(Conuropsis carolinensis) – Extinct Species
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The Carolina Parakeet (Conuropsis carolinensis) was the only parrot species native to the eastern United States; where it was found from the Ohio Valley to the Gulf of Mexico, and lived in old forests along rivers.
The Carolina parakeet was an remarkably social bird, living in vast flocks.
Description
The plumage was mostly green, with a yellow head, and red feathers in its face around the beak.
The Louisiana subspecies of the Carolina Parakeet had a more bluish-green plumage and was generally of a less bright coloration. (That species went extinct for the same reasons as the Carolina Parakeet, but at an earlier date (early 1910s).
Extinction
The Carolina Parakeet became extinct because of a number of different threats:
- Loss of habitat following deforestation due to expansion of agricultural land
- Hunting for food or for its colorful feathers, which were in demand as decorations in ladies’ hats
- Capturing for the pet trade with little effort being made to breed them
- Killing by farmers who considered them a crop pest .
Their flocking behavior contributed to their extinction as they returned to mourn their flock members that had just been wounded or killed by hunters, making themselves easy targets.
The last wild specimen was killed in Okeechobee County in Florida in 1904. The last captive bird died at the Cincinnati Zoo in 1918.
Taxonomy:
Genus: Scientific: Conuropsis … English: Carolina Conures … Dutch: Carolinaparkieten … German: Karolinasittiche … French: Perruche de Caroline
Species: Scientific: Conuropsis carolinensis carolinensis … English: Carolina Conure … Dutch: Carolina Parkiet … German: Karolinasittich … French: Perruche de Caroline
CITES status: EXTINCT … Distribution: Formerly could be seen in South-eastern United States, now extinct
Sub-species:
Description: As Carolina Parakeet above, but generally more bluish; thighs without yellow; median and greater wing-coverts with pronounced yellow edging; lesser wing-coverts turquoise in many birds.
Genus: Scientific: Conuropsis … English: Carolina Conures … Dutch: Carolinaparkieten … German: Karolinasittiche … French: Perruche de Caroline
Species: Scientific: Conuropsis carolinensis ludovicianus … English: Louisiana Parakeet … Dutch: Louisiana Parkiet … German: Louisianasittich … French: Perruche de Louisiana
CITES status: EXTINCT … Distribution: Mississippi-Missouri drainage in eastern interior of the United States, now extinct
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