Parrots are one of the most mysterious Minecraft mobs because of the low spawn chance, only 0.2%. Additionally, they only spawn in Jungle and Bamboo Jungle biomes in Java Edition, with the addition of Jungle Edge, limited to Bedrock Edition. As if that wasn’t enough, these birds only spawn on limited blocks: grass blocks, leaves, and logs. But taming them is very much worth it. They can follow or teleport to you, perch on your shoulder, swim, survive fall damage, imitate sounds of nearby mobs, and even dance. And because food is key to their trust, let’s answer, “what do parrots eat in Minecraft?”
1. Parrots consume this in Minecraft
We mentioned food is key to obtaining their trust. That’s because it plays a crucial part in taming parrots in Minecraft. With that said, parrots eat these food items in Minecraft:
- Wheat Seeds
- Melon Seeds
- Beetroot Seeds
- Pumpkin Seeds
- Cookies (Lethal!)
2. Never give this food to parrots in Minecraft
We mentioned cookies are fatal to parrots, and we weren’t kidding. Feeding a cookie to a parrot in Minecraft does this:
- In Java Edition, it kills the parrot instantly, oozing Poison particles around its body.
- In Bedrock Edition, it infects the parrot with Fatal Poison, leading to its eventual but not instantaneous death.
Why doesn’t Mojang forbid feeding cookies to parrots?
Back in May 2017, Mojang made parrots able to consume cookies based on a reference from a Nirvana song named Polly. But, instead of appreciation, they faced backlash. Players pointed out that chocolate is toxic and potentially deadly to parrots in real life, as their digestive system is unable to process it. This, obviously, posed a risk of kids emulating their in-game actions with terrible real-life consequences. So, instead of removing the functionality in the 1.12 update, Mojang made the in-game outcome match the real one, to serve as an educational tool.
3. How to feed a parrot in Minecraft
Instructions for feeding a parrot in Minecraft are identical to those in step 3 of our Minecraft pumpkin carving guide. Only instead of Shears, you should hold any of the food items mentioned above. Another key difference is that, unlike Shears, food items are consumed when used on parrots.