Species of bird
The
horned parakeet
(
Eunymphicus cornutus
) is a species of
parrot
in the genus
Eunymphicus
, in the family
Psittaculidae
. It is a medium-sized parrot
endemic
to
New Caledonia
. It is called "horned" because it has two black feathers that protrude from the head and have red tips.
Taxonomy
[
edit
]
The horned parakeet was
formally described
in 1788 by the German naturalist
Johann Friedrich Gmelin
in his revised and expanded edition of
Carl Linnaeus
's
Systema Naturae
. He placed it with all the other parrots in the
genus
Psittacus
and coined the
binomial name
Psittacus cornutus
.
[3]
Gmelin based his description on the "horned parrot" that had been described and illustrated in 1781 by the English ornithologist
John Latham
in his
A General Synopsis of Birds
. Latham's specimen had been obtained from
New Caledonia
during Captain
James Cook
's
first voyage to the south Pacific Ocean
. The specimen formed part of the collection of
Joseph Banks
.
[4]
The horned parakeet is now placed with the
Ouvea parakeet
in the
genus
Eunymphicus
that was introduced in 1937 by the American ornithologist
James L. Peters
.
[5]
[6]
The genus name combines the
Ancient Greek
eu
meaning "true" and the genus name
Nymphicus
that had been introduce in 1832 by
Johann Georg Wagler
for the
cockatiel
. The specific epithet
cornutus
is
Latin
meaning "horned".
[7]
In 1998, it was found through DNA studies that
Eunymphicus cornutus
, the horned parakeet, and
Eunymphicus uvaeensis
, the
Ouvea parakeet
, were two separate species.
[8]
Description
[
edit
]
Adult birds usually measure approximately 32 cm (or about 14 inches) in length, including the tail. Like many parrots, the horned parakeet is primarily green in color. This parrot has a yellowish nape with a black and red face and bluish wings and tail. Its most striking feature is a two-feather black crest, with the crest feathers tipped in red.
It makes a nasal "kho-khoot"
contact call
, and also makes a wide range of shrieks and chuckles.
Distribution and habitat
[
edit
]
The horned parakeet is endemic to
New Caledonia
. It preferentially selects rainforest and
laurel forest
habitat, but will accept scrublands or savannah. It lives in humid pine forests on New Caledonia, especially when
Agathis
and
Araucaria
pines are present.
Behaviour and ecology
[
edit
]
Small family groups, or pairs, will forage in the canopy for their diet of nuts and seeds.
Breeding
[
edit
]
Horned parakeets will nest either on or near the ground, and also in hollowed-out logs, or nest hollows in dead trees. Uncommon among parrots, horned parakeets have been reported nest-sharing. The number of eggs laid is usually 2?4. Incubation lasts 21?22 days (in captivity) and the time from hatching to fledging is approximately 5 to 6 weeks (again, in captivity).
[9]
Status
[
edit
]
This bird has declined since the 1880s, but it is still found in some range on New Caledonia and recent population estimates believe that there are over 5000 birds left. The main threats to the horned parakeet are the
black rat
, the
wildcat
, the introduced
Rusa deer
,
logging
, La Nina (wet) years, and
Psittacine beak and feather disease
, a severe virus which is known to affect ~42 species of parrots.
[10]
Humans poaching the birds for local trade is rare, because the birds' nests are difficult to find, and more importantly, there are no ingrained local customs regarding keeping birds as pets.
[11]
The horned parakeet is listed by the
IUCN
as Vulnerable, due to their restricted range and small, declining population size. These parrots are listed as
CITES
I as of year 2000, meaning all international commerce regarding the species is prohibited. In 2014, the
European Union
listed the species as Annex A, which means all intra-EU trade is prohibited. The parrots are also fully protected under New Caledonian law.
[12]
References
[
edit
]
- ^
BirdLife International (2016).
"
Eunymphicus cornutus
"
.
IUCN Red List of Threatened Species
.
2016
: e.T22685185A93062058.
doi
:
10.2305/IUCN.UK.2016-3.RLTS.T22685185A93062058.en
. Retrieved
12 November
2021
.
- ^
"Appendices | CITES"
.
cites.org
. Retrieved
2022-01-14
.
- ^
Gmelin, Johann Friedrich
(1788).
Systema naturae per regna tria naturae : secundum classes, ordines, genera, species, cum characteribus, differentiis, synonymis, locis
(in Latin). Vol. 1, Part 1 (13th ed.). Lipsiae [Leipzig]: Georg. Emanuel. Beer. p. 327.
- ^
Latham, John
(1781?1785).
A General Synopsis of Birds
. Vol. 1, Part 1. London: Printed for Benj. White. p. 248, No. 48, Plate 8.
- ^
Peters, James Lee
, ed. (1937).
Check-List of Birds of the World
. Vol. 3. Cambridge, Massachusetts: Harvard University Press. p. 269.
- ^
Gill, Frank
; Donsker, David;
Rasmussen, Pamela
, eds. (January 2022).
"Parrots, cockatoos"
.
IOC World Bird List Version 12.1
. International Ornithologists' Union
. Retrieved
26 June
2022
.
- ^
Jobling, James A. (2010).
The Helm Dictionary of Scientific Bird Names
. London: Christopher Helm. pp.
152
,
118
.
ISBN
978-1-4081-2501-4
.
- ^
"Horned Parakeet (Eunymphicus cornutus) - BirdLife species factsheet"
.
www.birdlife.org
. Retrieved
2016-02-28
.
- ^
"Horned parakeet videos, photos and facts - Eunymphicus cornutus"
.
ARKive
. Archived from
the original
on 2016-03-04
. Retrieved
2016-02-28
.
- ^
Parque, Loro.
"Conservacion de los periquitos endemicos de Nueva Caledonia | Loro Parque Fundacion"
.
www.loroparque-fundacion.org
. Retrieved
2016-02-28
.
- ^
"Horned Parakeet (Eunymphicus cornutus) - BirdLife species factsheet"
.
www.birdlife.org
. Retrieved
2016-02-28
.
- ^
"Species+"
.
www.speciesplus.net
. Retrieved
2016-02-28
.