Category Archives: Parrots

Red-masked Parakeet (Psittacara erythrogenys)

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The Red-masked Parakeet (Psittacara erythrogenys) is a medium-sized parrot from Ecuador and Peru. It is popular as a pet and are known in aviculture as the Cherry-headed Conure or the Red-headed Conure.  Many people will be familiar with them from the movie “The Wild Parrots of Telegraph Hill”.

This was the best I could get in Cerro Blanco, only this one little cutie came fairly close.

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IMG_1958a. Although feral populations are easily seen in parts of California, they are actually natives of southern Ecuador and northern Peru.  The easiest place to see them is Cerro Blanco Reserve just 20 minutes out of Guayaquil.  You could also possibly see them on a day trip from Mindo headed towards the Pacific coast.

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Although I was extremely grateful I got to see ONE bird fairly close and a flock flying by in the distance, others were lucky enough to get whole flocks close up!

Meanwhile back in California…………….please note that this is an older video and it is no longer allowed to feed the birds.

Grey-cheeked Parakeet (Brotogeris pyrrhoptera)

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The delightful little Grey-cheeked Parakeet (Brotogeris pyrrhoptera) is almost endemic to Ecuador but can also be found in far northern Peru.  They vocalize quite loudly despite their size. The sound could be described as a quick, sharp screech, and vocalizations may involve many monotone screeches in succession.

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We were lucky enough to see them fairly close-up in Cerro Blanco which is just a short drive from Guayaquil (red dot).  This would be the easiest place to find them.  Most airlines will put Ecuador in northern South America (same as Peru) for their award charts and bargain can often be found from the USA to Ecuador on LATAM & Avianca.

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Some one was brave enough to walk along the Malecon of Guayaquil with camera gear!  You can see them in the city but check with your hotel to see if it’s safe.

You can also see them further south in the Jorupe Reserve.

 

Kawall’s Amazon Parrot (Amazona kawalli)

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Kawall’s amazon (Amazona kawalli), also known as the white-faced amazon, white-cheeked amazon or Kawall’s parrot, is a relatively large species of parrot in the Psittacidae family. It is endemic to the south-central Amazon. After not having been recorded in the wild for around 70 years, the species was rediscovered in the 1980s.

C68 C70I couldn’t get a decent shot so here’s one from Wikipedia.

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They are endemic to Brazil with the best place to see them being Cristalino.

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This is a fairly rare bird and videos are hard to find.  Nothing I could embed but there are some clips on IBC.

 

Madeira Parakeet (Pyrrhura snethlageae)

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Madeira Parakeets have a very complicated taxonomy and just about all of my usual resources have something different to say.  It looks like they are currently a species on their own merit though they were once a subspecies of the Painted Parakeet and often confused with the Santarem Parakeet which has a range further north in the Amazonia National Park of Brazil.

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They are nearly endemic to Brazil with just a small incursion into Bolivia.  They are most easily seen from the Canopy Tower at Cristalino.

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The only videos I could find are on IBC and I can’t embed them so please view them on that site.

 

 

 

White-bellied Parrot / Green-thighed Parrot (Pionites leucogaster)

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The Green-thighed Parrot (Pionites leucogaster) is one of the four species in the genus Pionites of the Psittacidae family.  Originally the species Pionites leucogaster (also known as the White-bellied Parrot or White-bellied Caique in the aviculture business) contain three subspecies including the nominate race, but recent morphological work suggests the species should be split into three.

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Close-up of captive birds

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They are almost endemic to Brazil with a small incursion into Amazonian Peru.  Although they have a huge range, most of it is remote and inaccessible.  They are regularly seen from the Canopy Tower at Cristalino.

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Beautiful flock!

 

Chestnut-fronted Macaw aka Severe Macaw (Ara severus)

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The Chestnut-fronted Macaw or Severe Macaw (Ara severus) is one of the largest of the mini-macaws. It reaches a size of around 45 cm (18 in) of which around half is the length of the tail.  I remember the time I first saw one at Cristalino.  I had been watching some other birds and the guide (knowing I was interested in parrots) tapped my shoulder and quietly said “Chestnut-fronted Macaws”.  I followed him to a large tree and looked up just in time to see the bird fly through the trees and disappear.  At least I got a quick glimpse!  But since I didn’t get a photo, Wikipedia has to come through.

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They do have a large range in South America and besides Cristalino, I have another chance to see them in Ecuador soon!

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Beautiful close-up foraging in a tree.

Huge flock in Brazil

Dusky-billed Parrotlet (Forpus modestus)

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The Dusky-billed Parrotlet (Forpus modestus), also known as the Sclater’s Parrotlet, is a small species of parrot in the Psittacidae family. It is found in the Amazon Rainforest in South America, where it is locally fairly common.

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They have a large range in South America which is split between central Brazil and Ecuador, Peru and Colombia.  They are very common in Cristalino and quite entertaining to watch!

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What a cute cluster!

Ground foraging

Foraging in a tree in a university campus.

 

Red-and-green Macaw aka Green-winged Macaw (Ara chloropterus)

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The Green-winged Macaw (Ara chloropterus), also known as the Red-and-green Macaw, is a large mostly-red macaw of the Ara genus.  This is the largest of the Ara genus, widespread in the forests and woodlands of northern and central South America. However, in common with other macaws, in recent years there has been a marked decline in its numbers due to habitat loss and illegal capture for the parrot trade.  I haven’t been able to get a close-up shot in the wild so this photo is from the bird park near Iguassu Falls.

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All my other photos are more like this – macaws gracefully flying through the rainforest.

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They have a large range in South America and can be seen easily in the birding hotspots of Tambopata (clay licks), Pantanal & Cristalino.

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Loving couple

 

Red & Gren Macaws get along well with other large macaws and can often be seen flocking together, especially at clay licks.  This clip was taken at Manu and you can see them sharing a food table with other macaws.

 

Blue-headed Parrot (Pionus menstruus)

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The Blue-headed Parrot, also known as the Blue-headed Pionus (Pionus menstruus) is a medium large parrot.

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They have a huge range throughout Central and South America but there are 3 different sub-species which are have their own geographic ranges:

P.m. menstruus: Trinidad, Guianas, and Venezuela to E Colombia, E Ecuador, and E Peru south to C Bolivia, and Amazonian Brazil.
P.m. reichenowi: E Brazil.
P.m. rubrigularis: S Costa Rica and Panama to W Colombia and W Ecuador.

They are easily seen in Cristalino, the Pantanal, Tambopata and Soberania NP.

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I think this one is a food critic!

 

 

Mealy Parrot (Amazona farinosa)

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The Mealy Amazon or Mealy Parrot (Amazona farinosa) is among the largest parrot in the Amazona genus, the amazon parrots.

Although I have seen this bird in several places – Cristalino, Panama, Tambopata I don’t seem to have any decent photos so I have to rely on the Wikipedia shots.

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All I could get was distant flight shots.

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Mealy Parrots have a huge range throughout South America and prefer tropical rainforest environments.  Good places to see them are Cristalino, Tambopata, Napo, Panama’s Soberania (different subspecies) and other rainforest lodges.

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Noisy flock in Peru

On a clay lick