Species of bird
The
green parakeet
(
Psittacara holochlorus
),
green conure
or
Mexican green conure
[4]
is a New World parrot. As defined by the
International Ornithological Committee
(IOC), it is native to
Mexico
and southern Texas in the Rio Grande Valley. (but see the Taxonomy section for more).
[5]
Taxonomy and systematics
[
edit
]
The green parakeet was for a time placed in the genus
Aratinga
as
A. holochlora
but from about 2013 has been in its present genus
Psittacara
.
[6]
[7]
[5]
Its taxonomy is otherwise unsettled. The IOC assigns it two subspecies, the
nominate
P. h. holochlorus
(
Sclater, PL
, 1859) and
P. h. brewsteri
(
Nelson
, 1928). The
American Ornithological Society
(AOS) and the
Clements taxonomy
add
P. h. rubritorquis
(
Sclater, PL
, 1887), which the IOC treats as a separate species, the
red-throated parakeet
.
BirdLife International
's
Handbook of the Birds of the World
accepts
rubritorquis
as a species but includes
P. h. brevipes
(
Lawrence
, 1871) and
P. h. strenuus
(
Ridgway
, 1915) as subspecies of the green parakeet. The IOC, AOS, and Clements treat those two taxa as separate species, the
Socorro parakeet
and
Pacific parakeet
respectively.
[5]
[8]
[9]
[10]
This article follows the IOC two-subspecies model.
Description
[
edit
]
The green parakeet is 28 to 30.5 cm (11 to 12 in) long and weighs about 230 g (8.1 oz). The sexes are alike. Adults of both subspecies are generally green that is paler and yellower on their underparts. Their cheeks and throat have variable amounts of red speckles. Their underwing
coverts
are yellowish green and the undersides of their flight feathers and tail are olive-yellow. Their iris is orange-red surrounded by bare pale beige skin, their bill horn colored, and their legs and feet brownish. The subspecies
P. h. brewsteri
is overall somewhat darker than the nominate and has a slight
glaucous
cast on its head.
[11]
Distribution and habitat
[
edit
]
The nominate subspecies of the green parakeet is found naturally in eastern Mexico from
Nuevo Leon
and
Tamaulipas
south to
Veracruz
. The subspecies
P. h. brewsteri
is found in the northwestern Mexican states of
Sonora
,
Sinaloa
, and
Chihuahua
.
[11]
In the
United States
, the species is established in the lower
Rio Grande Valley
of
Texas
; that sub-population's origin is unknown but could be derived from introduced individuals or by natural dispersion.
[8]
[12]
[13]
Sightings in
California
,
Florida
, and
New Mexico
are believed to be of escaped or released cage birds and the species is not on those states' lists.
[14]
[15]
[16]
[17]
In its native range, the green parakeet inhabits semi-open landscapes including deciduous woodland,
gallery forest
, and scrublands. It shuns humid lowland forest and is typically found at elevations between 500 and 2,000 m (1,600 and 6,600 ft). In Texas it is also found in cities and towns.
[11]
Behavior
[
edit
]
Movement
[
edit
]
The green parakeet is non-migratory but makes local movements in response to food availability.
[11]
Feeding
[
edit
]
The green parakeet's diet has not been fully documented but is known to include seed and fruits. It can be a crop pest.
[11]
Breeding
[
edit
]
The green parakeet's breeding season has not been defined but appears to include at least January to April. It nests in tree cavities, caves, and cliff faces. The clutch size is four eggs. The incubation period is thought to be 23 days; the time to fledging and details of parental care are not known.
[11]
|
Songs and calls
|
Vocalization
[
edit
]
The green parakeet has a variety of vocalizations including "sharp squeaky notes", "loud harsh calls", and "shrill noisy chattering". Its flight call is "a rolling, harsh and high pitched
screek...screek
."
[11]
Status
[
edit
]
The
IUCN
follows the HBW taxonomy and so includes the Socorro and Pacific parakeets in its assessment of the green parakeet as being of Least Concern. It has estimated that the combined population numbers about 200,000 mature individuals and is decreasing. No immediate threats to the Mexican population have been identified.
[2]
NatureServe considers the species
Vulnerable
in Texas due to hunting pressure.
[18]
References
[
edit
]
- ^
"Fossilworks: Psittacara maugei"
.
- ^
a
b
BirdLife International (2018).
"Green Parakeet
Psittacara holochlorus
"
.
IUCN Red List of Threatened Species
.
2018
: e.T62296899A132190435.
doi
:
10.2305/IUCN.UK.2018-2.RLTS.T62296899A132190435.en
. Retrieved
6 April
2023
.
- ^
"Appendices | CITES"
.
cites.org
. Retrieved
6 April
2023
.
- ^
"GREEN CONURE (Psittacara holochlorus)"
. World Parrot Trust
. Retrieved
8 April
2023
.
- ^
a
b
c
Gill, F.; Donsker, D.; Rasmussen, P., eds. (January 2023).
"Parrots, cockatoos"
.
IOC World Bird List
. v 13.1
. Retrieved
February 18,
2023
.
- ^
R. Terry Chesser, Kevin J. Burns, Carla Cicero, Jon L. Dunn, Andrew W. Kratter, Irby J. Lovette, Pamela C. Rasmussen, J. V. Remsen, Jr., Douglas F. Stotz, and Kevin Winker. "Fifty-ninth supplement to the American Ornithological Society’s
Check-list of North American Birds
".
The Auk
2019, vol. 136:1-23 retrieved April 5, 2023
- ^
Remsen, James V.; Urantowka, Adam (2013).
"Divide
Aratinga
into four genera"
. AOS South American Classification Committee
. Retrieved
April 5,
2023
.
- ^
a
b
Chesser, R. T., S. M. Billerman, K. J. Burns, C. Cicero, J. L. Dunn, B. E. Hernandez-Banos, R. A. Jimenez, A. W. Kratter, N. A. Mason, P. C. Rasmussen, J. V. Remsen, Jr., D. F. Stotz, and K. Winker. 2022. Check-list of North American Birds (online). American Ornithological Society.
https://checklist.aou.org/taxa
- ^
Clements, J. F., T. S. Schulenberg, M. J. Iliff, T. A. Fredericks, J. A. Gerbracht, D. Lepage, S. M. Billerman, B. L. Sullivan, and C. L. Wood. 2022. The eBird/Clements checklist of birds of the world: v2022. Downloaded from
https://www.birds.cornell.edu/clementschecklist/download/
retrieved November 10, 2022
- ^
HBW and BirdLife International (2022) Handbook of the Birds of the World and BirdLife International digital checklist of the birds of the world. Version 7. Available at:
http://datazone.birdlife.org/userfiles/file/Species/Taxonomy/HBW-BirdLife_Checklist_v7_Dec22.zip
retrieved December 13, 2022
- ^
a
b
c
d
e
f
g
Eitniear, J. C., N. Collar, C. J. Sharpe, and P. F. D. Boesman (2020). Green Parakeet (
Psittacara holochlorus
), version 1.0. In Birds of the World (S. M. Billerman, B. K. Keeney, P. G. Rodewald, and T. S. Schulenberg, Editors). Cornell Lab of Ornithology, Ithaca, NY, USA.
https://doi.org/10.2173/bow.grnpar.01
retrieved April 5, 2023
- ^
"Texas State List"
. Texas Bird Records Committee of the Texas Ornithological Society. January 1, 2023
. Retrieved
April 6,
2023
.
- ^
Uehling, Jennifer J.; Tallant, Jason; Pruett-Jones, Stephen (2019).
"Status of naturalized parrots in the United States"
.
Journal of Ornithology
.
2019
(1?15): 907?921.
doi
:
10.1007/s10336-019-01658-7
.
S2CID
145912200
.
- ^
"Green Parakeet eBird species map"
.
eBird
. Cornell Lab of Ornithology
. Retrieved
April 6,
2023
.
- ^
"Official California Checklist"
. California Bird Records Committee. February 4, 2023
. Retrieved
April 6,
2023
.
- ^
"Official Florida State Bird List"
. Florida Ornithological Society. November 2022
. Retrieved
April 6,
2023
.
- ^
Sartor O. Williams III (August 16, 2022).
"Checklist of New Mexico Bird Species"
. New Mexico Bird Records Committee
. Retrieved
April 6,
2023
.
- ^
"NatureServe Explorer 2.0"
.
explorer.natureserve.org
. Retrieved
April 6,
2023
.
Further reading
[
edit
]
- National Geographic
Field Guide to the Birds of North America
ISBN
0-7922-6877-6
- National Audubon Society
The Sibley Guide to Birds
, by David Allen Sibley,
ISBN
0-679-45122-6