The green parakeet (Psittacara holochlorus ) is a medium-sized parrot occurring in North and Central America, from the southernmost tip of Texas south to northern Nicaragua.
Te
TerrestrialTerrestrial animals are animals that live predominantly or entirely on land (e.g., cats, ants, snails), as compared with aquatic animals, which liv...
Oviparous animals are female animals that lay their eggs, with little or no other embryonic development within the mother. This is the reproductive...
Arboreal locomotion is the locomotion of animals in trees. In habitats in which trees are present, animals have evolved to move in them. Some anima...
No
Not a migrantAnimals that do not make seasonal movements and stay in their native home ranges all year round are called not migrants or residents.
G
starts withThe green parakeet is 32 cm in length, and is mostly green in color. It also has a yellow beak.
Wild birds primarily use scrub and swamp forests, woodlands, and forest clearings. The US population takes advantage of palm groves in cities.
The species occurs from southern Texas and northern Mexico (including P. h. brevipes on Socorro Island) south through the Middle American isthmus to southwestern Nicaragua. It inhabits a variety of woody habitats. Since the Carolina parakeet's (Conuropsis carolinensis ) extinction and the thick-billed parrot's (Rhynchopsitta pachyrhyncha ) extirpation from the United States in the 1930s, the green parakeet remains the only confirmed native extant parrot species in the U.S. Another parrot species, the red-crowned amazon (Amazona viridigenalis ) is considered by some authorities to be native to the Rio Grande Valley, but its ecological status is still debated. In western Nicaragua, their nesting sites lie within the El Chocoyero - El Brujo Protected Area, but the birds still face threats from the outside world when they leave the reserve to feed.
The A. brevipes subspecies is highly threatened by habitat loss due to feral sheep and predation by feral cats. Surveys from 2006 and 2007 estimated a population around 300 individuals, suggesting a population decline from previous population estimates.
The native status of populations in southern Texas is unclear, with some claiming them to be feral escapees. However, the groups in the Rio Grande Valley are now generally regarded as naturally occurring and native, because of the proximity of confirmed native populations, the deforestation of Tamaulipas which forced them to disperse, and earlier evidence from 1911 of these parakeets consuming a strawberry harvest at Combs.
Green parakeet pairs usually find holes in trees in which to nest, where the female lays three or four eggs. It also nests colonially in crevices on cliff faces. After the breeding season is completed, the birds form large communal roosts.
It feeds on seeds, various fruits, and corn. It can sometimes be considered a crop pest.
