Blossom-headed parakeet
Scientific classification Edit this classification
Domain: Eukaryota
Kingdom: Animalia
Phylum: Chordata
Class: Aves
Order: Psittaciformes
Family: Psittaculidae
Genus: Psittacula
Species:
P. roseata
Binomial name
Psittacula roseata
Biswas, 1951
Synonyms
  • Himalayapsitta roseata Biswas, 1951

The blossom-headed parakeet (Psittacula roseata) is a parrot in the family Psittaculidae.

Taxonomy

Two subspecies are recognised:[2]

  • P. r. roseata Biswas, 1951 – West Bengal (India) to Bangladesh
  • P. r. juneae Biswas, 1951 – northeast India and north Myanmar to Indochina

Description

Psittacula roseata

Himalayapsitta roseata is a lime-green parrot,[3] 30 cm (12 in) long with a tail up to 18 cm (7.1 in). The male's head is pink becoming pale blue on the back of the crown, nape and cheeks. There is a narrow black neck collar and a black chin stripe. There is a red shoulder patch and the rump and tail are bluish-green, the latter tipped yellow. The upper mandible is yellow, and the lower mandible is dark. The female has a pale grey head and lacks the black neck collar[3] and chin stripe patch. The lower mandible is pale. Immature birds have a green head and a grey chin. Both mandibles are yellowish and there is no red shoulder patch.[4] The different head colour and the yellow tip to the tail distinguish this species from the similar plum-headed parakeet (H. cyanocephala).

Distribution and habitat

Near Inthanon Highland Resort - Thailand

This species is a resident breeder in Eastern Bangladesh, Bhutan, Northeast India and Nepal, eastwards into South-east Asia (Cambodia, Laos, Myanmar, Thailand and Viet Nam) and also China.[1] Blossom-headed parakeet inhabits lowland and foothill open forests and forest edges. [3]

Behaviour and ecology

Blossom-headed parakeet nests in holes in trees, laying 4-5 white eggs. It undergoes local movements, driven mainly by the availability of the fruit and blossoms which make up its diet. It is a gregarious and noisy species with range of raucous calls. [5]

Bibliography

  • Grimmett, Inskipp y Inskipp, Birds of India ISBN 0-691-04910-6
  • Josep del Hoyo, Andrew Elliott, Jordi Sargatal (Hrsg.): Handbook of the Birds of the World. Volume 4: Sandgrouse to Cuckoos. Lynx Edicions, Barcelona, 1997. ISBN 8487334229
  • Joseph Michael Forshaw: Parrots of the World - An Identification Guide. Princeton University Press, Princeton 2006, ISBN 978-0-691-09251-5.

References

  • Birds of India by Grimmett, Inskipp and Inskipp, ISBN 0-691-04910-6
Wikispecies has information related to Blossom-headed parakeet.
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  1. 1 2 BirdLife International (2017) [amended version of 2016 assessment]. "Himalayapsitta roseata". IUCN Red List of Threatened Species. 2017: e.T22685486A111365871. doi:10.2305/IUCN.UK.2017-1.RLTS.T22685486A111365871.en. Retrieved 10 January 2020.
  2. ↑ Gill, Frank; Donsker, David; Rasmussen, Pamela, eds. (July 2023). "Parrots, cockatoos". IOC World Bird List Version 13.2. International Ornithologists' Union. Retrieved 28 October 2023.
  3. 1 2 3 ebird
  4. ↑ Word Parrot Trust
  5. ↑ xeno-canto
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