Ask Lafeber

Black eye hybrid conure

I got a bird off of someone and they had her DNA papers done and clearly says female and we got her at 4 months old but she keeps trying to mate with my hand makes me feel like she a male.. would like to know what you think? Thank you..

Hi,

That does sound more like a male behavior, but some females will do that. Since this is a hybrid, it is entirely possible that the DNA test was wrong. When these tests were first developed, the margin for error was only 1%, and this would be due to human error with collecting the sample or at the lab when setting the test up. While it is considered routine, there is always that 1% chance. Also, the tests are species-specific, and results for hybrids may not be not guaranteed. There is a short list of hybrids that have a control sample on file, and this is at the lab that developed the tests. It depends on what lab ran the test. You can check to see if your hybrid is listed. If not, then the test may not be valid.

https://avian2.animalgenetics.com/Avian/Species.asp?Cat=Conure-Hybrid&sortby=Common

Thank you for asking Lafeber,

Brenda