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Derbyan Parakeet
Conservation statusLeast Concern
Scientific classification
Kingdom: Animalia
Phylum: Chordata
Class: Aves
Order: Psittaciformes
Family: Psittacidae
Genus: Psittacula
Species: P. derbiana
Binomial name
Psittacula derbiana
(Fraser, 1852)
The Derbyan parakeet, Psittacula derbiana is confined to small pocket of moist evergreen forest in the hills of the Indian state of Arunachal Pradesh and the Chinese province on its border. 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.
The name of this bird commemorates Edward Stanley, 13th Earl of Derby.
Derbyan parakeets average 20 inches (50 centimeters) in length and are sexually dimorphic.
This species has a mostly green plumage on the dorsal side, 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 Derbyan Parakeets are easily distinguished from adults because they are duller in color, have green crowns, and orange-red beaks. Also, their eyes are dark, and do not lighten until they reach maturity between two and three years of age.
Derbyan parakeets feed on fruits, berries, seeds, and leaf buds, occasionally foraging in gardens and fields.
Breeding season usually begins between April and June. The female lays a clutch of two to four eggs (36.1x27.7 mm (1.42 x 1.09 ins) in nest holes of trees. The young hatch after an incubation period of about 23 days and will fledge after 8 to 9 weeks.
References
* BirdLife International (2004). Psittacula derbiana. 2006 IUCN Red List of Threatened Species. IUCN 2006. Retrieved on 11 May 2006. Database entry includes justification for why this species is of least concern
