22 interesting facts about canaries

Cheerful yellow birds, canaries are loved by many people. Each of them has its own character, and it would be a mistake to assume that they are all the same. Any canary differs from relatives in the same way as one person differs from another. But they easily become completely tame and become attached to their owners, often preferring to spend time with them, rather than with their own kind.

Interesting facts about canaries

1. These birds owe their name to the Canary Islands, from where they were once taken out by Europeans. Since then, they have spread to many countries as pets.
2. Tame canaries are larger than their wild ancestors, and quite significantly, one and a half times.
3. Of all the animals and birds tamed by man, the canary is the only species in which the speech apparatus has changed as a result of domestication. The singing of modern domestic canaries has become much more musical.
4. Most canaries are small birds, but some of their breeds reach a length of 21-23 centimeters (interesting facts about birds).
5. People were engaged in breeding canaries for more than 5 centuries. The breed with the most melodic and beautiful singing, the Harz Roller, was bred in Germany.
6. Like parrots, they can remember and imitate human speech.
7. Contrary to popular stereotype, canaries are not only yellow. Their plumage colors are different – brown, red, white and others.
8. These birds can remember and then reproduce a sequence of sounds, that is, a melody.
9. Since people engaged in the domestication and breeding of canaries, about 120 different breeds of them were bred.
10. For the first time, Europeans brought these birds from the islands about 500 years ago.
11. At canary competitions, a whole commission evaluates the melodiousness of their singing.
12. Canaries brought to Europe in some regions repeatedly run wild. So, in the wild they are found on the island of Elba, the same one where the French emperor Napoleon Bonaparte was exiled in his first exile (interesting facts about Napoleon).
13. Some psychologists say that the singing of canaries has a beneficial effect on stress levels in humans, calming the nervous system.
14. These amazing birds sing throughout their lives since they grow up. And they can live up to 12-14 years.
15. Before the invention of devices for recording and playing music, canaries were taught to sing by playing melodies on pipes or other similar musical instruments.
16. These birds – social beings. Alone, they wither away, and they need to spend time either with their own kind or with a loving owner, and every day.
17. Thanks to their delicate hearing, canaries are able to pick up sounds with a frequency of 1100 to 10,000 hertz.
18. The Canary Islands belong to Spain. For a long time, the Spaniards hid the place of origin of canaries, and sold these birds for a lot of money, and only males, so that they could not be bred.
19. When keeping canaries at home, you need to let them fly around the room every day.
20. These easily tame birds really love caring owners. They get used to sitting on their shoulders or head, and eat from their hands.
21. Canaries can interbreed with some other bird species, such as goldfinches. Moreover, the offspring often also have excellent singing abilities.
22. Domestic canaries sing more beautifully than their wild ancestors, but the latter have more sound forms and elements in their arsenal – about 400.