Brehm's tiger parrot (''Psittacella brehmii''), also known as Brehm's ground parrot, is a small mainly green

parrot Parrots, also known as psittacines (), are birds of the roughly 398 species in 92 genera comprising the order Psittaciformes (), found mostly in tropical and subtropical regions. The order is subdivided into three superfamilies: the Psittacoide ...

found in the highlands of

New Guinea New Guinea (; Hiri Motu: ''Niu Gini''; id, Papua, or , historically ) is the world's second-largest island with an area of . Located in Oceania in the southwestern Pacific Ocean, the island is separated from Australia by the wide Torr ...

, from 1,500-2,600m (extremes 1,100-3,800m). The species is named after

Alfred Brehm Alfred Edmund Brehm (; 2 February 1829 – 11 November 1884) was a German zoologist, writer, director of zoological gardens and the son of Christian Ludwig Brehm, a famous pastor and ornithologist. Through the book title ''Brehms Tierleb ...

(1829–1884), a German traveller and collector.

Taxonomy

There are four subspecies occurring in three distinct populations: * ''P. b. brehmii'':

Bird's Head Peninsula The Bird's Head Peninsula ( Indonesian: ''Kepala Burung'', nl, Vogelkop) or Doberai Peninsula (''Semenanjung Doberai''), is a large peninsula that makes up the northwest portion of the island of New Guinea, comprising the Indonesian provinces ...

, West Papua. * ''P. b. intermixta'': Central highlands of New Guinea. Underparts and barring on back more yellowish-green. Larger. * ''P. b. pallida'': SE highlands of New Guinea. Like nominate but narrower bill. * ''P. b. harterti'':

Huon Peninsula Huon Peninsula is a large rugged peninsula on the island of New Guinea in Morobe Province, eastern Papua New Guinea. It is named after French explorer Jean-Michel Huon de Kermadec. The peninsula is dominated by the steep Saruwaged and Finisterr ...

(NE New Guinea). Paler head, less yellowish-green. Smaller. In Brehm's central

range Range may refer to: Geography * Range (geographic), a chain of hills or mountains; a somewhat linear, complex mountainous or hilly area (cordillera, sierra) ** Mountain range, a group of mountains bordered by lowlands * Range, a term used to i ...

the Painted Tiger parrot, P. ''picta'', takes over above 2700m, but that species is not found in the Huon range, where Brehm's ranges higher. They are found singly or in small groups and feed on seeds and berries in the sub-canopy or near ground level.

Description

Brehm's tiger parrot is the largest species in the genus ''Psittacella'' and is about in length and weighs between . It is mainly green with a dull olive-brown head, transverse yellow and black bars on the back and rump, and red undertail coverts. Its irises are red, and its beak is blueish-grey fading to white at the tip. Its legs are grey. The male has a yellow stripe on the sides of its neck and a green breast without barring. Females lack the yellow stripe on the neck and have a yellow and black striped breast. Juveniles resemble females,Forshaw (2006). plate 64. but have yellowish-brown irises and a more faded green and pale-yellow barring on the breast. These quite parrots are once in a while found in aviculture and there have been no recorded reproducing successes. They are extremely susceptible; once in a while enduring more than 2 to 3 months in captivity. Minimum aviary measurements: 2.5 x 1 x 2 m (8 x 3 x 6 ft). Temperature ought to be controlled within the range of their normal natural surroundings (not very high, not very low).

References

*Juniper & Parr (1998) ''Parrots: A Guide to Parrots of the World''; .

Cited texts

* Brehm's tiger parrot Birds of New Guinea Endemic fauna of New Guinea Least concern biota of Oceania Brehm's tiger parrot {{parrot-stub