Hooded Parrots

The Hooded Parrot, Psephotus dissimilis, is an Australian endemic; specifically, it inhabits to semi-arid areas of northeast Northern Territory. Though this species has disappeared from most of its original range, it remains common in protected areas.

The Hooded Parrot occupies the very northeastern region of the Northern Territory while the nominate Golden-shouldered Parrot is limited to the Cape York Peninsula.

Description:

This medium-sized parrot averages 28 cm (11 ins) in length.

Male:

This is a largely turquoise blue parrot with black head, green wing, brown back and greenish blue-bronze tail feathers edged with white. The beak is pale grey. The legs are brown-greyish and the eyes are brown.

Female:

Plumage is olive green parrot with pale blue below.

Young birds:

Immatures as female; young males occasionally with turquoise cheeks; adult plumage attained by 16 months.

Similar Species:

The Hooded Parrot is a subspecies of the Golden-shouldered Parrot.  The two races are nearly identical, except the hooded parrot has black below the eye, while the nominate species has only black above the eye. These birds are about as long as the Mulga and Blue Bonnet, but they have a slimmer build

Nesting / Breeding:

The Hooded Parrot nests in a termite mound. Female lays two to four white eggs.

Natural Diet:

The diet consists mainly of seeds, berries and vegetables.

Taxonomy:

Genus: Scientific: Psephotus … English: Red-backed Parakeets … Dutch: Roodrugparkieten … German: Singsittiche … French: Perruche chantant

Species: Scientific: Psephotus dissimilis aka Psephotus chrysopterygius dissimilis … English: Hooded Parrot … Dutch: Kapparkiet, Gemutste Parkiet … German: Hoodedsittich … French: Perruche hooded

Psephotus Information … Photos of the Members of the Psephotus Family for Identification

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