Sri Lanka Hanging-Parrot Loriculus beryllinus Scientific name definitions

13–14 cm. Bill orangish red; entire crown red, shading on nape to golden yellow extending onto mantle and back; face yellowish green, extending in thin line above red-ringed eye and down onto sides of neck and underparts ; chin and throat smudged blue; wings and tail green; rump and uppertail-coverts red; legs orange. Female has less blue throat. Immature generally lacks head and mantle colour, and may fledge with face and forehead naked.

Sri Lanka.

Wooded country, groves, plantations, coconut groves and gardens up to 1250 m, reaching 1600 m in NE monsoon.

Some upward altitudinal displacement appears to occur in the NE monsoon.

Nectar of Erythrina, Salmalia and introduced eucalypts; seeds of Casuarina; fruit of “jambu” (presumably Eugenia); flowers and fruit of cultivated bananas.

Commonest call a high-pitched somewhat buzzy “tzee-zee-zeet”.  When perched also utters squeaky warbles, high-pitched “see” notes and combinations thereof. Overall quite similar to L. vernalis.

Jan–Sept, chiefly Mar–May. Nest in hollow in tree-stump or branch. Eggs 2–3.

Not globally threatened. CITES II. A BirdLife “restricted-range” species. Widespread, and most plentiful in the SW of the island and almost absent from arid N.