Golden-shouldered Parrot |
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Also known as: Golden-winged Parrot or Parakeet, Chestnut-crowned Parrot or Parakeet, Antbed Parrot, Anthill Parrot
Juvenile Golden-shouldered Parrot
© Brian McCauley [CC BY-SA 2.0] via Flickr
Photos
View in GalleryDid You Know?
The nest hollow of the Golden-shouldered Parakeet is excavated in a termite mound still damp from the wet season.Academic Research
Related publications: Psephotellus chrysopterygiusSpecies Profile
Genus: Psephotellus | Species: chrysopterygius
Size:
26cm (10.1 in)
Weight:
56g (2 oz)
Subspecies including nominate:
one
Colour Adult:
Male-yellow frontal band; black crown merging into brown/black hindneck; turquoise face and underparts; abdomen to undertail coverts orange/red tipped with white; brown back and underparts; rump and upper tail coverts turquoise, middle wing coverts yellow; tail brown/green tipped blue/white. Bill grey/white. Eye brown. Female-dull green; forehead pale yellow; crown and hindneck brown/green; rump and upper tail coverts pale turquoise; white abdomen to undertail coverts, feathers on centre of abdomen margined light red; yellow/white underwing mark.
Colour Juvenile:
As in female; male youngsters with brighter turquoise cheeks; underwing mark present.
Call:
Two note contact call, not as high-pitched as Hooded Parrot. Whistle also described.
Listen NowMore Information:
Avibase
Bush Heritage Australia
Content Sources:
CITES
BirdLife International
Cornell Lab of Ornithology/Birds of the World
Parrots: A Guide to Parrots of the World, Juniper and Parr, 1998
Parrots: Status Survey and Conservation Plan 2000-2004, Snyder, McGowan, Gilardi and Grajal, 2000.
Parrots of the World, Forshaw and Cooper, 1977. 2010 edition
Vanished and Vanishing Parrots, Forshaw, 2017.
Parrots of the World, Forshaw, 2006.
Parrots in Aviculture, Low, 1992.
Parrots: Their Care and Breeding, Low, 1992.
Juvenile Golden-shouldered Parrot
© Brian McCauley [CC BY-SA 2.0] via Flickr
Photos
View in GalleryDid You Know?
The nest hollow of the Golden-shouldered Parakeet is excavated in a termite mound still damp from the wet season.Academic Research
Related publications: Psephotellus chrysopterygiusSpecies Care
Captive Status:
Fairly common in Australia; rare elsewhere.
Longevity:
Not recorded.
Housing:
Walk-in enclosure, minimum length 3m (9.8 ft).
Diet:
Mixture of small seeds: canary, millet plus smaller amounts of oats, buckwheat and safflower; limited sunflower; spray millet; green leaves, green peas, fresh corn, insectivorous foods; seeding grasses; rearing food (hard-boiled egg, wholegrain bread and carrot, all ground to crumbly consistency); apple and other fruits if taken.
Enrichment:
Not recorded.
Nest Box Size:
6" (15cm) square, 10" (25.4cm) high, heated to 70F (21 C).
Clutch Size:
4 to 7
Incubation Time:
19-21 days
Fledging Age:
5 weeks
Hatch Weight:
Not recorded.
Peak Weight:
Not recorded.
Weaning Weight:
Not recorded.
Juvenile Golden-shouldered Parrot
© Brian McCauley [CC BY-SA 2.0] via Flickr
Photos
View in GalleryDid You Know?
The nest hollow of the Golden-shouldered Parakeet is excavated in a termite mound still damp from the wet season.Academic Research
Related publications: Psephotellus chrysopterygiusSpecies Wild Status
World Population:
About 2500
IUCN Red List Status:
Endangered
CITES Listing:
Appendix I
Threat Summary:
A BirdLife “restricted-range” species. Significant decline and contraction of range since the start of the 20th century. Altered fire regimes have resulted in more woody plants that favour predators like the Pied Butcherbird (Cracticus nigrogularis). Local capture of nestlings for trade occurred from the 1950s to the 1970s. Ongoing loss of food sources to cattle grazing and dry-season burning of grasslands. Suffers predation by feral cats and disturbance by tourists.
Range:
NE Australia, with two isolated breeding populations existing on Cape York Peninsula, N Queensland.
Habitat:
Found in wet or dry grasslands and open woodland, where there are termite mounds, and areas with Eucalypt and Melaleuca trees. Post-breeding birds may venture into mangroves.
Wild Diet:
Mainly eats seeds of annual grasses, especially firegrass Schyzachyrium and Alloteropsis semialata. Also consumes Desmodium and introduced verano Stylosanthes hamata legumes. Also takes herbs, sedges Scleria and other grasses Panichloa nervilemma.
Ecology and Behaviour:
Usually found singly, in pairs or family parties, gathering to feed in flocks of up to 30. Roost in foliage in hottest part of day. Pairs form lifetime bonds.
Clutch and Egg Size:
4 to 7 rounded eggs, 21.5 x 18.5mm (0.8 x 0.7 in).
Breeding Season:
April-August. Nest is in one of two types of terrestrial termitaria: meridian mounds of Amitermes laurensis and conical mounds of A. scopulus.
Related Links:
Wikipedia
Article: Endangered Cape York alwal - Olkola struggle to rescue Golden-shouldered Parrots
Juvenile Golden-shouldered Parrot
© Brian McCauley [CC BY-SA 2.0] via Flickr
Photos
View in GalleryDid You Know?
The nest hollow of the Golden-shouldered Parakeet is excavated in a termite mound still damp from the wet season.Academic Research
Related publications: Psephotellus chrysopterygiusMembers Only Resources
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