Agapornis taranta or the Abyssinian lovebird rare in American aviculture.

Abyssinian pair; male is on the right

Also knowns as the black-winged lovebird, this is a sexually dimorphic lovebird species. The male on the right as you can see has a red forehead and red ring around the eye. The female has no red on the forehead (right). Peachfaced, Fischer’s, and Masked lovebirds are NOT dimorphic – which means they have similar color so you can’t tell them apart visually.

The natural habitat of Abyssinians ranges from southern Eritrea to southwestern Ethiopia.  They tend to be found on the high plains and mountainous regions.

The size is about 6-61/2 inches, making them the largest of the lovebird species.

Diet is typical of lovebirds, but they need a higher fat content. Janet Landvater recommends adding an ample supply of sunflower seeds to the diet to meet this need, and she supplements hand-feeding formula with peanut butter.

They also like corn, apples, and mission figs.

Abyssinian lovebirds