Meet Dactyl:)

[Terry57]

I notice he went for the worms first, so those must be his favorite... either that or they are the only part of his dinner that might possibly get away, so gotta eat those first.

When we had the all the owls we used to have to raise rats to feed them.

So pinkie mice are nothing compared to that...

And if you've ever seen Owl's regurge the "unused portion" of a digested rat... well... Ratballs anyone?!

Honestly, superworms are good.

Glad I don't have to deal with that stuff anymore! I do not miss that aspect of it at all...

Ratballs, YUCK! That does make pinkies seem like nothing, but having an owl just may be worth it

I notice he went for the worms first, so those must be his favorite...

Well, there you go, Terry! Now you know his training treat! Just keep a few superworms handy in your pocket while training!

LOLOL. Yep, I can see that happening...NOT

Where is your source for super worms? If he requires super worms he has got to be high maintenance.

We get the superworms from Petsmart. He is really no more high maintenance than most of mine. I do the fruit and veggies twice a day anyway, and I already feed mealworms to the laughing thrush. His is messier, for sure.

He is one cool looking bird!!!!!!!!!! I want one!!!!

He is just what you need, Michael

I notice he went for the worms first, so those must be his favorite...

Well, there you go, Terry! Now you know his training treat! Just keep a few superworms handy in your pocket while training!

I'm cracking up here at the thought of Terry with a pocketful of wriggling superworms! Lovely visual.

Cracked me up too til I really visualized it...then cringing took over.

What an awesome guy Terry! I little gross trivia about the super worms from back in the day when I kept a type of reptile that ate them. Super worms can bite, if the animal eating them doesn't crush or damage the mouth they have been known to begin to eat their way out of the stomach of the animal that ate them! Animals that eat them know this and damage or crush the head though I know reptile breeders that would crush the head before feeding it to their animals.

Laura, we used to have a water dragon and Reg would kill them first because of that issue. THANK GOODNESS that Dactyl kills them himself..lol.Lots of people now say this is a myth, but I am glad I don't have to worry about it

 

[Allee]

I am so excited! Bundy Rum AND Vegemite and eucalyptus lollies??? Wow, how lucky can a girl get?

Shirre, I took a pic of the superworms in his bowl this morning for you, and also a video of him eating them

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=zYT7GneD8vk&feature=youtu.be

Hahaha, I was having so much fun with June's POTM videos, I wasn't ready for the fun to end, I ran across this thread with a video that deserves to be revisited. I would love to see my parrots enjoy a meal with as much enthusiasm as Dactyl has. Hmm, maybe if they had super worms on their menu.

 

[Newbsi]

Very handsome!

 

[Terry57]

HAHA! Dactyl still eats them exactly the same way, and can never get enough

 

[Terry57]

Very handsome!

Thank you, he's a great boy

 

[Anansi]

Hahahaha! I can never get enough of that video! Love that Dactyl!

 

[Kiwibird]

He sure likes those super worms Terry As someone who has reptiles, I notice Dactyl also thoroughly squishes the worms heads before eating them. Reptiles do that too, so the worms are dead and cannot chew their way through the gut after being eaten. Interesting to see a bird do the same thing.

P.S.-Your house sounds like I'd imagine the rainforest sounding (except 'somebirdie' is laughing through the jungle noises and ruining the tranquil rainforest noises lol:18.

 

[Terry57]

He sure likes those super worms Terry As someone who has reptiles, I notice Dactyl also thoroughly squishes the worms heads before eating them. Reptiles do that too, so the worms are dead and cannot chew their way through the gut after being eaten. Interesting to see a bird do the same thing.

P.S.-Your house sounds like I'd imagine the rainforest sounding (except 'somebirdie' is laughing through the jungle noises and ruining the tranquil rainforest noises lol:18.

I was a little worried when we fed him the first one since I remember hearing that the worms can eat their way out (yikes). I stood there in amazement to see him kill it like that, exactly the same way every time.

I had to listen to the video again, and the background sounds cracked me up! I am pretty sure that was Ekko ruining the mood with his cackle..lol

 

[Terry57]

Hahahaha! I can never get enough of that video! Love that Dactyl!

An extra just for you, HT...this was taken at the parrot show and I love this picture of him

 

[Kiwibird]

Hahahaha! I can never get enough of that video! Love that Dactyl!

An extra just for you, HT...this was taken at the parrot show and I love this picture of him

Speaking of prehistoric looking birds (from my other thread)... Dactyl, I'm looking at you:05:

Great pic of him Terry! He is an unusual little guy! Is he behaviorally different from the parrots? Is he pretty friendly?

 

[BIRDIGIRL]

Hes Adorable and has given me a laugh a minute since I started reading this thread betweem pics video and comments LoL

 

[Terry57]

Speaking of prehistoric looking birds (from my other thread)... Dactyl, I'm looking at you:05:

Great pic of him Terry! He is an unusual little guy! Is he behaviorally different from the parrots? Is he pretty friendly?

April, he totally fits into your other post! He is a whole lot like a parrot. He loves toys, especially anything with a bell. The toys have to be tough as he is really hard on them. He doesn't chew, he slams them into the side of the cage to make noise, or just holds on and shakes.He has a really deep, loud voice that I have not been able to get on video as he doesn't do it very often. He is not tame or friendly at all, and his bites really hurt.

At the parrot show, a man came up to me and asked where I had gotten him. Turns out that he knows where Dactyl originally came from. A man who had worked at the zoo in Calgary had bought Dactyl's parents when they were downsized from the zoo, and bred them twice, and Dactyl is one of those babies. I got him from the person who had originally adopted him.
I have looked everywhere for a buddy for Dactyl but have had no luck whatsoever

Hes Adorable and has given me a laugh a minute since I started reading this thread betweem pics video and comments LoL

Thank you, Mary, he is a laugh a minute! Mark's comment was hysterical and made me so happy to be half of a pun!
Here is another funny story...Dactyl won Most Unusual Bird at the parrot show, and as his prize he got 4 cans of insects...2 were crickets and 2 were grasshoppers. I was so excited, and thought that it was bug parts, and then I opened the can. They were whole and in their own juices. I immediately called my friend who had awarded the prizes and asked her if she had seen the grasshoppers in that can? I told her how big they were, and she just didn't believe me. So I had Hubby take a picture when he got home as I certainly wasn't touching that thing to cut it up. The knife in the picture is a butcher knife.

But Dactyl is worth it

 

[Kiwibird]

Speaking of prehistoric looking birds (from my other thread)... Dactyl, I'm looking at you:05:

Great pic of him Terry! He is an unusual little guy! Is he behaviorally different from the parrots? Is he pretty friendly?

April, he totally fits into your other post! He is a whole lot like a parrot. He loves toys, especially anything with a bell. The toys have to be tough as he is really hard on them. He doesn't chew, he slams them into the side of the cage to make noise, or just holds on and shakes.He has a really deep, loud voice that I have not been able to get on video as he doesn't do it very often. He is not tame or friendly at all, and his bites really hurt.

At the parrot show, a man came up to me and asked where I had gotten him. Turns out that he knows where Dactyl originally came from. A man who had worked at the zoo in Calgary had bought Dactyl's parents when they were downsized from the zoo, and bred them twice, and Dactyl is one of those babies. I got him from the person who had originally adopted him.
I have looked everywhere for a buddy for Dactyl but have had no luck whatsoever

Hes Adorable and has given me a laugh a minute since I started reading this thread betweem pics video and comments LoL

Thank you, Mary, he is a laugh a minute! Mark's comment was hysterical and made me so happy to be half of a pun!
Here is another funny story...Dactyl won Most Unusual Bird at the parrot show, and as his prize he got 4 cans of insects...2 were crickets and 2 were grasshoppers. I was so excited, and thought that it was bug parts, and then I opened the can. They were whole and in their own juices. I immediately called my friend who had awarded the prizes and asked her if she had seen the grasshoppers in that can? I told her how big they were, and she just didn't believe me. So I had Hubby take a picture when he got home as I certainly wasn't touching that thing to cut it up. The knife in the picture is a butcher knife.

But Dactyl is worth it

I kinda figured he'd likely not be a snuggle bug, but you never know. Is that pretty typical of those kinds of birds? Does he have the serrated beaks like I've heard rumors of other softbills having?

Is Dactyl a member of the toucan family? If so, would one of the smaller toucanets be a potential buddy for him, even if not the same species? He looks pretty rare, so it's kinda sad his kind aren't more common so you could get him a friend

P.S. If you don't like the size of that grasshopper, never visit Arizona in the summer! That's a very common size to see and one will occasionally land on you. Leo used to like them collected from the wild that size and bigger!

 

[Terry57]

April, here is a picture from the internet of one with his beak open:

It definitely has some sharp edges on the top, and while I haven't been bitten, my hubby and my friend's hubby have been and they both couldn't believe the bite pressure he has.
He is a member of the toucan family, and that is a good idea...I feel really bad for him because in the wild they are found in groups, so I know he must be lonely. I have not heard of a tame one, and I have dreamed of finding him a female and letting them have a clutch that my friend could handfeed. I think that would be awesome to have one who was actually tame.

Yikes on the grasshoppers that big landing on you! I about died when I saw that beast all curled up in that tiny can! So you used to catch them for Leo? WOW! Now that is an appetite!

 

[Kiwibird]

April, here is a picture from the internet of one with his beak open:

It definitely has some sharp edges on the top, and while I haven't been bitten, my hubby and my friend's hubby have been and they both couldn't believe the bite pressure he has.
He is a member of the toucan family, and that is a good idea...I feel really bad for him because in the wild they are found in groups, so I know he must be lonely. I have not heard of a tame one, and I have dreamed of finding him a female and letting them have a clutch that my friend could handfeed. I think that would be awesome to have one who was actually tame.

Yikes on the grasshoppers that big landing on you! I about died when I saw that beast all curled up in that tiny can! So you used to catch them for Leo? WOW! Now that is an appetite!

What a fascinating bird! Hope you can find him a buddy or girlfriend I may be mistaken on species, but someone on another forum I'm on has aracaris. They look a lot like Dactyl and are tame.

BIG bugs all over in Arizona in the summer:52: You become immune to it, it has to be large AND poisonous for me to freak out. Leo did indeed eat very large grasshoppers while living there as well as these giant green grasshopper-like bugs (think size of a unshelled almond). A lot of his prey in the summer was longer than his head. Keep in mind though, he only eats once or twice a week during his active times a year and more like once every 10 to 14 days in the winter. Curious if you actually fed Dactly the grasshoppers? Did he eat them whole or did your husband have to chop them up?

Edit: The birds I was thinking of that remind me of Dactyl are called "curl crested aracaris"

 

[Terry57]

WOW! Just googled aracaris and they are amazing! They do resemble Dactyl, I see a new search in my future.

How did you catch all Leo's food? Did you catch a bunch at once and keep them somewhere or just each time he was ready to feed? Back when we used to have reptiles we always just picked up crickets or whatever they were eating at the store, I almost have a phobia of bugs..lol

Hubby cut up the grasshopper, I wasn't sure if Dactyl would be interested..but now I think I will try the next one whole and see what happens.

 

[Kiwibird]

WOW! Just googled aracaris and they are amazing! They do resemble Dactyl, I see a new search in my future.

How did you catch all Leo's food? Did you catch a bunch at once and keep them somewhere or just each time he was ready to feed? Back when we used to have reptiles we always just picked up crickets or whatever they were eating at the store, I almost have a phobia of bugs..lol

Hubby cut up the grasshopper, I wasn't sure if Dactyl would be interested..but now I think I will try the next one whole and see what happens.

I bet Dactyle would eat a whole grasshopper! He looks more than large enough to down one whole I'm guessing unlike parrots, bugs are a requirement for a healthy diet for birds like Dactyl?

Bugs were all over from about May through October, so I'd catch them in the backyard. Basically sneak up on them, grab them and run inside to give to Leo. Tiffany got wild bugs too, but she was so much bigger it wasn't ridiculous to see her eat bugs of that size. Mr. Newt gets wild caught earthworms on occasion, but not other varieties due to his aquatic nature. Even the parrots would catch bugs on occasion, especially Lucy the wild caught one Wild bugs, when collected from pesticide free areas, are actually very healthy for insectivorous reptiles and do not need to be gut loaded. Not sure about native bugs in your area and if they'd be safe to feed to Dactyl though. Alfie got worms once from a wild bug, but there wasnt much you could do to stop them eating them if they got inside or when they were outside in the warm months. We never bought crickets or worms in the summer, food was free and abundant for my scaly friends My parents also used to let me stay up late to catch the big green bugs (they were nocturnal) and left the porch light on so they'd come. They looked very similar to this (wonder what Dactyl would think of one of these? The reptiles inhaled them, so they must've tasted pretty good!):

 

[Terry57]

Yes, bugs are a big part of his diet, as well as fruits and low iron pellets. He is on Uni and Beo pellets. He also eats most veggies, he has quite the appetite. I'm definitely going to give him a whole grasshopper tonight with his feed to see what he does with it. Waiting for evening feed so I don't have to touch it..lol
I would be afraid to use anything wild caught here, there is a big field behind us that belongs to the city and they spray several times a year for mosquitoes.

That bug is crazy looking, I have never seen one of those! Speaking of bugs, one thing I so miss from WVA is lightning bugs

 

[Allee]

April, here is a picture from the internet of one with his beak open:

It definitely has some sharp edges on the top, and while I haven't been bitten, my hubby and my friend's hubby have been and they both couldn't believe the bite pressure he has.
He is a member of the toucan family, and that is a good idea...I feel really bad for him because in the wild they are found in groups, so I know he must be lonely. I have not heard of a tame one, and I have dreamed of finding him a female and letting them have a clutch that my friend could handfeed. I think that would be awesome to have one who was actually tame.

Yikes on the grasshoppers that big landing on you! I about died when I saw that beast all curled up in that tiny can! So you used to catch them for Leo? WOW! Now that is an appetite!

What a fascinating bird! Hope you can find him a buddy or girlfriend I may be mistaken on species, but someone on another forum I'm on has aracaris. They look a lot like Dactyl and are tame.

BIG bugs all over in Arizona in the summer:52: You become immune to it, it has to be large AND poisonous for me to freak out. Leo did indeed eat very large grasshoppers while living there as well as these giant green grasshopper-like bugs (think size of a unshelled almond). A lot of his prey in the summer was longer than his head. Keep in mind though, he only eats once or twice a week during his active times a year and more like once every 10 to 14 days in the winter. Curious if you actually fed Dactly the grasshoppers? Did he eat them whole or did your husband have to chop them up?

Edit: The birds I was thinking of that remind me of Dactyl are called "curl crested aracaris"

The aracari is wonderful, I wonder if Dactyl would like to have a friend. I'm in awe of both species. I'm really surprised that Dactyl plays with toys and enjoys attention, what an unusual character!

Terry, I'm still cracking up at Dactyl's winning the contest and your horror at his canned grasshopper reward.

 

[Terry57]

April, that picture of the curl crested aracaris is gorgeous! I am definitely going to try to see if I can find someone who has them here.

Allee, I am still cringing over the "grasshopper incident" as my friend now calls it..lol