Safe Trees for Sun Conures

Sun conures benefit when you give them different perches and play areas in your house in addition to their cages as home bases. Plastic perches, some of which are built to look like the branches of a tree, are available on the retail market; but nothing beats the real thing for a bird. Be careful, though, when choosing a natural tree or even just a branch for your conure̵7;s use, as some trees and plants are toxic to hook-bill birds.

  1. Manzanita

    • Manzanita is very hard; it stands up well to parrots.

      Manzanita is more of a shrub than a tree, but it produces an extremely hard wood. The berries and flowers are harmless, but you most likely won̵7;t be getting a live, blooming manzanita for your sun conure. Usually just a few branches are all your bird will need for playing and chewing on. Because it is such a hard wood, it stands up well to the naturally destructive habits of birds -- so well in fact that people collect, clean and sell manzanita branches specifically to bird owners to be used as perches inside cages or as larger free-standing perches for birds to perch and play on.

    Ash

    • Ash branches are ideal for making an indoor conure play area.

      Ash is another hardwood safe for conures to climb or gnaw on. Ash is so hard that it is used for baseball bats, canoe paddles and hockey sticks. If a wood is durable enough for use in such abusive conditions as those, it has a chance of withstanding a conure̵7;s bill. Ash limbs with branches still attached are ideal for making an indoor play area for your bird to climb on. If you pick them up outdoors instead of buying them from a bird supply, make sure you clean them thoroughly with a nontoxic cleaning agent before you let your bird play on or with them.

    Norfolk Island Pine

    • Norfolk Island pine is one of the few pinewoods safe for conures.

      Not all pinewood is suitable for sun conures. Pine needles and berries can be harmful for your bird to eat. But the Norfolk Island pine has been determined to be safe for parrots. Since pine is a softwood, Norfolk Island pine won̵7;t stand up to your conure as well as harder woods will. Your conure will enjoy himself, though, chewing on the wood and reducing it to toothpicks and sawdust.

    Aspen

    • Aspen are softer than pine but can still hold up to conures.

      Aspen trees fall into a kind of middle ground of trees that are safe for sun conures. Aspen is considered to be a hardwood, although it is softer than pine. It is still a good tree to use to make a free-standing perch for your bird. Even though it is soft, it is nonetheless fairly strong and can hold up to a sun conure̵7;s constant nibbling. Because Aspen is a fairly common tree to most regions, you should be able to find branches outdoors to take home to your bird, making sure to thoroughly clean them before letting your bird play on or with them.