breeding conures

Question
Is it true that a black capped conure and a green cheek conure cannot produce fertile eggs? If they do, does this mess with the bird's gene pool? Thank you!

Answer
hi. thanks for your question. it is actually pretty interesting.
it is true that conures from different sub-species can breed. when i say sub-species, i mean the different mutations within one species. for example, within the Pyrrhura species, there are different conures, including the black capped and green cheek. within the Aratinga species, there are sun conures and jenday conures and so on. perhaps you have heard of the "Sunday" conure which is a mix of a sun and jenday conure. there is also the "Nansun" which is a sun and nanday conure.  these pairings worked out because they remained within the Aratinga species.
since the black capped and green cheek are of the same species, i would think that they would be able to produce eggs that were fertile.  in fact, fertile eggs are considered to be a sign of a successful hybrid. however, a green cheek/black cap would not be a true "hybrid" as they are both Pyrrhuras. am wondering if you are thinking about the fact that mules supposedly cannot have offspring because they themselves are the product of a mixture of two species.
anyway, although i have never heard of a black cap/green cheek mix, it doesn't mean that it hasn't happened! since they are sub species of a same species, i don't think it would "mess" with their gene pool. i hope this helps!  alicia