Painted Parakeet

Overview

The painted parakeet, also known as the painted conure in aviculture, is a species of bird in the family Psittacidae. It is a member of the genus Pyrrhura and is native to northeastern South America.

Identification

• Length of 20 to 23 cm with a weight of 46 to 85 g for the nominate subspecies, with sexes being identical in appearance.
• Plumage features a blue forehead to hindcrown that transitions to deep maroon on the hindcrown and nape, with mostly green upperparts and a dull red lower back and rump.
• A narrow blue collar sits below the nape, while the face is maroon with a ring of bare grayish skin around the eye and whitish ear coverts.
• Wings are mostly green with a red carpal area and blue primaries, and the tail is mostly maroon with a green base.

Habitat

Found from southeastern Venezuela to the Guianas and northern Amazonian Brazil, the species inhabits terra firme and várzea forests, forested savanna, and coastal sand-ridge forest. It mostly occurs in the lowlands but has been recorded at elevations up to 1,800 m.

Diet

The painted parakeet feeds on the fruits, seeds, and flowers of a very wide variety of plants and trees. It typically forages in flocks of up to approximately 30 individuals.

Did you know?

The species was initially described in 1776 by Philipp Statius Müller, who mistakenly cited the Comte de Buffon as his source, although Buffon's publication actually appeared in 1779, three years after Müller's work.