Buff-faced Pygmy Parrot

Buff-faced Pygmy Parrot
Conservation status
Least Concern (IUCN 3.1)[1]
Scientific classification
Kingdom:	Animalia
Phylum:	Chordata
Class:	Aves
Order:	Psittaciformes
Family:	Psittacidae
Genus:	Micropsitta
Species:	M. pusio
Binomial name
Micropsitta pusio (Sclater, 1866)

The Buff-faced Pygmy Parrot (Micropsitta pusio) is a species of parrot in the Psittacidae family. It is found in subtropical or tropical moist lowland forests in West Papua, Indonesia and Papua New Guinea.

Little-studied, it is known mainly for being the world's smallest parrot,^[2] at 11.5 g (0.41 oz) and 8.6 cm (3.4 in).^[3]

The species was first described as Nasiterna pusio by English naturalist Philip Lutley Sclater in 1866. The genus name Micropsitta is derived from the Greek mikros meaning small and psitta for parrot.^[4] The specific name is the Latin pũsǐõ, which means "little boy".^[5]

Four subspecies have been described, although their status has been questioned. The type subspecies, pusio, occurs on the Bismarck Archipelago and southeastern New Guinea; birds of Fergusson Island in the D'Entrecasteaux Archipelago have blue-tinged throats and less distinct markings and are described as harterti; birds of Misima and Tagula Islands in the Louisiade Archipelago are slightly larger and have more yellowish underparts and are described as subspecies stresemanni; and those that range in western New Guinea from Cenderawasih Bay to the Kumusi River have darker plumage overall and are named subspecies beccarii.^[3]

The male and female are similar in appearance, the plumage mainly green with a yellowish tone on the underparts. The cheeks, face, and crown are buff (hence the common name). There is a dark blue patch on the top of the head back to the occiput. Head markings are smaller in females, and facial colour paler. The eyes are dark brown and the bill is grey, and legs are greyish with blue or pinkish tints. Immature birds lack the blue crown, replacing it with green, and the buff colour is less distinct.^[3]

Buff-faced Pygmy Parrots are found across the northern lowlands of the island of New Guinea from the west to the southeastern tip up to an altitude of around 800 m, as well as in the Bismarck Archipelago. They inhabit subtropical or tropical moist lowland forests. They are found in small groups of up to six birds and are highly active, hopping around on tree trunks.

References

1. ^ BirdLife International (2008). Micropsitta pusio. In: IUCN 2008. IUCN Red List of Threatened Species. Downloaded on 31 May 2009.
2. ^ Judge H, Coe M, Doll R, Toyne A (1985). Coe, Malcolm. ed. Oxford Illustrated Encyclopedia: The natural world. Oxford University Press. p. 242. 
3. ^ ^{a b c} Forshaw, Joseph M.; Cooper, William T. (1981) [1973, 1978]. Parrots of the World (corrected second edition ed.). David & Charles, Newton Abbot, London. p. 149. ISBN 0-7153-7698-5. 
4. ^ Liddell, Henry George and Robert Scott (1980). A Greek-English Lexicon (Abridged Edition). United Kingdom: Oxford University Press. ISBN 0-19-910207-4. 
5. ^ Simpson DP (1979). Cassell's Latin Dictionary (5 ed.). London: Cassell Ltd.. pp. 883. ISBN 0-304-52257-0. 

External links

Wikispecies has an entry on: Buff-faced Pygmy Parrot.

• Buff-faced Pygmy Parrot at the Encyclopedia of Life
• Walker, Matt (8 September 2009). "World's smallest parrot filmed". BBC Earth News. http://news.bbc.co.uk/earth/hi/earth_news/newsid_8236000/8236410.stm.