rainbow lorrikeet behaviour

Question
hi there,i have a 4mth old rainbow lorrikeet that is just wonderful.The only problem is he is starting to bite a little hard lately.I wonder if it is because i only let him out for 20 min at a time about 8 times a day.Is that enough?He eats well and is an absolute delight to our children.Any tips would be appreciated ta

Answer
hi. thanks for your question. congrats on your new baby! if your bird were older, i would wonder if perhaps he is coming in to sexual maturity (birds can become a little nippy around sexual maturity time and expect this to happen to your lori when he is about 1 1/2 to 2 years old!) since he is still a baby, i am going to insert an excerpt from a previous questioner who had the same question about her Senegal parrot. (parrot behavior is pretty similar across the board for all species of parrots in general!)
"you will need to start "laying down the law" and curbing the biting behavior immediately. otherwise, once he knows that he can keep you away by biting, he will continue to do so. my guess is that he got comfortable with his new surroundings..sometimes, new birds will be so intimidated by their new homes and new people that they will go through a "honeymoon" period and be little angels. it sounds like he is getting acclimated to his new home. this is good since it means that he is "relaxing" but also troublesome because he is feeling comfortable enough to start setting his own "boundaries" by biting.  just know that if you work with him long enough you can definitely have a wonderful little parrot pet for many years to come.
curbing biting behavior is a process and in the interest of time and space, i am going to give you a link to a wonderful article that addresses how to curb biting in parrots..its is called "taking the bite out of biting": http://www3.upatsix.com/liz/articles/biting2.html
I hope that that those help. Please be patient with him and I always try to remind people that birds are like children. When children do not have limits set for them, they can run wild. But there is always a chance for a parent to "take back" control if they are willing to take time and be patient."

i hope that this helps you. again, it is good to start "laying down the law" early. as far as you spending time with him, 20 minutes a day for that amount per day is more than adequate and i would not attribute that as being the cause for his biting. kudos to you for spending that much time with him! the more you work with him, the more well behaved he should be but on the other hand, the more opportunities he has to 'test' you with those bites! i am also glad he is good with your children. birds can be a wonderful way to introduce pets to children. however, this is even more of a reason to curb the biting early. many parents end up having to get rid of their parrots after bites to their children and i would hate to see that happen (my parents got rid of their beautiful Amazon after a bite to my upper lip as a toddler!)
good luck and let me know how it goes! alicia