FINCHforum

I just purchased some hanging fluorescent shop lights for my bird room. The only type of bulbs that seemed remotely close to "full spectrum" lighting was the Plant and Aquarium bulbs. I have searched the internet to see if these are the right type for the birds but have had no luck. Does anyone know if they are the right spectrum to give my birds their vitamin D?

The bulbs that truly give the best lighting for birds are those that are about 5500K with a CRI of at least 92, according to some articles I have read. I just use the inexpensive 'daylight' or 'sunshine' bulbs that you can find at any big box home improvement store, and depend on egg food and supplementation to provide the D3. I have far too many cages to be able to afford to light them with the avian specialty bulbs. If I had only one or two cages, then I would go for the avian bulbs, I think they would be worth it in that case.

I use the zoomed uva/uvb bulbs. The one that is 5.0 on the box. Sometimes, I buy the generic ones they sell at PetSmart, next to the zoomed bulbs. They don't last as long as zoomed though.

Thanks for the info! I just looked up "sunshine bulbs" on the Orchard Supply Hardware site and according to the description it is an actual full spectrum bulb. I was afraid that the word "sunshine" meant that it just copies the glow of the sun. If I was to use the plant lights, my offspring would be mostly female because of the emphasis on the blue and red spectrum.
Sally, I too have to many cages to buy individual lights. They are the 30x18x18 stacked 3 high, so I hang a 48 inch light vertical on the wall behind so each pair receives plenty of light and not just the birds in the top cage. Since there is no central lighting in the room it serves 2 purposes. The lights also show them off nicely.

No light can supply vitamin d3 to birds...

You will need to supplement it through food....boiled eggs or soluvite d breeder

Here are a couple of articles on avian lighting that may help you.

PROPER LIGHTING TO SUPPORT AVIAN VISION
https://mickaboo.org/confluence/downloa ... ummary.pdf

LIGHTING FOR FlNCHES AND OTHER CAGED BIRDS
http://www.naturallighting.com/cart/sto ... sc_page=56

I would not depend on the lights to give your bird Vitamin D because of all the factors involved. I do however believe that our birds need a natural color spectrum for a host of reasons mentioned in those articles. So I would supplement them lighting if they are kept in a windowless room but for Vitamin D I would be sure to supplement with a commercial supplement readily available in your area or hard boiled eggs, shell and all.

best of luck

Thanks for the great articles debbie276. I never knew that birds were so affected by the type and amount of light.

You can also find the full-spectrum bulbs marketed as reptile lights.
Virtually all fit the 5500K / 92+ CRI criteria.

Using reptile lights has come up before. Be careful of the numbers and as long as they are not rated higher then recommended they should be OK.

Thanks Debbie, for the lighting websites. Very informative. I had wondered about the UV-B lighting, as an avian technician told me that it could cause blindness in birds & not to use it.

I use the long shop light fixtures (great for 5 ft long flights) and full spectrum and sun sticks in mine. I also supplement the diet with a powdered vitamin, mineral and amino acid product called AviVita Gold by AviTech...it also contains D3 and Calcium (some vitamins products lack the calcium so you will need to supplement it especially for egg laying hens)

By they Finchaholic....love the name, so happens to be our facebook groups name, the group was started about 3 years ago.

Cindy - Weren't you trying out LED lights as well? How are you liking those?

Cindy,thanks for the pic. Your cage looks lovely, and i will look for your group on facebook. I picked the "finchaholic" name many about 7 years ago when I had over a hundred zebras. It fit at the time.
The Hearty Bird and Calcium Plus that Im giving them both contain Vitamin D3 so Im not going to worry so much about the type of lighting I use. Im going to try the "sunshine bulbs" or Philips TL-950 as stated in the article that Debbie276 posted. It seems that there are a lot more factors involved in lighting other than just spectrum, such as heat, distance, CRI, etc.

Colt wrote: Cindy - Weren't you trying out LED lights as well? How are you liking those?

Yes, they are working out well on three long flights of Scarlet chested. They stay cooler and I may use these in the bird room along the walls for added light. They are also suppose to last longer.

That's good to know.