Green parakeet

Green parakeet
Nominate in south Texas, United States
Scientific classification
Kingdom: Animalia
Phylum: Chordata
Class: Aves
Order: Psittaciformes
Superfamily: Psittacoidea
Family: Psittacidae
Subfamily: Arinae
Tribe: Arini
Genus: Psittacara
Species: P. holochlorus
Binomial name
Psittacara holochlorus
(Sclater, 1859)

The green parakeet (Psittacara holochlorus), is a medium-sized parrot that is native to Central America, from the southernmost tip of Texas south to northern Nicaragua. The Pacific parakeet, formerly considered a distinct species, is now placed herein as a subspecies Psittacara holochlorus strenuus.[2]

Description

The bird is 32 cm in length, and is mostly green in color. It also has a yellow beak. The bird feeds on seeds, various fruits, and corn. It can sometimes be considered a crop pest. Wild birds primarily use scrub and swamp forests, woodlands, and forest clearings. The US population takes advantage of palm groves in cities.[2]

Ecology

Green parakeet pairs usually find holes in trees to nest in where the female lays three or four eggs. It will also nest colonially in crevices on cliff faces. After the breeding season is completed, the birds will form large communal roosts.[2]

Distribution

The species occurs from southern Texas and northern Mexico (including P. h. strenuus on Socorro Island) south through the Middle American isthmus to south-western Nicaragua. It inhabits a variety of woody habitats.[1]

The status of populations in southern Texas is unclear, with some claiming them to be feral escapees. However, the groups in the Rio Grande Valley are now generally regarded as naturally occurring because of the proximity of confirmed native populations, the deforestation of Tamaulipas which forced them to disperse, and earlier evidence from 1911 of these parakeets consuming a strawberry harvest at Combs.[3]

References

  1. 1 2 BirdLife International (2014). "Psittacara holochlorus". IUCN Red List of Threatened Species. Version 2014.3. International Union for Conservation of Nature. Retrieved 16 November 2014.
  2. 1 2 3 Josep del Hoyo; Andrew Elliott; Jordi Sargatal, eds. (2009). Handbook of the Birds of the World. 4. Buteo Books.
  3. ↑ "The Texas Breeding Bird Atlas: Green Parakeet". Dept. of Wildlife and Fisheries Sciences. Retrieved 30 October 2016.

Further reading

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