Lord Derby's parakeet

Psittacula derbiana

The Lord Derby's parakeet , also known as Derbyan parakeet, is a monotypic parrot species, which is confined to small pocket of moist evergreen forest in the hills of the Indian state of Arunachal Pradesh and the adjoining parts of Tibet. The species suffers from poaching for the illegal wildlife trade and fetches a high price in the black market. It is perhaps the rarest of all species of Psittacula in mainland Asia. As of the 2011 IUCN Red List of Threatened Species its status was updated from Least Concern to Near Threatened. The adult male and female are easily distinguished because they have different beak colours and slightly different plumage.

The name of this bird commemorates Edward Stanley, 13th Earl of Derby.

Lord Derby's parakeets feed on fruits, berries, seeds, and leaf buds, occasionally foraging in gardens and fields.
Lord Derby's parakeet in Zoo Parc Overloon A rare and very large parakeet, easily confused with a parrot. This one is a male, as females and youngster have a black beak. They are very social birds, living in groups of 10-40 birds. In dutch, they are called the "China Parakeet", not sure why. Europe,Lord Derby's parakeet,Netherlands,Psittacula derbiana,Zoo Parc Overloon

Appearance

Lord Derby's parakeets average 20 inches in length and are sexually dimorphic. They have a mostly green plumage over their dorsal surface , black lores and lower cheeks, a bluish-purple crown and pale yellow eyes. The throat, breast, abdomen and under-wing coverts are greyish blue to lavender. The thighs and vent area are yellowish green with blue edging on some of the feathers. The tail feathers are shades of green, some edged with blue. Male birds have a red upper mandible with a yellow tip, while the lower mandible is black. The females have an all-black beak.

Immature Lord Derby's parakeets are duller in colour than the adults. Juvenile birds have green crowns, orange-red upper and lower mandible , and their irises are dark and do not lighten until they reach maturity between two and three years of age.

Reproduction

Breeding season usually begins between April and June. The female lays a clutch of two to four eggs in nest holes of trees. The young hatch after an incubation period of about 23 days and will fledge after 8 to 9 weeks.

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Status: Near threatened
EX EW CR EN VU NT LC
Taxonomy
KingdomAnimalia
DivisionChordata
ClassAves
OrderPsittaciformes
FamilyPsittaculidae
GenusPsittacula
SpeciesP. derbiana
Photographed in
Netherlands