Golden-shouldered Parrot

Description:

The golden-shouldered parrot measures 240-260mm in length including its long tapered tail. Like most parrots it is brilliantly coloured, especially the male which is primarily turquoise with a salmon pink belly and bronze wings boasting a streak of bright yellow. The bronze extends to some of its tail feathers, with the rest being black like its crown. Females and immature birds are mostly various shades of green with a turquoise rump.

Habitat:

Tropical savanna woodland

Notes:

Estimated 3,000 birds left in the wild, endangered. Diet: The Golden-shouldered Parrot diet is almost entirely of small grass seeds which they pick up from the ground or strip deftly from seeding heads. The birds spend much of the morning and late afternoon out feeding and drinking, often mixing both activities. They prefer to drink at small and shallow holes that they can walk into. Breeding: Golden-shouldered parrots nest in a chamber in a termite mound through the entrance tunnel of 40-50cm long. They breed between April and August and two broods may be reared in a season.