Timneh Trivia
The Timneh African Grey is smaller than their cousin, the nominate Red-Tailed Grey. The Timneh comes from a slightly different region in Africa, and their territories have very little overlap. The Timneh has darker plumage and a maroon tail, and the upper beak is a pinkish-horn color. This map shows the different regions in Africa where the Timneh and Red-tailed are found in nature. (The Latin names are: Psittacus erithacus timneh and the Red-tailed is Psittacus erithacus erithacus.)
There is some argument concerning personality
differences between the two. Let me start first by mentioning that I
strongly believe that a lot of a Grey's personality comes from the way they were
raised as babies and the way they are handled and cared for as adults. I
think this, over most everything else, makes the biggest difference.
Generally speaking, the Red-tailed Greys are a little more austere. The Red-tailed is often known to be quite a proper gentleman or lady. The Timneh, on the other hand, is often known to be a bit more on the playful side. The Red-tailed can be very playful too, but again, this is a generalization. I've known many people to have many exceptions to the rule. Grey personalities have just about as much range as human personalities.
They both have about equal talking abilities. Not only can they learn to say human words, but they can learn a wide variety of sound effects. It's not unusual for them to learn various household electronic appliance sounds, such as the phone ringing, the microwave beep or even the modem dialing up. It's also not unusual for them to learn a wide variety of human bodily function noises. Coughs, sneezes, belches, and other intestinal happenings are easily learned. Anything that is said with emphasis is often attractive to them. So if you stub your toe and say S***!, and your Grey hears you, there is a good chance that will be his next word! What is uncanny about their speaking ability, is that they can and do use words in context appropriately. There is argument over whether or not they know what they are talking about, but just from experience I believe they do. I don't think it's just mimicking. For more information about the intelligence of African Greys, please click here. Although all parrots have the physical capability for speech, not all will learn to talk, including Greys. Chances are, if you are vocal with your bird, your bird will be vocal with you.
