What Type of Climate Do Lovebirds Live in?

Many parrot species prefer the hot and humid climates of tropical rain forests, but not lovebirds. Originally from the southwestern coast of Africa, lovebirds naturally gravitate to areas that are similar to their native land. They have even adapted to life in the wild in parts of the United States that have a climate similar to their original territory in Africa.

  1. Moisture

    • Lovebirds prefer a dry habitat rather than the moist jungle or rain forest preferred by many other species of parrots. Although they live in trees, they choose areas that are desertlike, receiving low amounts of rainfall and having low humidity. Lovebirds make their homes near water sources such as lakes and ponds.

    Locales

    • The natural range of a lovebird is northwest South Africa, southwest Angola and western Namibia. All of these areas have dry desert climates, with temperatures often in the mid-80s Fahrenheit, rarely dropping below freezing. Escaped or abandoned domestic lovebirds have established colonies in desert areas of the southwest United States, such as near Phoenix, Arizona, where they live in city parks and palm trees in residential areas.

    Deserts and Woodlands

    • Although lovebirds mainly inhabit desert areas with sources of water, they also live in the edge of some forests within their native range. They choose forest areas that are fairly hot and dry, where there is more sunshine than rainfall and where trees are sparse rather than dense. Their desert homes are mainly near and within the Namib desert, which is a 1,200-mile desert along the South Atlantic coast.

    Elevation and Temperature

    • In keeping with their preference of dry, warm climates, lovebirds prefer low elevations where temperatures remain steady. They generally are not found in elevations above 1,500 feet but can be found as low as sea level. At these elevations they avoid the prolonged freezing cold temperatures of winter, although desert temperatures in the region they inhabit can occasionally drop below freezing.