Family Parrots (Psittacidae)
Least Concern
Plum-headed Parakeet (Psittacula cyanocephala)
Taxonomy
French: Perruche à tête prune German: Pflaumenkopfsittich Spanish: Cotorra cabeciazul
Taxonomy:
Psittacus cyanocephalus
Linnaeus
, 1766,East Indies = Gingee, Tamil Nadu, India
.Distribution:
Indian Subcontinent from NE Pakistan to Bhutan and S to Sri Lanka.
Descriptive notes
33–37 cm; 56–85 g. Bill yellowish above, black below; head crimson shading to greyish plum on mid-crown to nape and ear-coverts; black chin extending as complete... read more
Voice
Commonest vocalization a steeply upslurred nasal whistle, “huEET!”. When perched, utters a wider... read more
Habitat
Moist deciduous forest and wooded habitats and adjacent clearings and cultivated areas in lowlands... read more
Food and feeding
More frugivorous than most Psittacula parakeets, and prefer small to large seeds. Fruit of Ficus and Ziziphus,... read more
Breeding
Dec–Apr; in Sri Lanka also occasionally Jul–Aug. Nest in hole in tree trunk or bough, often in small colonies within one tree... read more
Movements
Resident, but with marked local movements in response to food supply.
Status and conservation
Not globally threatened. CITES II. Fairly common in Nepal, but with an apparently decline in Kathmandu Valley. In India generally common. Formerly abundant in lowlands of Sri... read more
Birds decrease clinally in size from N to S, and head and rump become darker, but limits to proposed N subspecies bengalensis too indistinct to make the name useful. Form rosa, in past erroneously associated with P. roseata, is a synonym of cyanocephala. Artificial hybrids of present species and P. himalayana shown to be responsible for the form treated in HBW as P. intermedia#R. Monotypic.