By Rosemary Low

Perhaps you will visit a zoo this year, one with a lory exhibit, where members of the public can enter. They feed these beautiful, apparently fearless birds, with little pots of hand-held nectar. Soon they might have lorikeets swarming all over them! Will you be tempted to add them to your collection? Are they the right birds for you?

These are Rainbow Lorikeets (Trichoglossus haematodus moluccanus). They originate in Australia and are the most free-breeding of all lories and lorikeets in aviculture. Where else might you see them? Probably at the big sales events, such as Stafford.

Availability of lories is, sadly, greatly reduced now. There are fewer breeders. It was often the case that breeders went to the huge bird market in Zwolle, in the Netherlands, to buy or exchange birds. Recent legislation means that this is no longer possible, as foreign buyers must declare that the birds have been in the location for two weeks or more. They need special documentation.

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