The Moluccan eclectus (Eclectus roratus) is unusual in the parrot family for its extreme difference in the colors of the plumage between the male and the female. Joseph Forshaw, in his book Parrots of the World, noted that the first European ornithologists to see Eclectus parrots thought they were of two distinct species. Large populations of this parrot remain, and they are sometimes considered pests for eating fruit off trees. Some populations restricted to relatively small islands are comparably rare. Their bright feathers are also used by native tribespeople in New Guinea as decorations.
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DiurnalDiurnal animals are active during the daytime, with a period of sleeping or other inactivity at night. The timing of activity by an animal depends ...
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HerbivoreA herbivore is an animal anatomically and physiologically adapted to eating plant material, for example, foliage, for the main component of its die...
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FrugivoreA frugivore is an animal that thrives mostly on raw fruits or succulent fruit-like produce of plants such as roots, shoots, nuts, and seeds. Approx...
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FolivoreIn zoology, a folivore is a herbivore that specializes in eating leaves. Mature leaves contain a high proportion of hard-to-digest cellulose, less ...
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GranivoreSeed predation, often referred to as granivory, is a type of plant-animal interaction in which granivores (seed predators) feed on the seeds of pla...
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ArborealArboreal locomotion is the locomotion of animals in trees. In habitats in which trees are present, animals have evolved to move in them. Some anima...
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AltricialAltricial animals are those species whose newly hatched or born young are relatively immobile. They lack hair or down, are not able to obtain food ...
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TerritorialA territory is a sociographical area that which an animal consistently defends against the conspecific competition (or, occasionally, against anima...
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OviparousOviparous animals are female animals that lay their eggs, with little or no other embryonic development within the mother. This is the reproductive...
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PolygynandryPolygynandry is a mating system in which both males and females have multiple mating partners during a breeding season.
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FlockingFlocking birds are those that tend to gather to forage or travel collectively. Avian flocks are typically associated with migration. Flocking also ...
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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.
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ChatterboxesThe Moluccan eclectus is a stocky short-tailed parrot. The male is mostly bright green with a yellow tinge on the head. It has blue primaries, and red flanks and underwing coverts. Its tail is edged with a narrow band of creamy yellow and is dark grey edged with creamy yellow underneath, and the tail feathers are green centrally and bluer as they get towards the edges. The grand Eclectus female is mostly bright red with a darker hue on the back and wings. The mantle and underwing coverts darken to a more purple color, and the wing is edged with a mauve blue. The tail is edged with yellowish-orange above and is more orange tipped with yellow underneath. The upper mandible of the adult male is orange at the base fading to a yellow towards the tip, and the lower mandible is black. The beak of the adult female is all black. Adults have yellow to orange irises and juveniles have dark brown to black irises. The upper mandible of both male and female juveniles are brown at the base fading to yellow towards the biting edges and the tip. The abdomen and nape of the females are blue in most subspecies, purple abdomen and nape in the subspecies (roratus), and lavender abdomen and nape in the (vosmaeri). Females of riedeli and vosmaeri also have yellow undertail coverts. The female vosmaeri displays the brightest red of all the subspecies, both on the head and body.
These parrots are native to the Maluku Islands (Moluccas) an archipelago in the eastern part of Indonesia. They live in forests, often near water or coastal areas, and often occur in savanna woodland, mangroves, freshwater swamp, plantations, and rural gardens.
Moluccan eclectus are shy and secretive birds. They are active during the day spending most of their time collecting food, eating, and resting. They live in pairs or small flocks and at night roost in groups. These parrots are quite noisy. They make a screeching flight call, chuckling, and bell-like sounds; when feeding they keep in contact with each other using a ‘chu-wee’ sound. Moluccan eclectus parrots have an interesting adaptation that is connected with the difference in the colors of the plumage between the sexes. The female must remain conspicuous at the entry to the nest hole (to advertise her presence at her hollow to males and rival females), but well hidden when in the depths of the nest, because the red color hides her well in the darkness. The brilliant green color of the male helps him remain hidden amongst the trees whilst foraging. However, the plumage of both sexes appears spectacular when viewed in the ultraviolet spectrum, an ability that predators such as hawks and owls lack.
Moluccan eclectus are herbivores (frugivores, folivores, granivores). Their diet includes mainly fruits, wild figs, unripe nuts, flower and leaf buds, and some seeds.
Unlike other parrot species, Moluccan eclectus are polygynandrous (promiscuous); females may mate with multiple male suitors, and males may travel from nesting site to nesting site to mate with multiple females. Pairs nest within hollows in large, emergent trees. Suitable hollows are at a premium and the female vigorously defends her chosen nesting site from other females, remaining resident at 'her tree' for up to 11 months of the year, rarely straying from the entrance to her hollow and relying on multiple males to feed her via regurgitation. Males may travel up to 20 km (12.4 miles) to forage and up to five males will regularly provide food for each female, each competing with the others for her affections and the right to father her young. The female lays 2 white eggs and incubates them for 28-30 days. Young fledge at about 11 weeks and become reproductively mature between 2 and 3 years of age.
Eclectus parrots are one of the more popular birds kept in captivity and thus are often hunted and trapped for trade. They also suffer from deforestation and loss of habitat.
According to the IUCN Red List, the total population size of the Moluccan eclectus is 7,300-51,000 mature individuals. Currently, this species is classified as Least Concern (LC) on the IUCN Red List but its numbers today are decreasing.
Social animals are those animals that interact highly with other animals, usually of their own species (conspecifics), to the point of having a rec...