Sapphire Lorikeet
| Sapphire Lorikeet | ||||||||||||
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Sapphire Lorikeet ( Vini peruviana ) |
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| Vini peruviana | ||||||||||||
| ( Statius Müller , 1776) |
The blue lorikeet ( Vini peruviana , too) Tahiti Blaulori called, is a parrot of the genus Blue lorikeets ( Vini ). The species is only native to French Polynesia and Aitutaki .
features
The sapphire lorikeet reaches a size of about 18 cm with a round short tail. The basic color of the plumage is sapphire blue, the chest and the lower part of the face are white. The beak is tinged orange, the feet are reddish. Young birds do not yet have white plumage and have a blue-gray face and base. The beak of the young birds is black, the legs and feet are brownish orange.
Way of life
The sapphire lorikeet is constantly in motion. The birds often fly around in small flocks of two to six individuals, screaming shrilly. Its flight is fast and direct with rapid wing beats. When the bird is not looking for food, it will rest in the crowns of the coconut palms or on banana trees.
Like most Loris, the sapphire lory feeds mainly on nectar and pollen from various trees and bushes. With their brush tongue they ingest the nectar of up to 5000 flowers a day. In search of food, they visit natural forms of vegetation such as forests and thickets as well as man-made plantings and gardens. Last but not least, fruit trees and ornamental trees that have become naturalized by humans play an important role in the nutrition of the sapphire loris.
The female lays an average of two eggs in a tree hole at least ten meters from the ground. The eggs are white, almost spherical and rather small at 1.9 by 1.7 cm. The partners take turns breeding and after about 25 days the young birds hatch, which fledge after two months and leave the nest.
status
The sapphire lorikeet is endangered by the introduced house rat ( Rattus rattus ), feral cats and imported mosquitoes, which is why the species is classified as "endangered".
literature
- Thomas Arndt: Lexicon of Parrots. Arndt Verlag, 2001.
- Joseph M. Forshaw: Parrots of the World: An Identification Guide. Princeton University Press, Princeton, New Jersey, and Woodstock, United Kingdom 2006, ISBN 978-0-691-09251-5 .
