Yellow-shouldered amazon

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Yellow-shouldered amazon
Amazona barbadensis -pet-4.jpg
A pet on a wooden climbing frame in Venezuela
CITES Appendix I (CITES) [2]
Scientific classification OOjs UI icon edit-ltr.svg
Domain: Eukaryota
Kingdom: Animalia
Phylum: Chordata
Class: Aves
Order: Psittaciformes
Family: Psittacidae
Genus: Amazona
Species:
A. barbadensis
Binomial name
Amazona barbadensis
(Gmelin, JF, 1788)
Amazona barbadensis map.svg

The yellow-shouldered amazon (Amazona barbadensis), also known as the yellow-shouldered parrot, is a parrot of the genus Amazona that is found in the arid areas of northern Venezuela, the Venezuelan islands of Margarita and La Blanquilla, and the island of Bonaire (Caribbean Netherlands). It has been extirpated from Aruba and introduced to Curaçao.

Contents

Taxonomy

The yellow-shouldered amazon was described and illustrated in 1738 by the English naturalist Eleazar Albin in his A Natural History of Birds based on live specimen. Albin believed that the parrot had come from Barbados and used the English name, the "Barbadoes parrot". [3] Using Albin's account, both Mathurin Jacques Brisson in 1760 and John Latham in 1781 included a description of the parrot in their books on birds. [4] [5] When in 1788 the German naturalist Johann Friedrich Gmelin revised and expanded Carl Linnaeus's Systema Naturae , he included the yellow-shouldered amazon, coined the binomial name Psittacus barbadensis and cited Latham's work. [6] Gmelin specified the type locality as Barbados but this parrot species is not found on the island and Venezuela is the type locality. [7] The yellow-shouldered amazon is now placed with around thirty other species in the genus Amazona that was introduced by the French naturalist René Lesson in 1830. [8] [9] The genus name is a Latinized version of the name Amazone given to these parrot in the 18th century by the Comte de Buffon, who believed they were native to Amazonian jungles. The specific barbadensis denotes Barbados. [10] The species is monotypic: no subspecies are recognised. [9]

Description

Front view Amazona barbadensis -pet-upper body-4-3c.jpg
Front view

The yellow-shouldered amazon is mainly green and about 33 cm long (~13 inches). It has a whitish forehead and lores, and a yellow crown, ocular region and - often - ear coverts and chin. The bare eye-ring is white. The thighs and the bend of the wing ("shoulder") are yellow, but both can be difficult to see. The throat, cheeks and belly often have a bluish tinge. As most members of the genus Amazona, it has broad dark blue tips to the remiges and a red wing-speculum. [11]

The yellow-shouldered amazon can be distinguished from the very similar orange-winged amazon by the latter's lack of yellow on its shoulders and blue colouration around the eyes. Another way of distinguishing it from other Amazona species is its somewhat higher pitched vocalizations. [12]

Distribution and habitat

A. barbadensis is endemic to northern Venezuela, Bonaire (which may have less than 400 birds [13] ), and other islands in the area. On the Venezuelan island of Margarita, it is extirpated from the east side, which is heavily commercialized and a popular tourist destination, existing only on the Macanao Peninsula. [14] It was once found on Aruba, although it was locally extinct by 1947. An introduced population exists on Curaçao. Unlike other Amazona members, it is typically found in arid habitats, such as desert scrub and dry forests. [12] [15] [16]

Behavior

Food and feeding

It feeds on fruits, seeds, and flowers, frequently consuming parts of cactus plants. [12] [15] The parrot is able to survive with minimal water, getting a large amount of moisture from their diet. This is especially clear on La Blanquilla, a small island with no natural bodies of water. The cacti that they so often eat are filled with liquid, in both the stems and fruits, and this keeps them alive in their arid environment. [14]

Breeding

The yellow-shouldered amazon typically nests in holes in trees, cliffs, or cacti, and lays 2-5 eggs. [15] Total clutch size and hatching success of this species on Margarita Island are among the highest documented for the genus Amazona, suggesting a high reproductive potential for the species [17] It is highly gregarious, and can sometimes roost in communally in tall trees, forming groups of as many as 700. [15] The population on Bonaire appears to breed slower than is typical for the species, bringing it in line with other members of the genus. [18]

Status

Possible extinct subspecies from Aruba, A. b. canifrons Amazona barbadensis canifrons.jpg
Possible extinct subspecies from Aruba, A. b. canifrons

Declines in several main land populations have been extensively documented, there are believed to be 2,500–10,000 yellow-shouldered amazons in the wild. [19]

Due to ongoing habitat lost, small population size, limited range and overhunting for the pet trade, the yellow-shouldered amazon is evaluated as Vulnerable on the IUCN Red List of Threatened Species. [20] On La Blanquilla, the main issues are predation by feral cats and hunting by local fishermen and Naval personnel. [14] It is listed on Appendix I of CITES. Thanks to local surveillance by the Venezuelan NGO Provita, poaching has been significantly lowered in certain areas. [13]

The population on the Caribbean island of Margarita had been as low as 750 birds in 1989, but thanks to conservation efforts, there were an estimated 2,400 by 2002, [21] although different estimates describe just 2,000 in 2015. [15] These efforts involved, among other things, the breeding and releasing of captive individuals, which was done with much success in the 1990s. [22]

Related Research Articles

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Amazon parrot</span> Genus of birds

Amazon parrots are parrots in the genus Amazona. They are medium-sized, short-tailed parrots native to the Americas, with their range extending from South America to Mexico and the Caribbean. Amazona is one of the 92 genera of parrots that make up the order Psittaciformes and is in the family Psittacidae, one of three families of true parrots. It contains about thirty species. Most amazons are predominantly green, with accenting colors that depend on the species, and they can be quite vivid. They feed primarily on seeds, nuts, and fruits, supplemented by leafy matter.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Reddish egret</span> Species of bird

The reddish egret is a medium-sized heron that is a resident breeder in Central America, the Bahamas, the Caribbean, the Gulf Coast of the United States, and Mexico. The egret is known for its unusual foraging behavior compared to other herons as well as its association with mud flats, its habitat of choice.

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

The black-billed amazon is a parrot endemic to Jamaica. Sometimes called the black-billed parrot, this amazon parrot is mostly green with small patches of red on the wing and sometimes flecked on the head. Its bill makes it easy to separate from most other amazons, including the yellow-billed amazon, which also lives in Jamaica. It is the smallest Amazona parrot at 25 cm (10 in).

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Orange-winged amazon</span> Species of bird

The orange-winged amazon, also known locally as orange-winged parrot and loro guaro, is a large amazon parrot. It is a resident breeding bird in tropical South America, from Colombia, Trinidad and Tobago south to Peru, Bolivia and central Brazil. Its habitat is forest and semi-open country. Although common, it is persecuted as an agricultural pest and by capture for the pet trade. It is also hunted as a food source. Introduced breeding populations have been reported in Puerto Rico and Tenerife in the Canary Islands.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Southern mealy amazon</span> Species of bird

The southern mealy amazon or southern mealy parrot is among the largest parrots in the genus Amazona, the amazon parrots. It is a mainly green parrot with a total length of 38–41 cm (15–16 in). It is native to tropical Central and South America. This parrot and the northern mealy amazon are considered conspecific.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Yellow-chinned spinetail</span> Species of bird

The yellow-chinned spinetail is a passerine bird found in the tropical New World from Trinidad and Colombia south to Argentina and Uruguay. It is a member of the South American ovenbird family Furnariidae.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Cuban amazon</span> Species of bird

The Cuban amazon, also known as the Cuban parrot and the rose-throated parrot, is a medium-sized mainly green parrot found in woodlands and dry forests of Cuba, the Bahamas and Cayman Islands in the Caribbean. Although they have been observed in the wild in Puerto Rico, they are probably the result of escaped pets, and no reproduction has been recorded.

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

The red-lored amazon or red-lored parrot is a species of amazon parrot, native to tropical regions of the Americas, from eastern Mexico south to Ecuador where it occurs in humid evergreen to semi-deciduous forests up to 1,100 m altitude. It is absent from the Pacific side of Central America north of Costa Rica. Not originally known from El Salvador, a pair - perhaps escaped from captivity - nested successfully in 1995 and 1996 in the outskirts of San Salvador and the species might expand its range permanently into that country in the future. This species has also established feral populations in several California cities.

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

The red-winged parrot is a parrot native to Australia and New Guinea. It is found in grasslands, savannah, farmland, and woodland.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Saint Vincent amazon</span> Species of bird

The Saint Vincent amazon, also known as Saint Vincent parrot, is a large, approximately 40 cm (16 in) long, multi-colored amazon parrot with a yellowish white, blue and green head, greenish-bronze upperparts plumage, and violet blue-green wings.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Yellow-crowned amazon</span> Species of bird

The yellow-crowned amazon or yellow-crowned parrot is a species of parrot native to tropical South America, Panama and Trinidad and Tobago in the Caribbean. The taxonomy is highly complex and the yellow-headed and yellow-naped amazon are sometimes considered subspecies of the yellow-crowned amazon. Except in the taxonomic section, the following deals only with the nominate group .They are found in the Amazon basin.

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

The yellow-billed amazon, also called the yellow-billed parrot or Jamaican amazon, is a species of parrot in the family Psittacidae. It is a predominantly green parrot with a short tail and pink throat and neck. It is endemic to Jamaica, where its natural habitats are subtropical or tropical moist lowland forests, subtropical or tropical mangrove forests, subtropical or tropical moist montane forests, plantations, and rural gardens. It is threatened by habitat loss and illegal trapping of wild birds for the pet trade.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Festive amazon</span> Species of bird

The festive amazon, also known as the festive parrot, is a species of parrot in the family Psittacidae. It is found in Brazil, Colombia, Ecuador, Bolivia, Guyana, Peru, and Venezuela. It is associated with forest and woodland growing near major rivers. Locally, it is also found in coastal mangroves. There are two subspecies; A. f. festiva and A. f. bodini.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Guadeloupe amazon</span> Hypothetical extinct species of parrot from the Caribbean

The Guadeloupe amazon or Guadeloupe parrot is a hypothetical extinct species of parrot that is thought to have been endemic to the Lesser Antillean island region of Guadeloupe. Mentioned and described by 17th- and 18th-century writers, it received a scientific name in 1789. It was moved to the genus Amazona in 1905, and is thought to have been related to, or possibly the same as, the extant imperial amazon. A tibiotarsus and an ulna bone from the island of Marie-Galante may belong to the Guadeloupe amazon. In 1905, a species of extinct violet macaw was also claimed to have lived on Guadeloupe, but in 2015, it was suggested to have been based on a description of the Guadeloupe amazon.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Brown-throated parakeet</span> Species of bird

The brown-throated parakeet, also known as the St. Thomas conure or brown-throated conure in aviculture, is a species of bird in the subfamily Arinae of the family Psittacidae, the African and New World parrots. It is found in Costa Rica, Panama, the northern mainland of South America, and islands off the South American coast.

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

The palm lorikeet is a species of parrot in the family Psittaculidae. It is found in the Santa Cruz Islands and Vanuatu. Its natural habitats are subtropical or tropical moist lowland forest, subtropical or tropical moist montane forest and plantations. It is threatened by habitat loss.

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

The maroon shining parrot or red shining-parrot, is a species of parrot in the family Psittaculidae. It is endemic to the islands of Vanua Levu and Taveuni in Fiji and was introduced to the islands of southern Tonga in prehistoric times. The species is sometimes considered conspecific with the crimson shining-parrot of Kadavu. Its natural habitats are subtropical or tropical moist lowland forests and subtropical or tropical mangrove forests.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Cinnamon attila</span> Species of bird

The cinnamon attila is a species of bird in the family Tyrannidae, the tyrant flycatchers. It is found in northern South America in the Amazon Basin of Brazil and the Guianas. It is found in Brazil, Colombia, Venezuela, Guyana, Suriname, and French Guiana; also Amazonian Ecuador, Peru, and regions of Bolivia. Its natural habitat is subtropical or tropical swamps.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Washington Slagbaai National Park</span> National park on Bonaire Island in the Caribbean

Washington Slagbaai National Park is a national park and ecological reserve on the northwestern part of the island of Bonaire in the Caribbean Netherlands. The 5,643 hectares (21.79 sq mi) park covering approximately a fifth of the island of Bonaire is managed by STINAPA Bonaire, a non-profit foundation, on behalf of the Bonaire government. Established in 1969, Washington Slagbaai National Park was the first nature reserve to be established in the former Netherlands Antilles.

References

  1. ↑ BirdLife International (2021). "Amazona barbadensis". IUCN Red List of Threatened Species . 2021: e.T22686325A198373501. doi: 10.2305/IUCN.UK.2021-3.RLTS.T22686325A198373501.en . Retrieved 31 December 2021.
  2. ↑ "Appendices | CITES". cites.org. Retrieved 2022-01-14.
  3. ↑ Albin, Eleazar; Derham, William (1738). A Natural History of Birds : Illustrated with a Hundred and One Copper Plates, Curiously Engraven from the Life. Vol. 3. London: Printed for the author and sold by William Innys. p. 11, Plate 11.
  4. ↑ 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. 236–237.
  5. ↑ Latham, John (1781). A General Synopsis of Birds. Vol. 1, Part 1. London: Printed for Benj. White. p. 284, No. 90.
  6. ↑ Gmelin, Johann Friedrich (1788). Systema naturae per regna tria naturae : secundum classes, ordines, genera, species, cum characteribus, differentiis, synonymis, locis (in Latin). Vol. 1, Part 1 (13th ed.). Lipsiae [Leipzig]: Georg. Emanuel. Beer. p. 339.
  7. ↑ Peters, James Lee, ed. (1937). Check-List of Birds of the World. Vol. 3. Cambridge, Massachusetts: Harvard University Press. p. 220.
  8. ↑ Lesson, René (1831). Traité d'Ornithologie, ou Tableau Méthodique (in French). Vol. 1. Paris: F.G. Levrault. p. 189.
  9. 1 2 Gill, Frank; Donsker, David; Rasmussen, Pamela, eds. (January 2022). "Parrots, cockatoos". IOC World Bird List Version 12.1. International Ornithologists' Union. Retrieved 26 March 2022.
  10. ↑ Jobling, James A. (2010). The Helm Dictionary of Scientific Bird Names. London: Christopher Helm. pp.  44, 67. ISBN   978-1-4081-2501-4.
  11. ↑ "Species factsheet: Amazona barbadensis". BirdLife International (2008). Retrieved 22 August 2008.
  12. 1 2 3 "Yellow-shouldered Parrot - eBird". ebird.org. Retrieved 2022-01-04.
  13. 1 2 "Yellow-shouldered parrot Conservation Case Study | The Mohamed bin Zayed Species Conservation Fund". www.speciesconservation.org. Retrieved 2022-01-04.
  14. 1 2 3 Silvius, Kirsten (1991). "Parrots, Poachers and Payloaders: Status and Natural History of the Yellow-shouldered Amazon on Margarita Island, Venezuela". AFA Watchbird. 18 (4): 17–19.
  15. 1 2 3 4 5 Farrows. "Yellow-shouldered Parrot: Species in World Land Trust reserves". World Land Trust. Retrieved 2022-01-04.
  16. ↑ "Dutch Caribbean Species Register". www.dutchcaribbeanspecies.org. Retrieved 2022-01-04.
  17. ↑ Sanz, Virginia; Rodriguez-Ferraro, Adriana (2006). "Reproductive Parameters and Productivity of the Yellow-Shouldered Parrot on Margarita Island, Venezuela: a Long-Term Study". The Condor. 108 (1): 178–192. doi: 10.1650/0010-5422(2006)108[0178:RPAPOT]2.0.CO;2 . S2CID   86353277.
  18. ↑ Williams, Samuel R. (2010). Factors affecting the life history, abundance and distribution of the yellow-shouldered Amazon parrot (Amazona barbadensis) on Bonaire, Netherlands Antilles (phd thesis). University of Sheffield.
  19. ↑ Ferrer-Paris, José R; Sánchez-Mercado, Ada; Rodríguez-Clark, Kathryn M.; Rodríguez, Jon Paul; Rodríguez, Gustavo A. (2014). "Using limited data to detect changes in species distributions: Insights from Amazon parrots in Venezuela". Biological Conservation. 173: 133–143. Bibcode:2014BCons.173..133F. doi:10.1016/j.biocon.2013.07.032.
  20. ↑ BirdLife International (2017). "Amazona barbadensis". IUCN Red List of Threatened Species . 2017: e.T22686325A110628721. doi: 10.2305/IUCN.UK.2017-1.RLTS.T22686325A110628721.en . Retrieved 13 November 2021.
  21. ↑ "Threatened Caribbean species and habitats, Venezuela". Whitley Award. 2002-12-31. Retrieved 2022-01-04.
  22. ↑ Sanz, Virginia; Grajal, Alejandro (1998). "Successful Reintroduction of Captive-Raised Yellow-Shouldered Amazon Parrots on Margarita Island, Venezuela". Conservation Biology. 12 (2): 430–441. Bibcode:1998ConBi..12..430S. doi:10.1111/j.1523-1739.1998.96261.x. ISSN   1523-1739. S2CID   85239736.
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