Dusky-headed Parakeet

Dusky-headed Parakeet
At Beale Park, Reading, Berkshire, England
Conservation status
Least Concern (IUCN 3.1)
Scientific classification
Kingdom:	Animalia
Phylum:	Chordata
Class:	Aves
Order:	Psittaciformes
Family:	Psittacidae
Genus:	Aratinga
Species:	A. weddellii
Binomial name
Aratinga weddellii (Deville, 1851)

The Dusky-headed Parakeet (Aratinga weddellii), also known as the or Weddell's Conure or Dusky-headed Conure in aviculture, is a species of parrot found in wooded habitats in the western Amazon Basin. It prefers semi-open habitats such as várzea, forest edge and forest remnants, but can also be found in coffee plantations. It is generally common and its habitat preference makes it less vulnerable than many other Amazonian species. Consequently, it is considered to be of least concern by BirdLife International and IUCN.

This long-tailed species is generally green in color (both lutino and blue mutations are rare, but do exist in captivity) with a gray-brown head, a blue-tipped tail and remiges that are dark gray from below, mainly blue from above. The bill is black, and it has a broad bare white (sometimes yellow-tinged) eye-ring. With an average length of 25–28 cm (10–11 in) and a weight of about 100 grams, it is slightly smaller than the Sun Conure.

It is social, and usually found in pairs or small groups. When food is plentiful, it may form flocks of up to 100 members. It eats fruit, seeds, and flowers, and will search decaying wood for insect larvae. It also ingests mineral-rich soil, e.g. from a clay lick, as a supplement. The pair raise their offspring together, nesting in woodpecker holes in trees or arboreal termite nests.

With macaws and amazons at a clay lick in Ecuador. Consuming clay is believed to provide a mineral supplement and neutralise toxins in their diet.

They do well in captivity.^{[citation needed]} They are fairly easy to breed if provided with a durable nest box, and will lay up to three clutches per year.^{[citation needed]} They are known to be quiet, compared to other conure species, but still very energetic and clownish, like most conures.^{[citation needed]}

References

• Juniper, T.; Parr, M. (1998). A Guide to the Parrots of the World. East Sussex: Pica Press. ISBN 1-873403-40-2. 
• BirdLife International (2008). Aratinga weddellii. In: IUCN 2008. IUCN Red List of Threatened Species. Downloaded on 17 November 2008. Database entry includes a brief justification of why this species is near threatened.

External links

• "Dusky-headed Parakeet - BirdLife Species Factsheet". BirdLife International (2008). http://www.birdlife.org/datazone/species/index.html?action=SpcHTMDetails.asp&sid=1575&m=0. Retrieved 3 January 2009. 

This article relating to parrots is a stub. You can help Wikipedia by expanding it.v · Categories: IUCN Red List least concern species Parrots Aratinga Birds of the Amazon Basin Birds of South America Birds of Colombia Birds of Ecuador Birds of Peru Birds of Bolivia Birds of Brazil Birds kept as pets Animals described in 1851 Parrot stubs Wikimedia Foundation. 2010. Игры ⚽ Поможем написать реферат Ressurreição San Diego County-Imperial County Regional Communications System Look at other dictionaries: dusky-headed parakeet — melsvagalvė aratinga statusas T sritis zoologija | vardynas atitikmenys: lot. Aratinga weddellii angl. dusky headed parakeet vok. Weddellsittich, m rus. буроголовая аратинга, f pranc. conure de Weddell, f ryšiai: platesnis terminas – tikrosios… …   Paukščių pavadinimų žodynas List of birds of Brazil — Brazil has one of the richest bird diversities in the world, with more than 1700 species of birds, about 57% of the bird species recorded for all of South America. These numbers are still increasing, almost every year, due to new occurrences or… …   Wikipedia List of birds of Colombia — This is a list of the bird species recorded in Colombia. The avifauna of Colombia includes a total of 1895 species, of which 74 are endemic, 2 have been introduced by humans, and 87 are rare or accidental. 1 species listed is extirpated in… …   Wikipedia List of birds of Ecuador — This is a list of the bird species recorded in Ecuador. The avifauna of Ecuador includes a total of 1663 species, of which 16 are endemic, 2 have been introduced by humans, and 19 are rare or accidental. 77 species are globally threatened.This… …   Wikipedia List of birds of Peru — This is a list of the bird species recorded in Peru. The avifauna of Peru includes a total of 1879 species, of which 139 are endemic, 3 have been introduced by humans, and 72 are rare or accidental. 91 species are globally threatened.This list s… …   Wikipedia List of birds of Bolivia — This is a list of the bird species recorded in Bolivia. The avifauna of Bolivia includes a total of 1448 species, of which 25 are endemic, 2 have been introduced by humans, and 12 are rare or accidental. 31 species are globally threatened.This… …   Wikipedia Sibley-Monroe checklist 4 — The Sibley Monroe checklist was a landmark document in the study of birds. It drew on extensive DNA DNA hybridisation studies to reassess the relationships between modern birds. Coraciiformes (continued)Alcedinidae* Alcedo hercules Blyth s… …   Wikipedia List of parrots (family) — This is a species list of parrotscite web | url =http://www.zoonomen.net/avtax/psit.html |title = Zoological Nomenclature Resource: Psittaciformes (Version 9.004) |date =2008 07 05 |publisher = www.zoonomen.net ] sorted taxonomically for ease of… …   Wikipedia Aratinga — Taxobox name = Aratinga image width = 240px image caption = Peach fronted Parakeet ( Aratinga aurea ) in Brazil regnum = Animalia phylum = Chordata classis = Aves ordo = Psittaciformes familia = Psittacidae subfamilia = Psittacinae tribus = Arini …   Wikipedia Hugh Algernon Weddell — (22 June 1819 ndash; 22 July 1877) was a physician and botanist, specialising in South American flora.Weddell was born at Birches House, Painswick near Gloucester, England but was raised in France and educated at the Lycée Henri IV, where he… …   Wikipedia 18+ © Academic, 2000-2024 Contact us: Technical Support, Advertising Dictionaries export, created on PHP, Joomla, Drupal, WordPress, MODx. Mark and share Search through all dictionaries Translate… Search Internet Share the article and excerpts Direct link … Do a right-click on the link above and select “Copy Link”