Different species of birds have different qualities, including things like types of sounds and levels of sound loudness. Conures - like beautiful Sunny - are terribly loud! They really are obnoxious, to be honest. Sunny can drive any sane person mad at times. Sunny doesn't sing like a canary, she squawks. It's not a pretty sound, and it's LOUD! Ack! I can quiet her by putting her in her cage and covering the cage with a blanket. She actually loves that and settles down. Sometimes it must be done.

African Greys are completely different. They are stealthy, quiet, brilliant. They have the cognitive abilities of a six year old human child! Ramses can count, can ask for his favorite foods. He calls me by name. It's unnerving for those who don't realize a bird can do these things. These birds won't - and never - squawk. They will whistle beautiful tunes (well, the theme to Andy Griffith is our "flock song" and we all whistle it), they will use real human language, and they can mimic ANYTHING including the doorbell, my cell phone (a favorite, because I run for the phone and then realize it's the bird). They sound EXACTLY like what they mimic. It really is incredible. African Greys won't speak or whistle or make ANY noise if they don't know you. They just perch and stare. They only make noise in the presence of those they trust.