are amazing to watch, but they do not make good pets because they do not do well in captivity.
No matter which color variation or mutation your lovebird has, they will be vibrant and lovely to look at. In addition to their affectionate nature, the plumage of the lovebird helps make them a popular and well-loved pet.
Featured Image Credit: Tracy Starr, Shutterstock
