Cuban Parrot Amazona leucocephala Scientific name definitions

The Cuban Parrot (also known, perhaps more appropriately, as the Rose-throated Parrot) is not actually endemic to Cuba. Rather, the four recognized subspecies, some of which are sometimes raised to species status (although such proposals have yet to acquire much critical support), range over Great Inagua, Abaco and formerly other islands in the Bahamas, all three of the Cayman Islands, as well as the main island of Cuba and its most important satellite, the Isle of Youth. Those populations away from Cuba are unquestionably rather small, but probably no longer declining due to more effective conservation measures than have to date been possible in Cuba. This is an attractive parrot, with a scaled appearance to the head and the underparts, a white forehead, pinkish-red chin and throat, and a purplish belly-patch. One result of its striking appearance is that this parrot is popular in the cagebird trade, and this fact, along with destruction of its nest sites, had led to the Cuban Parrot being categorized as Near Threatened under IUCN criteria.

32 cm; 180–320 g (1 Jiménez, A., I. García-Lau, A. González, L. Mugica, and M. Acosta (2014) Valores de masa corporal de 183 especies de aves cubanas. Revista Cubana de Ciencias Biológicas 3:22–42. Close ). Forehead, crown and area round eyes white, including bare white periorbital ring; lores, cheeks and throat pinkish red; ear-coverts blackish; purplish patch on belly ; remainder of body green with dark fringes producing scaled effect (also on belly patch); flight-feathers soft blue; tail green tipped yellowish, outer feathers with red basally and fringed blue. Immature less strongly scaled, less purple on belly. Race caymanensis has white on mid-crown, pinkish red on moustachial area and belly patch all reduced; hesterna smaller, with larger belly patch; bahamensis often with no belly patch, white of crown more extensive below and behind eye.

Editor's Note: This article requires further editing work to merge existing content into the appropriate Subspecies sections. Please bear with us while this update takes place.

Editor's Note: Additional distribution information for this taxon can be found in the 'Subspecies' article above. In the future we will develop a range-wide distribution article.

Fruits and/or seeds of wide variety of plants, notably unripe Pinus caribaea, plus Bursera, Ficus, Petitia, Smilex, Sabal, Duranta, Exothea, Ernodia, Ilex, Zamia, Tabebuia, Acacia, Metopium, Tetrazygia, Myrceanthes, <em>Coccoloba</em> , Conocarpus, Swietenia, Manilkara, Cupania, Lysiloma, and several palms; also stems of Cassytha vines, Avicennia and Bucida blossoms, and buds, plus cultivated fruit such as mango and papaya.

A variety of screeches and calls  , most with a rather nasal tonal quality. In flight, also some disyllabic braying calls.

Mar–Jun. Nest in hole in tree, e.g. Avicennia mangrove and various palms; on Abaco in limestone holes in ground. Eggs 2–6, size (bahamensis) 37·9 mm × 28·9 mm (captivity) (4 Harrison, C. J. O., and D. T. Holyoak (1970). Apparently undescribed parrot eggs in the collection of the British Museum (Natural History). Bulletin of the British Ornithologists’ Club 90(2):42–46. Close ); incubation 26–28 days; nestling period 56–60 days.

Not globally threatened. Currently considered Near Threatened. CITES I. Originally much more numerous throughout; now extirpated from parts of former range due to habitat loss and capture for bird trade. In Cuba, leucocephala has undergone widespread population decline, but still locally common in remoter forested areas of the island; found at very low density in C Cuba. Cuban population estimated at 5000 in 1988; now stable and even increasing on I of Pines (to 1384 in Dec 1995). Population rise of caymanensis on Grand Cayman from 1500 in 1992 to 1900 in 1995, possibly owing to protection from hunting, but habitat still under pressure. Subspecies bahamensis formerly present on several islands in Bahamas, but now restricted to Abaco and Great Inagua, with stronghold in former. Abaco population 830–1082 in 1989, with 1578 estimated in S Abaco in 2002 (5 Wiley, J.W., Gnam, R.S., Koenig, S.E., Dornelly, A., Gálvez, X., Bradley, P.E., White, T., Zamore, M., Reillo, P.R. and Anthony, D. (2004). Status and conservation of the family Psittacidae in the West Indies. Journal of Caribbean Ornithology. 17: 94-154. Close ). Population of hesterna on Cayman Brac 299–430 in 1991; extirpated on Little Cayman through unknown causes. Subspecies leucocephala occurs in more than 20 protected areas in Cuba (6 Cañizares Morera, M. (2012). Amazona leucocephala. Pp. 240-243 in:. Close ). Great Inagua population of bahamensis receives some protection from 743 km² Bahamas National Trust Park. Threatened by cat predation, trade, poaching and habitat loss, though these recently the target of controls. Contemporary population estimates are needed.