Moluccan king parrot

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Moluccan king parrot
Alisterus amboinensis -Brevard Zoo-8b-4c.jpg
Nominate subspecies at Brevard Zoo, Florida, USA
Scientific classification OOjs UI icon edit-ltr.svg
Domain: Eukaryota
Kingdom: Animalia
Phylum: Chordata
Class: Aves
Order: Psittaciformes
Family: Psittaculidae
Genus: Alisterus
Species:
A. amboinensis
Binomial name
Alisterus amboinensis
(Linnaeus, 1766)
Synonyms

Psittacus amboinensisLinnaeus, 1766

The Moluccan king parrot (Alisterus amboinensis) is a parrot endemic to Peleng Island, Maluku, and West Papua in Indonesia. It is sometimes referred to as the Ambon king parrot or Amboina king parrot, [2] but this is potentially misleading, as it is found on numerous other islands than Ambon. The male and female are similar in appearance, with a predominantly red head and underparts, green wings (blue in one subspecies), and blue back and tail. Six subspecies are recognised, but only a few of these are regular in aviculture. In the wild, it inhabits rainforests and feeds on fruits, berries, seeds and buds.

Contents

Taxonomy

Image of a colour lithograph of a Moluccan king parrot produced by William John Swainson in the first volume of Zoological Illustrations Swainson king parakeet.jpg
Image of a colour lithograph of a Moluccan king parrot produced by William John Swainson in the first volume of Zoological Illustrations

In 1760 the French zoologist Mathurin Jacques Brisson included a description of the Moluccan king parrot in his Ornithologie based on a specimen collected on the island of Ambon in Indonesia. He used the French name La perruche rouge d'Amboine and the Latin name Psittaca amboinensis coccinea. [3] Although Brisson coined Latin names, these do not conform to the binomial system and are not recognised by the International Commission on Zoological Nomenclature. [4] When in 1766 the Swedish naturalist Carl Linnaeus updated his Systema Naturae for the twelfth edition he added 240 species that had been previously described by Brisson. [4] One of these was the Moluccan king parrot. Linnaeus included a terse description, coined the binomial name Psittacus amboinensis and cited Brisson's work. [5] This species is now placed in the genus Alisterus which was introduced by the Australian amateur ornithologist Gregory Mathews in 1911. [6]

The Moluccan king parrot is one of three species collectively known as king parrots found in Australia, Papua New Guinea, and Indonesia. [7]

There are six subspecies: [8]

Description

At the bird park in Taman Mini Indonesia Indah Alisterus amboinensis -Taman Mini Indonesia Indah-6a-2c.jpg
At the bird park in Taman Mini Indonesia Indah

An adult Moluccan king parrot measures 35–40 cm (14 in) in length and has a red head and chest, outer wings dull green (except in subspecies A. a. hypophonius, which are blue), mantle, lesser wing coverts and tail-coverts dark purple-blue. [7] [10] Tail darker blackish blue, irises orange, and the legs are dark grey. [7] The lower mandible is blackish, and the upper mandible is orange-red with a blackish tip, except in the subspecies A. a. buruensis, where the entire bill is blackish. [7] Unlike the other species of king parrots, the Moluccan king parrot does not display sexual dimorphism; that is, the sexes have similar plumage. [7] Juvenile birds have a dark-brown bill tipped paler, greenish mantle, dark brown irises and red-tips to lateral tail feathers. [7] Birds reach maturity in one year. [10] [11]

Behavior

Encountered alone or in pairs, occasionally in small groups, it mainly frequents dense cover in the lower and mid-levels of forests. [12] It is inconspicuous and rather quiet, except in flight. [12] It consumes fruit, berries, seeds and buds. [7] [11] Nesting takes place in a tree-hollow. [10] The breeding season begins in February and March, although breeding has not been observed in the wild, in captivity the clutch consists of two eggs which are incubated for 19 days. After hatching the chicks are ready to fledge at nine weeks old. [13]

Habitat and status

At Brevard Zoo Alisterus amboinensis -Brevard Zoo-8a-3c.jpg
At Brevard Zoo

The Moluccan king parrot inhabits rainforests, but sometimes enters nearby plantations and gardens. [10] Exceptionally, it occurs at altitude up to 2100 m, [10] but more commonly below 1200 m (New Guinea) [14] or 1600 m (Maluku). [12]

It is generally uncommon due to habitat loss and capture for the parrot trade, [10] but remains locally common at least on the Sula Islands, Halmahera, and Buru. [12] Overall, the species is not believed to be in immediate danger, and consequently is listed as least concern by BirdLife International and IUCN. [1] As most parrots, the Moluccan king parrot is listed in Appendix II of CITES.

Aviculture

Until recently, only the subspecies A. a. amboinensis and A. a. hypophonius were regularly seen in aviculture, but A. a. buruensis and A. a. dorsalis are now also present, at least in zoos. [15] [16] It has regularly been bred in captivity, [11] for example in Denmark. [17]

Related Research Articles

Amboyna or amboina may refer to:

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Seram Island</span> Main island of Maluku Province, Indonesia

Seram is the largest and main island of Maluku province of Indonesia, despite Ambon Island's historical importance. It is located just north of the smaller Ambon Island and a few other adjacent islands, such as Saparua, Haruku, Nusa Laut and the Banda Islands.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Senegal parrot</span> Species of bird

The Senegal parrot is a parrot which is a resident breeder across a wide range of west Africa. It makes migrations within west Africa, according to the availability of the fruit, seeds and blossoms which make up its diet. It is considered a farm pest in Africa, often feeding on maize or millet. It is popular in aviculture.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Green imperial pigeon</span> Species of bird

The green imperial pigeon is a large forest pigeon. The large range extends from Nepal, southern India and Sri Lanka eastwards to southern China, Indonesia and the Philippines.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Moluccan eclectus</span> Species of bird

The Moluccan eclectus is a parrot native to the Maluku Islands (Moluccas). It is unusual in the parrot family for its extreme sexual dimorphism of the colours of the plumage; the male having a mostly bright emerald green plumage and the female a mostly bright red and purple/blue plumage. 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.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Amboyna cuckoo-dove</span> Species of bird

The Amboyna cuckoo-dove is a dove in the genus Macropygia found in the Moluccas and New Guinea. It was one of three new species defined when the slender-billed cuckoo-dove was split up in 2016 and retains the Latin binomial of the former species.[1]

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Brush cuckoo</span> Species of bird

The brush cuckoo is a member of the cuckoo family.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Great-billed parrot</span> Species of bird

The great-billed parrot also known as Moluccan parrot or island parrot, is a medium-sized, approximately 38 cm long, green parrot with a massive red bill, cream iris, blackish shoulders, olive green back, pale blue rump and yellowish green underparts. The female is typically smaller than the male, but otherwise the sexes are similar.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Purple-naped lory</span> Species of bird

The purple-naped lory is a species of parrot in the family Psittaculidae. It is forest-dwelling endemic to the islands of Seram, Ambon, and perhaps also Haruku and Saparua, South Maluku, Indonesia. It is considered endangered, the main threat being from trapping for the cage-bird trade.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Black-faced munia</span> Species of bird

The black-faced munia is a species of estrildid finch found in Indonesia and East Timor. It occurs in a wide range of habitats including artificial landscapes, forest, grassland and savannah. It was first described by the Swedish naturalist Carl Linnaeus in the twelfth edition of his Systema Naturae in 1766. The IUCN has evaluated the status of this bird as being of least concern.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Moluccan megapode</span> Species of bird

The Moluccan megapode, also known as Wallace's scrubfowl, Moluccan scrubfowl or painted megapode, is a small, approximately 31 cm long, olive-brown megapode. The genus Eulipoa is monotypic, but the Moluccan megapode is sometimes placed in Megapodius instead. Both sexes are similar with an olive-brown plumage, bluish-grey below, white undertail coverts, brown iris, bare pink facial skin, bluish-yellow bill and dark olive legs. There are light grey stripes on reddish-maroon feathers on its back. The young has brownish plumage, a black bill, legs and hazel iris.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Blue-naped parrot</span> Species of bird

The blue-naped parrot, also known as the blue-crowned green parrot, Luzon parrot, the Philippine green parrot, and locally known as pikoy, is a parrot found throughout the Philippines.

<i>Alisterus</i> Genus of birds

Alisterus is a genus of medium-sized Australasian parrots, comprising the Australian king parrot, the Papuan king parrot and the Moluccan king parrot. The three species are respectively found in eastern Australia, Papua, the Moluccas and other Indonesian islands. Predominantly of red and green plumage, the long-tailed parrots are related to the genera Aprosmictus and Polytelis.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Red lory</span> Species of bird

The red lory is a species of parrot in the family Psittaculidae. It is the second-most commonly kept lory in captivity, after the rainbow lorikeet.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Red-breasted pygmy parrot</span> Species of bird

The red-breasted pygmy parrot is a species of parrot in the family Psittaculidae. Its natural habitat is the boreal forests, subtropical or tropical dry forests, and subtropical or tropical moist lowland forests of the Maluku Islands and Melanesia.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Buru racket-tail</span> Species of bird

The Buru racket-tail, is a species of parrot in the family Psittaculidae. It is endemic to the forest on the island of Buru, one of the Maluku Islands of Indonesia.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Claret-breasted fruit dove</span> Species of bird

The claret-breasted fruit dove is a species of bird in the family Columbidae. It is found in the Moluccas, New Guinea and the Solomon Islands archipelago. Its natural habitat is subtropical or tropical moist lowland forests.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Psittaculinae</span> Subfamily of birds

The parrot subfamily Psittaculinae consists of three tribes: the Polytelini with three genera, the Psittaculini or Asian psittacines, and the pygmy parrots of the Micropsittini tribe.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Coconut lorikeet</span> Species of bird

The coconut lorikeet, also known as the green-naped lorikeet, is a parrot in the family Psittaculidae. Seven species of lorikeets now recognised were once lumped together under Trichoglossus haematodus.

References

  1. 1 2 BirdLife International (2016). "Alisterus amboinensis". IUCN Red List of Threatened Species . 2016: e.T22685051A93056866. doi: 10.2305/IUCN.UK.2016-3.RLTS.T22685051A93056866.en . Retrieved 11 November 2021.
  2. Moluccan King-Parrot. Mangoverde. Accessed 19-06-2009
  3. Brisson, Mathurin Jacques (1760). Ornithologie, ou, Méthode contenant la division des oiseaux en ordres, sections, genres, especes & leurs variétés (in French and Latin). Vol. 4. Paris: Jean-Baptiste Bauche. pp. 378–380, Plate 28 fig 2. The two stars (**) at the start of the section indicates that Brisson based his description on the examination of a specimen.
  4. 1 2 Allen, J.A. (1910). "Collation of Brisson's genera of birds with those of Linnaeus". Bulletin of the American Museum of Natural History. 28: 317–335. hdl:2246/678.
  5. Linnaeus, Carl (1766). Systema naturae : per regna tria natura, secundum classes, ordines, genera, species, cum characteribus, differentiis, synonymis, locis (in Latin). Vol. 1, Part 1 (12th ed.). Holmiae (Stockholm): Laurentii Salvii. p. 141.
  6. Mathews, Gregory (1911). "On some necessary alterations in the nomenclature of birds. Part II". Novitates Zoologicae. 18 (1): 1–22 [13]. doi:10.5962/bhl.part.1688.
  7. 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11 12 Forshaw, Joseph M. (2006). Parrots of the World; an Identification Guide . Illustrated by Frank Knight. Princeton University Press. ISBN   0-691-09251-6.
  8. Gill, Frank; Donsker, David, eds. (2018). "Parrots, cockatoos". World Bird List Version 8.1. International Ornithologists' Union. Retrieved 4 April 2018.
  9. Forshaw, Joseph M.; Cooper, William T. (1978). Parrots of the World (2nd ed.). Melbourne: Landsdowne Editions. pp. 218–19. ISBN   0-7018-0690-7.
  10. 1 2 3 4 5 6 Juniper, T. & M. Parr (1998). A Guide to the Parrots of the World. Pica Press. pp. 327–328. ISBN   1-873403-40-2.
  11. 1 2 3 Lexicon of Parrots, online version. Arndt Verlag. Accessed 19-06-2009
  12. 1 2 3 4 Coates, B. J. & K. D. Bishop (1997). A Guide to the Birds of Wallacea. Dove Publications Pty. Ltd. pp. 342–343. ISBN   0-9590257-3-1.
  13. Collar N (1997) "Family Psittacidae (Parrots)" in Handbook of the Birds of the World Volume 4; Sandgrouse to Cuckoos (eds del Hoyo J, Elliott A, Sargatal J) Lynx Edicions:Barcelona. ISBN   84-87334-22-9
  14. Beehler, B., T. K. Pratt, & D. A. Zimmerman (1986). Birds of New Guinea. Princeton University Press. p. 122. ISBN   0-691-08385-1.{{cite book}}: CS1 maint: multiple names: authors list (link)
  15. Buru king parrot. Zootierliste.de. Accessed 19-06-2009
  16. Salawati king parrot. Zootierliste.de. Accessed 19-06-2009
  17. Vriends MM, Earle-Bridges M, Heming-Vriends TM (1992). The New Australian Parakeet Handbook . Barron's. p.  137. ISBN   0-8120-4739-7.