A Brief History of the Budgerigar
Budgerigars have ancestors that stretch back for millennia. In fact, these birds first appeared on earth long before humans. They are native to Australia, and the first humans who came into contact with them were most likely the aborigines of that land. The first recorded description of the budgerigar was made in 1805 by an English zoologist and botanist named George Shaw. The first budgerigar was brought to Europe by an English ornithologist named John Gould in 1840, and the first captive breeding began just a decade later during the 1850s. Although the first recorded color variation wasn’t made until 1870, a wide variety of variations followed shortly thereafter. The budgerigar’s popularity as a household pet rose dramatically during the 20th century, and the bird continues to be a very popular pet to this day.