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Blue-headed Parrot  

Also Known As: Blue-hooded Parrot, Red-vented Parrot, Blue-headed Pionus
 
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Blue-headed Pionus

Credit: (c) iStock Photo
 
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Did You Know?
The Blue-headed Parrot, along with many other South American species of parrot, regularly visits clay banks along rivers to ingest the mineral to neutralize toxins the birds ingest with the seeds they eat.

Species Profile
Genus:
Pionus

Species:
menstruus

Size: Adult Weight:
28cm (10.9 in) 234-295g (8.2-11.5 oz)

Races including nominate:
three: P.m. menstruus, P.m. reichenowi, P.m. rubrigularis

Colourization Adult: P.m. menstruus: both adults in general green; blue head and neck, with faint red band on throat; dull black ear coverts; red undertail coverts tipped with blue/green; olive/brown lesser wing coverts; green median wing coverts, with wide olive/brown edging; green tail with red at base. Bill dark grey with red at base. Eye ring pale grey, eye dark brown. P.m. reichenowi: both adults blue of head, neck and throat darker; green lower underparts washed with blue; red undertail coverts tipped with blue. P.m. rubrigularis: both adults as in menstruus, but blue of head and neck duller; more red on throat; darker green upperparts.

Colourization Juvenile: P.m. menstruus: pale green head, throat and breast; yellow/green undertail coverts, with varying red markings. Bill pale grey with orange/yellow at base.

Call: Calls are high-pitched screeches and screaming notes; also some notes harsh and shrill.

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Recent Academic Research: Google Scholar - search results

 

Content Sources:

Article "Blue-headed Pionus," by Susan Clubb, DVM http://www.cyberparrots.com/bhpionus.html

BirdLife International http://www.birdlife.org/datazone/species/index.html?action=SpcHTMDetails.asp&sid=1653&m=0

CITES http://www.cites.org/eng/resources/species.html

Internet Bird Collection http://www.hbw.com/ibc/

xeno-canto America http://www.xeno-canto.org/index.php

Parrots: A Guide to Parrots of the World, Juniper and Parr, 1998.

Parrots of the World, Forshaw and Cooper, 1977.

Parrots of the World, Forshaw, 2006.

Parrots in Aviculture, Low, 1992.