Tropical Oasis
Tropical Birds
All birds in the Lena Meijer Tropical Conservatory are native to the tropics and were raised in captivity. These birds include the Northern Red Bishop, Red-cheeked Cordon Bleu Finch, Chinese Painted Quail and Canary, among others.
Native Tropical Birds
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The Lena Meijer Tropical Conservatory is an iconic architectural feature of Frederik Meijer Gardens & Sculpture Park. Creating a tropical oasis in Michigan requires a full sensory experience.
The tropical bird collection at Frederik Meijer Gardens & Sculpture Park is generously supported by John and Marian Bouwer.
The tropical birds within the Lena Meijer Tropical Conservatory lend beauty, color and a sense of escape into a vastly different biome than our own. Birds are sourced only from ethical breeders and every effort is made to work with local providers, when possible.
Northern Red Bishop
(Euplectes franciscanus)
Additional Common Names: Orange bishop
Range: Africa
Diet: Mainly seeds; some insects
Did You Know? Males build the nest, an oval mass of plant stems. Females add additional material to line the inside.
Female
Male
Canary
(Serinus canaria domestica)
Additional Common Names: Canary, common canary, Atlantic canary, island canary
Range: The Canary, Azores, and Madeira islands
Diet: Mainly seeds
Did You Know? The coloration and sustained vocal ability of domestic Canaries are the result of 400 years of selective breeding.
Chinese Painted Quail
(Coturnix chinensis)
Additional Common Names: blue-breasted quail, king quail, button quail; Asian blue quail
Range: Tropical Asia
Diet: Mainly seeds; some fresh vegetation, small worms and insects
Did You Know? These birds typically nest on the ground in hollows lined with grass. Their newly hatched chicks are as small as bumble bees.
Red-Cheeked Cordon Bleu Finch
(Uraeginthus bengalus)
Additional Common Names: Red-cheeked cordonbleu, Red-cheeked cordon-bleu
Wild-Type Range: Africa
Diet: Mainly seeds, some insects
Did You Know? Only male Red-cheeked Cordon Bleu Finches have the distinctive red patch on each cheek.
Photo by Charles J. Sharp – Own work, from Sharp Photography, sharpphotography, CC BY-SA 4.0
Parrot Finch
(Erythrura spp.)
Additional Common Names: parrotfinch, parrot-finch
Range: Africa
Diet: Mainly seeds; some insects, fruits and vegetation
Did You Know? Many types of Parrot Finches are common in aviculture, but some species—such as the Pink-Billed Parrot Finch—are vulnerable to extinction due to habitat loss and degradation.
Photo by Trisha Shears from Louisville, Kentucky, United States – Red-throated Parrot Finch, CC BY-SA 2.0
Star Finch
(Neochmia ruficauda)
Additional Common Names: red-faced finchesÂ
Range: Australia
Diet: dry seeds and grasses, flies, flying termites, moths, and flying antsÂ
Did You Know? As these birds get older, their coloration becomes brighter and more distinctively marked.
Zebra Finch
(Taeniopygia castanotis)
Additional Common Names: Australian zebra finchÂ
Range: Australia and IndonesiaÂ
Diet: Primarily seedsÂ
Did You Know? Zebra finches are monogamous and pair bond for life.Â
European Goldfinch
(Carduelis carduelis)Â
Additional Common Names: GoldfinchÂ
Range: Europe, North Africa, Western & Central AsiaÂ
Diet: Primarily seedsÂ
Did You Know? The fine beak structure of European goldfinches allows them to eat otherwise inaccessible seeds from thistles and teasels.Â
Lady Gouldian Finch
(Eryhrura gouldiae)
Additional Common Names: Gouldian finchÂ
Range: AustraliaÂ
Diet: SeedsÂ
Did You Know? These birds’ colors come from different sources. Gouldian finches acquire red and yellow from their diet, whereas their blue is a structural color expressed when light is reflected through nanostructures in their feathers. Green and purple are achieved through a combination of blue structural colors and carotenoid pigments. Black results from melanin pigment produced by the skin cells as the feathers are growing.Â
