Diet: Japanese White eye Mejiro

Mejiros are omnivorous, feeding primarily on insects and nectar.

• Basic diet:

  • Nectar, fruit, and insects. They do not eat seeds, so do not use baby bird formula for seed eaters.

  • Fruit Options (you can purchase the fruit in the form of organic baby food)

    • Banana

    • Mango

    • Strawberry

    • Papaya

    • Apple

    • Blueberry

    • Avoid citrus fruits which can disrupt their digestive systems. Other foods to stay away from: Avocado and Chocolate.

  • Protein Options:

    • Live crushed mealworms, crickets, beetles or grasshoppers

      • Avoid earthworms, as they can carry parasites like hairworms

    • Dried crushed mealworms, beetles or crickets, can also soak in water or Pedialyte to moisten

    • Mashed hard-boiled or scrambled egg (chicken or duck)

    • Mazuri Insectivore Diet

  • Supplemental Options:

    • Egg Food Bird Supplement (Vitakraft or Quiko)

    • Abba Green

    • Small amounts of tofu can be added

  • Dehydration supplement:

    • Unflavored Pedialyte

• How to feed:

  • Mix the 60% mashed fruit and 30% protein options and 10% supplemental options like Abba Green or Quiko

  • Give the mix on the end of a coffee stirrer or soft side of a toothpick or skewer. The baby should eat as much as it can off of it.

  • Do not shove food down the babies throat, wait for it to swallow the food before offering more.

• How often to feed:

  • Hatchlings and nestlings: fed every 5 - 15 minutes, giving them as much as they will gape for.

    • The younger the mejiro, the more frequently it needs to be fed. The time between feedings will increase as the bird grows.

    • For completely naked (non-feathered) mejiros, they will need to be fed every 5 minutes from sunrise to sunset.

  • Older nestlings: fed every 30-45 minutes.

  • Adults: every 45 minutes to 1 hour.

  • As a bird gets older, feedings can be spaced further apart.

  • Feeding must take place from sunrise to 2 hours after sunset as mejiros are extremely fragile and have high metabolisms.

• How to Ween:

  • Nestlings will start to explore and naturally peck around the cage at different things.

    1. Put soft (papaya or mango) fruit inside the cage and sprinkle with supplemental options and protein such as crushed dried mealworms. Be sure to change the fruit every 6 -8 hours to avoid molding and spoilage.

       1. Fruit Options

          • Banana

          • Papaya

          • Strawberries

          • Blueberries

          • Apples

          • Mango

    2. 3. Start to put grass, flowers filled with nectar and other leafy dark greens around the cage

  • Continue hand feeding every hour throughout the weaning process

  • Gradually decrease the amount of food given daily as they start to peck at the other food items around the cage.

  • It is important not to rush the weaning process. Some birds take longer than others to wean.

• Helpful Tips:

  • Putting smaller live insects inside the cage throughout the weaning process will encourage the bird to consume live food.

  • You can also put drops of honey throughout the cage for mejiros to enjoy.

  • Meijors generally enjoy the company of others the same age, it’s best to put multiple meijiros together so that they can socialize and eventually be released as a group. But be sure to watch out for signs of bullying such as missing feathers on their heads.