Know your enemy

Wild budgerigars have many enemies. I listed the most common ones below:

1. Snake

Image © Chris Thompson

The brown snake is one of the many natural enemies of wild budgerigars. They are found all over Australia and have extremely potent venom. Snakes are able to forge their way into a budgerigar's nest to gobble up newborn chicks.

2. The Butcher Bird

Image © my.opera.com

... honestly, just the name already gives me the shivers. Have you seen the beak of this thing? They are magpie-like birds, but native to Australia. Like a snake, it raids the nests of wild budgerigars to feed on the newborn chicks.

3. Hawk

Image © 10000birds.com

Hawks and falcons are fast enough to catch budgies in mid-flight with their sharp claws. While budgies are capable of reaching 16 m/s at a fast speed, a hawk can easily triple that speed. At first sight, budgies don't stand a chance against this enemy. But they are very acrobatic and small enough to try and hide from this winged predator.

4. Nature itself

Image © Wheel 2 wheel

The Australian Outback is beautiful but cruel. In times of drought, thousands of birds can die. The intense heat makes it impossible to find food and water. Budgies especially need to eat often; they can't survive without food for more than two days. On the other hand, the climate has somehow made them used to living without water. They can live up to one month without water. Even though budgies rarely get lost, they may end up into the desert while searching for food and shelter. From there it can only go downhill, unless they turn back.

5. Industrialization

Image © Asian Scientist

Due to industrial development in Australia, much of the budgerigar's natural habitat has vanished. Their conservation status is still secure, but if the situation won't improve, they will soon be endangered.