Hi, Evi! Thanks for the reply with more details. Now, eye color was thought to be an indication of age but we now know that not all senegals get darker eyes (some say this is due to lack of direct sunlight but, in reality, nobody knows) and some are born with darker eyes. My own have light yellow irises and Sweetpea is now 24 or 25 and Zoey is 14 so your Daki could, very well, be older than you think - in which case, he could be overly hormonal so let's go to the light schedule and diet (two things that trigger sexual hormone release out of season - there are three environmental triggers: light, diet and weather but weather disappears in captivity because it's always good in a human home).
All birds are photoperiodic -long word that means that their endocrine system is governed by amount and quality of light- so they all have to be kept at a strict solar schedule so as to keep their endocrine system working well and in tune with the seasons (this is what we call the circannual cycle). If you keep a bird at a human light schedule, their endocrine system gets all confused and can't tell which season of the year it is (molting? breeding? resting?), it also affects their eating and sleeping patterns (circadian cycle) and depresses their immune system (research avian photoperiodism, avian endocrine system and avian reproductive system). Male senegals that are overly hormonal tend to be aggressive (all animals react the same way to high doses of testosterone) and I well know how hard a male senegal can bite (Sweetpea is the only bird I've had -and I had an average of 240 in the rescue- that I've been afraid of).
Then diet, a diet high in protein brings them into breeding condition. Why? Because high protein is only available during breeding season (which is one of the reasons why they evolved to breed at a certain time during the year as they need the rich food to raise babies). Pellets usually have a minimum of 17% protein (no pellet gives you the exact amount of protein you are feeding -another problem with them) and that is not that very high for senegals (African parrots need a bit more protein than American parrots) but if what he eats from morning to night is mostly pellets, it would have an effect.
Last but not least, one hour a day out-of-cage is not anywhere near enough for them. They need a minimum of 4 hours of out-of-cage and, with senegals, that usually means the same 4 hours of one-on-one because they need A LOT of attention. Some species are needier than others... amazons, for example, are usually happy with an open cage so they can climb in and out but other species need close contact (like grays and senegals) and many more hours while others need not only the hours but also actual touch (like cockatoos and GCCs).
So, this is what I would do:
1) Keep the bird at a strict solar schedule. That means access to windows so they get the benefit of being exposed to the light of dawn and dusk -this means no artificial lights on until the sun is out and the rays are streaming into the room and, again, no artificial lights once the sun is halfway down to the horizon with almost absolute darkness after it sets.
2) Reduce protein during the resting season (what we call winter). See recipes for gloop in this same forum.
3) Allow much more out-of-cage time.
Mind you, this is not going to make a change right away because the longer their endocrine system has been screwed up, the longer it will take to get everything back as it should be. I've had birds that have taken up to four seasons to get back on track. Parrots are not easy pets. I've cared for all kinds of animals, dogs, cats, horses, birds and even wild animals that I had to raise and parrots are -BY FAR- the most difficult because it takes a loooong time for them to feel comfortable in their new home and you need to put A LOT of work into bonding with them. All my parrots came from somewhere/somebody else and, when they first come to me what I do is leave them in their cage for the first few days (even up to two weeks because it's case-by-case). This is not only to give them time to adjust to their new home but also because I switch them to my diet and want to monitor their intake to make sure they are eating enough. Then I open the cage at the same time I open all the other cages (when the sky is lit enough so there is a little bit of light) and take out their leftover dinner (so they cannot eat the nuts or seeds that were left from the night before). I clean their cages, put out fresh water and produce (one green, one veggie, one fruit - a different one each day of the week) - wait a bit and then give them their gloop when I put them back into their cages so they can eat their breakfast. I wait about 10 or 15 minutes and then open the cages again. When the sun is beginning to set, I put them back in their cages and give them dinner - after they eat it, they go to roost and sleep all night long. Easy peasy lemon squeezy, right?
Nope! It's actually hard because you need to be there every single day at dawn and at dusk and that means being home latest 3 pm during the winter and getting up 4:30 am in the summer. Bummer big time!
I've been doing it for many years so I am used to it but it's very hard at the beginning because your entire life revolves around this schedule.
Training is good but you need to bond with the bird before you start training because parrots were not created to 'obey' (like dogs are, for example), they all make their own decisions (flock are not hierarchical, all birds in the flock have the same status so there are no bosses) so you need to make the bird want to please you and he will not want to unless he loves you. So, wait on the training but do give him a treat every now and then. Not as a reward or a bribe but as a gift from you to him, a token of your desire to be his friend. They are VERY smart and excellent at reaching conclusions based on humans actions, words and tone of voice because they are also masters of the body language. I confess that I do not 'train' my birds in the sense that I do not hold formal training sessions. What I do is teach them as we go by repetition, encouragement and praise when they do it right. And it must work because my birds not only know many words and phrases but are also quite obedient - not for tricks or anything like that but useful things like going back into their cages ("Go home!") or not eating or touching something ("NO! Don't touch!").
Do not underestimate his intelligence or his need for love. I personally believe that senegals are one of the smartest parrots there are -my Sweetpea actually has cognitive speech- as well as the sweetest when they love you -my Zoey is the most loving little thing to the point that I can do anything with her. But they are also very stubborn and quite unforgiving when they feel you have wronged them. What I am trying to say is that you do much better thinking of him as a little person than an animal. He is most likely not only biting you because he is hormonal but also because you are keeping him in jail almost all day long... think of it... it's only the worst criminals that are kept locked in 23 out of the 24 hours in the day and, as far as he knows, he hasn't done anything to deserve this. Like I said, they do reach their own conclusions and, most likely, he is blaming you for his lack of freedom. Is keeping a bird out of cage for hours and hours and hours a pain in the neck? You bet! You have to monitor them closely or they'll eat your furniture, moldings, walls, etc, and no matter what you do and how closely you watch them, there will be damage. They will also poop and throw food all over the place. But, when they bond with you, there is no friend more loyal, more loving, more forgiving or more entertaining than them. So be patient and treat him right and you will have the best companion you could possibly hope for.