Family Parrots (Psittacidae)
Near Threatened
Grey-headed Parakeet (Psittacula finschii)
Taxonomy
French: Perruche de Finsch German: Finschsittich Spanish: Cotorra de Finsch
Other common names:
Finsch's Parakeet
Taxonomy:
Palæornis Finschii
A. O. Hume
, 1874,Kollidoo, 3500–5000 feet [c. 1000–1500 m], upper Salween River, Myanmar
.Distribution:
India from N West Bengal E through, Assam, S China, Myanmar and Thailand to Indochina; very rare in Bangladesh.
Descriptive notes
36–40 cm. Very similar to P. himalayana but smaller with longer tail feathers, slightly paler head, yellower upperparts and darker blue-green underwing-coverts... read more
Voice
Commonest vocalization a strident upslurred pleasant-sounding whistle, “pweEEh!”. When perched,... read more
Habitat
Open mixed deciduous forest, teak forest, secondary growth, cultivation and tea plantations in... read more
Food and feeding
Leaf buds and developing cherry (Prunus) fruit, letpan flowers and flowering climbers, seeds of Dendrocalamus longispathus... read more
Breeding
Jan–Mar in C & S Myanmar. Nest with 4 eggs recorded c. 12 m up in Xylia dolabriformis tree.
Movements
Mainly sedentary, with local altitudinal movements.
Status and conservation
Not globally threatened. Currently considered Near Threatened. CITES II. Commonest Psittacula in some areas of W Myanmar, with up to 100 seen daily, 1995. Locally... read more
Long considered conspecific with P. himalayana, but the two recorded within 25 km of each other in N Bengal and SE Bhutan; other evidence, however, suggests that individuals are convergent in this region; separation as two species therefore remains provisional, but supported by differences in plumage, size (finschii smaller) and “markedly distinct” vocalizations#R. Monotypic.