Parrots are one of the most charming companions in Minecraft. They sit on your shoulder, copy nearby mob sounds, and even dance to a jukebox. If you want one of these colorful friends at your base, the path is simple once you know where to look and how taming works. This guide covers every step, plus practical tips to keep your parrot safe and actually useful.
Where Parrots Spawn
Parrots only generate naturally in jungle biomes. That includes regular Jungle, Bamboo Jungle, and the edges of those zones. Jungles are warm biomes filled with tall trees, vines, cocoa beans, and often melons and bamboo. Parrots perch at ground level and up in the leaves, so it helps to scan both the canopy and the forest floor.
If you are struggling to find a jungle, travel across oceans by boat and keep an eye out for warm biome transitions like savanna and desert. Increasing your render distance makes the towering jungle trees easier to spot. Once in the jungle, slow down. Parrots are small, quiet, and can blend with leaves. Listen for chirping and watch for flashes of red, blue, green, cyan, or gray.
What You Need Before You Hunt
Bring a stack of seeds. Any seed type works for taming and healing parrots, including wheat, melon, pumpkin, and beetroot seeds. Punching tall grass along the way is an easy way to stock up. Also bring food for yourself, a bed, and some blocks for climbing or scaffolding to reach birds perched high in the canopy. A boat is handy for the trip home.
Do not bring cookies for taming. In current Minecraft, cookies are harmful to parrots and can kill them. If you have cookies in your inventory, keep them far from your hotbar while interacting with birds.
How Taming a Parrot Works
Approach the parrot slowly so it does not wander off. Hold seeds and use your interact button on the parrot. Taming is chance based, so plan to use several seeds. Hearts will appear when the parrot is successfully tamed. A tamed parrot gets a subtle collar mark and will try to follow you. You can toggle sit and stand by interacting with it again.
If the parrot flies up to a branch, build up with blocks to get back in range. Placing temporary leaves, scaffolding, or ladders allows you to close distance without spooking the bird. It is easier to tame during the day when you are not dodging hostile mobs.
Getting Your Parrot Home Safely
There are three reliable ways to travel with a parrot.
First, use the shoulder method. Walk into your standing parrot and stop briefly. It will hop onto your shoulder, and you can start moving. You can actually carry two parrots at once, one on each shoulder. Be aware of dismount triggers. Jumping, taking damage, entering water, or descending sharply can cause a shoulder parrot to hop off. If you need to cross a river, bridge over, or place blocks to avoid splashing down.
Second, boat it. Parrots can ride in boats. Nudge or gently push the parrot into a boat, then hop in and row home. Boats are excellent for long overland hauls because they ignore many obstacles when moved across ice or waterways. If your route is mostly land, place short water channels or just pick up the boat with the bird inside and replace it a few blocks ahead to leapfrog your way home.
Third, teleport behavior. If the parrot is standing and following, it can teleport to you when you are far enough away, similar to cats and wolves. This is helpful but not fully predictable in dense terrain. If you are crossing caves or cliffs, the boat method is safer.
Keeping Parrots Alive
Parrots have low health, so treat them like glass. Avoid water, cactus, sweet berry bushes, lava, and campfires along your route. If your parrot takes damage, heal it with seeds. Feeding seeds to a tamed parrot restores health, so keep extras for the trek home. At base, give your parrot a safe corner away from hazards. Make them sit so they do not wander into danger or teleport into a fight you did not plan for.
Never feed a parrot a cookie. This is worth repeating because the mistake is easy to make. Cookies are not a treat. They are a death sentence for parrots in Minecraft.
Using Parrots for Gameplay Advantages
Parrots are not just cosmetic. They mimic nearby mob sounds, which can act as an early warning system. If you are mining and your parrot suddenly imitates a creeper or a skeleton, assume the real thing is within range and act accordingly. The mimicry uses a different pitch, so learn the cues and you will catch threats before they catch you.
Parrots also dance when a jukebox plays a music disc. It is purely for fun, but it makes a nice morale boost at base. If you want a lively vibe in your common room, place a jukebox and let the parrots do their thing.
Shoulder Mechanics You Should Know
Shoulder perching is automatic when you walk through your standing parrot. The bird will sit on you until you trigger a dismount. Jumping makes parrots hop off. Taking damage and entering water also dismounts them. Sneaking can force a hop off as well, which is helpful if you want the bird on the ground before you climb or fight. If you carry two parrots, any dismount event will put them both back on the ground.
If your parrot keeps hopping onto your shoulder while you build, make it sit before starting a project. This prevents accidental falls when you jump between scaffolds. When you finish, stand it up and it will follow again.
Can You Breed Parrots in Minecraft
No. Parrots cannot be bred. There are no eggs, nests, or baby parrots in survival. If you want multiple parrots, you must tame them individually. If you plan to decorate a big base with parrots in different rooms, grab extra seeds and tame several while you are already in the jungle.
Java and Bedrock Notes
Parrot behavior is nearly identical across Java and Bedrock. They spawn in jungle variants on both editions, tame with any seeds, cannot be bred, ride on shoulders, and dance to jukeboxes. Interact controls differ by platform, but the steps and results are the same. Parrots cannot be leashed with leads on either edition, so plan around boats, teleport follow, and shoulder riding for transport.
What To Do If Your Parrot Disappears
Tamed parrots do not despawn, but they can get left behind if you sprint through complex terrain or take long falls that force a dismount. Backtrack along your path and listen for the chirps and mimicry. If you cannot find the bird, return to the last safe area where you know it perched or sat. Once you get close enough, it will often teleport to you. To avoid this issue on long trips, stop periodically and check that your parrot is still with you, either on your shoulder or nearby.
Simple Step-By-Step: From Jungle To Home
Enter a jungle biome and gather at least one stack of seeds. Move slowly and watch for parrots at ground level and in leaves. When you find one, use seeds until hearts appear and the bird is tamed. Toggle it to stand, then choose your travel method. For the shoulder route, walk into the parrot to perch it and avoid jumping or water. For the boat route, push the parrot into a boat and row home. Heal with seeds if it takes damage, and set it to sit once you reach your base.
Quick Answers To Common Parrot Questions
Where do parrots spawn in Minecraft
In jungle biomes, including bamboo variants. Look both on the ground and in tree canopies.
What do parrots eat in Minecraft
Seeds for taming and healing. Never cookies.
How many seeds does taming take
It is chance based. Bring plenty. A stack is comfortable and covers multiple attempts.
Can parrots ride in boats
Yes. Push them into a boat, then drive. This is the safest transport method across long distances.
Will my parrot follow me
Yes, when set to stand. It will try to keep up and can teleport, and it may hop on your shoulder when you walk into it.
Do parrots despawn
Tamed parrots do not despawn. Untamed parrots can despawn if you leave the area, so tame quickly if you find a color you like.
Can I have two parrots at once
Yes. One on each shoulder if both are standing and you walk into them.
Extra Tips For Finding And Taming Faster
Search jungles during daytime for better visibility and safety. Climb using scaffolding or ladders to reach parrots sitting high in leaves. If a parrot is perched just out of reach, place a block beneath it to raise yourself into range rather than chasing it through the branches. Carry a jukebox and a disc for fun, but wait until you are home to party. In a jungle full of creepers, the dancing can get you distracted at the worst time.
With seeds in your pocket and a plan for the trip home, you can add a colorful parrot to your Minecraft world in a single in-game day. Treat it gently, keep cookies out of the picture, and you will have a watchful, musical companion perched at your side.