The white-bellied parrot (''Pionites leucogaster''), or white-bellied caique in
aviculture
Aviculture is the practice of keeping and breeding birds, especially of wild birds in captivity.
Aviculture
Aviculture is the practice of keeping birds (class '' Aves'') in captivity in controlled conditions, normally within the confines of a ...
, is a species of bird in the subfamily
Arinae
The neotropical parrots or New World parrots comprise about 150 species in 32 genera found throughout South America, South and Central America, Mexico, the Caribbean islands and the southern United States. Among them are some of the most familia ...
of the family
Psittacidae
The Family (biology), family Psittacidae or holotropical parrots is one of three families of true parrots. It comprises the 12 species of subfamily Psittacinae (the Afrotropics, Afrotropical parrots) and 167 of subfamily Arinae (the New World or ...
, the African and New World parrots.
It is found in Bolivia, Brazil, Colombia, and Peru.
[Remsen, J. V., Jr., J. I. Areta, E. Bonaccorso, S. Claramunt, A. Jaramillo, D. F. Lane, J. F. Pacheco, M. B. Robbins, F. G. Stiles, and K. J. Zimmer. 30 January 2023. Species Lists of Birds for South American Countries and Territories. https://www.museum.lsu.edu/~Remsen/SACCCountryLists.htm retrieved January 30, 2023]
Taxonomy and systematics
The South American Classification Committee of the
American Ornithological Society
The American Ornithological Society (AOS) is an ornithological organization based in the United States. The society was formed in October 2016 by the merger of the American Ornithologists' Union (AOU) and the Cooper Ornithological Society. Its ...
, the
International Ornithological Committee
The International Ornithologists' Union (IOU) is an international organization for the promotion of ornithology. It links basic and applied research and nurtures education and outreach activities. Specifically, the IOU organizes and funds global co ...
, and the
Clements taxonomy
''The Clements Checklist of Birds of the World'' is a book by Jim Clements which presents a list of the bird species of the world.
The most recent printed version is the sixth edition (2007), but has been updated yearly, the last version in 202 ...
assign these three subspecies to the white-bellied parrot:
[Remsen, J. V., Jr., J. I. Areta, E. Bonaccorso, S. Claramunt, A. Jaramillo, D. F. Lane, J. F. Pacheco, M. B. Robbins, F. G. Stiles, and K. J. Zimmer. Version 30 January 2023. A classification of the bird species of South America. American Ornithological Society. https://www.museum.lsu.edu/~Remsen/SACCBaseline.htm retrieved January 30, 2023][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]
*'' P. l. xanthomerius'' ( P.L. Sclater, 1858) (Black-legged parrot)
*'' P. l. xanthurus'' Todd, 1925 (Yellow-tailed parrot)
*''P. l. leucogaster'' ( Kuhl, 1820) (Green-thighed parrot)
BirdLife International
BirdLife International is a global partnership of non-governmental organizations that strives to conserve birds and their habitats. BirdLife International's priorities include preventing extinction of bird species, identifying and safeguarding i ...
's ''Handbook of the Birds of the World
The ''Handbook of the Birds of the World'' (HBW) is a multi-volume series produced by the Spanish publishing house Lynx Edicions in partnership with BirdLife International. It is the first handbook to cover every known living species of bird. ...
'' (HBW) treats all three as separate species, the "black-legged", "yellow-tailed", and "green-thighed" parrots respectively. The three have also been called the "western", "central", and "eastern" white-bellied parrots.[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] Note that the range map is that of the nominate subspecies
In biological classification, subspecies (: subspecies) is a rank below species, used for populations that live in different areas and vary in size, shape, or other physical characteristics ( morphology), but that can successfully interbreed. ...
''P. l. leucogaster''.
Description
The white-bellied parrot is long and weighs about . It is a chunky, short-tailed parrot. The sexes are the same. Adults of the nominate subspecies ''P. l. leucogaster'' have mostly yellow heads with orange crowns and napes. Their upperparts are mostly dull green with a bright green rump. Their throat, the sides of their neck, their breast, and their vent are yellow. Also, their lower breast and belly are white with bright green thigh feathers. Their wing is mostly dull green with reddish-orange axillaries and dark blue primaries
Primary elections or primaries are elections held to determine which candidates will run in an upcoming general election. In a partisan primary, a political party selects a candidate. Depending on the state and/or party, there may be an "open pri ...
. Their tail is bright green. Furthermore, their bill is pale horn colored with a bright pinkish cere
The beak, bill, or Rostrum (anatomy), rostrum is an external anatomical structure found mostly in birds, but also in turtles, non-avian dinosaurs and a few mammals. A beak is used for pecking, wikt:grasp#Verb, grasping, and holding (in wikt:probe ...
, their iris reddish brown, and their legs and feet bright pink. Immature birds are similar to adults but with a brownish crown and nape.[Collar, N., J. del Hoyo, G. M. Kirwan, and P. F. D. Boesman (2020). White-bellied Parrot (''Pionites leucogaster''), 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.whbpar1.01 retrieved March 12, 2023]
Subspecies ''P. l. xanthomerius'' has an apricot-orange crown and nape, yellow thigh feathers, and blackish legs and feet. ''P. l. xanthurus'' also has an apricot-orange crown and nape and yellow thigh feathers. Its tail is yellow. It has the same pinkish legs and feet as the nominate. Both of these subspecies intergrade with each other and with the nominate.[
The white breast feathers of the white-bellied parrot are often stained a chestnut brown (or "isobel") color. This may be due to ]tannin
Tannins (or tannoids) are a class of astringent, polyphenolic biomolecules that bind to and Precipitation (chemistry), precipitate proteins and various other organic compounds including amino acids and alkaloids. The term ''tannin'' is widel ...
staining, as result of their particular affinity for bathing by rubbing their bodies against wet leaves and other plant matter. The head and nape plumage of the white-bellied parrot has been observed to fluoresce strongly under ultraviolet light.
Distribution and habitat
The subspecies of the white-bellied parrot are found thus:[
*''P. l. xanthomerius'', Peru east of the ]Ucayali River
The Ucayali River (, ) is the main headstream of the Amazon River. It rises about north of Lake Titicaca, in the Arequipa region of Peru and becomes the Amazon at the confluence of the Marañón river, Marañón close to Nauta city. The city of ...
, eastern Bolivia, western Brazil south of the Amazon as far as the Juruá River
The Juruá River ( ; ) is a southern affluent river of the Amazon River west of the Purus River. The Juruá emerges from highlands in east-central Peru, then winds its way through lowlands in Brazil, sharing with this the bottom of the immense in ...
, and since 2011 in extreme southeastern Colombia[Luna, J.C. and Cuao-Carranza, E.A. (2011). First records of White-bellied Parrot ''Pionites leucogaster'' for Colombia. Conservación Colombiana. 15: 34]
*''P. l. xanthurus'', Brazil south of the Amazon between the Juruá and Purús rivers and south to the upper Madeira River
The Madeira River ( ) is a major waterway in South America. It is estimated to be in length, while the Madeira-Mamoré is estimated near or in length depending on the measuring party and their methods. The Madeira is the biggest tributary of ...
basin
*''P. l. leucogaster'', northern Brazil south of the Amazon between the Madeira and the Atlantic coast in Maranhão
Maranhão () is a States of Brazil, state in Brazil. Located in the country's Northeast Region, Brazil, Northeast Region, it has a population of about 7 million and an area of and it is divided into 217 municipalities. Clockwise from north, it ...
All three subspecies of the white-bellied parrot inhabit humid tropical forests, both '' terra firme'' and '' várzea''. They seem to prefer the forest's edges and openings in it to the closed interior. The nominate subspecies is also found in small numbers in drier forests at the southern reaches of its range.[
]
Behavior
Movement
Nothing is known about the white-bellied parrot's movement patterns, if any.[
]
Feeding
Little is known about the white-bellied parrot's foraging technique or diet, though the latter includes fruits of trees and palms and also flowers.[
]
Breeding
The nominate subspecies of the white-bellied parrot nests between November and January; ''P. l. xanthomerius'' is thought to nest between August and December. Both nest in tree cavities. Their clutch size appears to be two to four eggs. Nothing further is known about their breeding biology. Nothing is known about that of ''P. l. xanthurus'', though it is assumed to be essentially the same as that of the other two subspecies.[
]
Vocalization
The white-bellied parrot's flight call is "a high-pitched, harsh, squealing “sqheee .. sqheee”." It also makes "from loud high-pitched “kree-ee-ee” or “skeeew” notes to more melodious whistles and subdued “kee-ah-u” or “kew” calls" when perched.[
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Status
The IUCN
The International Union for Conservation of Nature (IUCN) is an international organization working in the field of nature conservation and sustainable use of natural resources. Founded in 1948, IUCN has become the global authority on the status ...
follows HBW taxonomy and so has separately assessed the three subspecies of white-bellied parrot. The nominate "green-thighed" subspecies was originally rated as Endangered but since 2021 as Vulnerable. It has a large range but its population size is not known and is believed to be decreasing. It "is suffering from the loss, degradation and disturbance of its forested habitat, and may potentially be susceptible to hunting." The "black-legged" ''P. l. xanthomerius'' is assessed as being of Least Concern. Like the nominate, it has a large range but its population size is not known and is believed to be decreasing. The primary threat is deforestation for farming and ranching. The "yellow-tailed" ''P. l. xanthurus'' is also assessed as being of Least Concern. It has a smaller range than the other two subspecies; like them, its population size is not known and is believed to be decreasing. As for ''xanthomerius'', deforestation for farming and ranching is the principal threat.
References
{{Taxonbar, from=Q775636
Pionites
Birds of the Brazilian Amazon
Birds of Southern Amazonia
Birds described in 1820
Taxonomy articles created by Polbot