Red-bellied Parakeet
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Red-bellied Parakeet ( Pyrrhura perlata ) |
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| Pyrrhura perlata | ||||||||||||
| ( Spix , 1824) |
The red-bellied parakeet ( Pyrrhura perlata , syn .: Pyrrhura rhodogaster ) belongs to the genus of the red-tailed parakeet ( Pyrrhura ).
Red-bellied parakeets are extraordinarily colorful birds, as indicated by their species name "Perlata", which means "flung" from Latin. The area of origin of the birds is South America, more precisely northern Brazil and northern Bolivia. There they live in the dense vegetation of the rainforest. The red-bellied parakeets are mostly found in the higher part of the trees. You can often see them together with the red-backed parakeets ( Pyrrhura picta ). Outside the breeding season, red-bellied parakeets are usually in small flocks of three to eight individuals.
Red-bellied Parakeets used to be common in the wild, but since 2012 they have been listed as "vulnerable" on the Red List. Until a few years ago, they were hardly to be found in human care. Due to their particularly beautiful coloring, however, they are now among the most frequently kept Pyrrhura species.
Appearance
Red-bellied parakeets are around 24 cm tall and weigh 85 to 95 g. Their physique is rather strong and compact. Outwardly, males and females cannot be distinguished. An endoscopy or DNA determination is required for an accurate sex determination.
The plumage of the red-bellied parakeet is predominantly green. The red-bellied parakeet owes its name to its bright red belly. The bend of the wing, the underbust and the coverts of the wings are also colored in this striking red. There is a narrow red stripe at the base of the beak. The crown, forehead, neck, upper chest, neck and back of the head are dull brown, with each feather lined with whitish brown. The neck is marked with a blue band. The reins and cheeks are yellow-green, while the ear covers are brownish-white. Thighs, under tail-coverts, upper wing coverts, hand coverts and hand wings are blue, while the upper side of the tail is brown-red and the lower side of the tail is gray.
The white eye ring is bare and the iris is dark brown. The sharp beak and feet are gray.
The young birds look like the parent animals, but their plumage colors are not that bright and their belly is green. Usually they are fully colored after around eight months, although the period can vary by a few months.
behavior
The red-bellied parakeets are very agile birds that like many Pyrrhura species like to bathe. Red-bellied parakeets belong to the medium-loud parrots. However, they scream very loudly when they are in danger and when they are excited.
attitude
Red-bellied parakeets have not been kept and bred in Europe for very long. The first specimens came to Europe as early as the 1820s, but it wasn't until 1983 that the first breeding succeeded in Germany. In the meantime, however, the beautiful parakeets can be found in many aviaries.
Red-bellied parakeets should by no means be kept as solitary animals, as they are, just like other parrots, very sociable birds with pronounced social behavior. They are very playful and do almost everything together. Keeping them in pairs seems ideal, under certain circumstances keeping them in a small school is also possible, as they are not very aggressive towards their fellow species outside of the breeding season. If there is enough space, they can be kept together in small schools. In the breeding season, however, red-bellied parakeets show a pronounced territorial behavior and tend to be quite aggressive. It is therefore not recommended to keep them together during breeding and courtship.
Since red-bellied parakeets are very active parrots, they need a lot of space. If they are kept in a cage, they need several hours of free flight every day. If the aviary is kept, it should be at least 3 m long in order to meet the needs of the parakeets to fly.
Even if today's offspring are relatively robust and no longer as sensitive as the imported birds, they cannot tolerate temperatures below 10 ° C, which is why red-bellied parakeets need a heated shelter in an outdoor aviary. A sleeping box should be made available to the birds overnight all year round.
nutrition
In the wild, Red-bellied Parakeets feed mainly on fruits, flowers, berries, seeds and nuts. This should be taken into account in human care diets by covering at least 40% of the daily requirement with fruits and vegetables. The basis of the feed is a grain mix for large parakeets with as few sunflower seeds as possible. In addition, branches should be given to gnaw, as this parakeet has a strong need for nails.
breed
Red-bellied Parakeets are regularly kept in human care. Breeding them is relatively easy. During the breeding season, however, the breeder should separate the pairs, otherwise they will disturb each other during breeding.
Young red-bellied parakeets are able to reproduce at around twelve months, but you should not breed them at this early stage. Young females are more likely to have egg problems, and young males often do not provide reliable care for their partner and the young.
The breeding pairs like to choose between portrait and landscape nesting boxes. Many couples prefer a natural trunk cave. The females lay three to seven eggs two days apart, which are incubated for 23 days. The nestlings are looked after by both parents. The chicks leave the nest at around 50 days of age, and after a further three weeks they are ready to eat and independent. A ring size of 5.5 mm should be used for ringing.
Certificate
All Pyrrhura species have to be registered with the local authorities. In most federal states, the Lower Nature Conservation Authority is responsible, in North Rhine-Westphalia, however, the Environment Agency . Registration is free. You need a form that can be obtained either online or directly from the authorities. Furthermore, you have to submit a certificate of origin from the breeder, which proves that the purchased parakeet comes from a legal European offspring. The ring number and sex of the bird must also be given.
If a parakeet does not come from the EU, you need a CITES certificate.
Subspecies
In more recent publications, the red-bellied parakeets are not assigned any subspecies. In some older publications, however, the red-bellied parakeets are combined with the blue-bellied parakeets to form one species with corresponding subspecies.
Individual evidence
- ↑ Sittich24 - Information on parakeets - Rotbauchsittiche. (No longer available online.) Archived from the original on February 24, 2017 ; accessed on February 24, 2017 . Info: The archive link was inserted automatically and has not yet been checked. Please check the original and archive link according to the instructions and then remove this notice.
