The Mexican parrotlet (''Forpus cyanopygius''), also known as the turquoise-rumped parrotlet or the Mexican blue-rumped parrotlet, is a species of

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 ...

in the family

Psittacidae The family Psittacidae or holotropical parrots is one of three families of true parrots. It comprises the roughly 10 species of subfamily Psittacinae (the Old World or Afrotropical parrots) and 157 of subfamily Arinae (the New World or Neotropi ...

. There are two subspecies: Grayson's parrotlet or the Tres Marias parrotlet (''F. c. insularis'') and ''F. c. cyanopygius''.

Description

Distribution and habitat

Mexican parrotlets are

endemic Endemism is the state of a species being found in a single defined geographic location, such as an island, state, nation, country or other defined zone; organisms that are indigenous to a place are not endemic to it if they are also found else ...

to western

Mexico Mexico (Spanish: México), officially the United Mexican States, is a country in the southern portion of North America. It is bordered to the north by the United States; to the south and west by the Pacific Ocean; to the southeast by Guatema ...

. Their range extends from southern Sonora to

Colima Colima (), officially the Free and Sovereign State of Colima ( es, Estado Libre y Soberano de Colima), is one of the 31 states that make up the 32 Federal Entities of Mexico. It shares its name with its capital and main city, Colima. Colima i ...

. This species is the northernmost member of the genus ''

Forpus ''Forpus'' is a genus of neotropical parrots in the family Psittacidae. It is the only genus in the Forpini tribe of the subfamily Arinae. Taxonomy The genus ''Forpus'' was introduced in 1858 by the German zoologist Friedrich Boie. The type spec ...

''. Though they are

non-migratory Bird migration is the regular seasonal movement, often north and south along a flyway, between breeding and wintering grounds. Many species of bird migrate. Migration carries high costs in predation and mortality, including from hunting by ...

, they wander throughout their range to follow the blooming and growth patterns of the plants they prefer to feed on. Natural

habitat In ecology, the term habitat summarises the array of resources, physical and biotic factors that are present in an area, such as to support the survival and reproduction of a particular species. A species habitat can be seen as the physical ...

s are subtropical or

tropical The tropics are the regions of Earth surrounding the Equator. They are defined in latitude by the Tropic of Cancer in the Northern Hemisphere at N and the Tropic of Capricorn in the Southern Hemisphere at S. The tropics are also referred to ...

dry scrublands, deciduous

forest A forest is an area of land dominated by trees. Hundreds of definitions of forest are used throughout the world, incorporating factors such as tree density, tree height, land use, legal standing, and ecological function. The United Nations' ...

s, open grasslands with scattered trees, heavily degraded former

, plantations, and woodlands along watercourses. They are not found at altitudes higher than above sea level. Iconographie des perroquets - (20714790015)

Iconographie des perroquets - (20714790015)

Conservation

According to the

IUCN Red List The International Union for Conservation of Nature (IUCN) Red List of Threatened Species, also known as the IUCN Red List or Red Data Book, founded in 1964, is the world's most comprehensive inventory of the global conservation status of biol ...

, Mexican parrotlets are

Near Threatened A near-threatened species is a species which has been categorized as "Near Threatened" (NT) by the International Union for Conservation of Nature as that may be vulnerable to endangerment in the near future, but it does not currently qualify f ...

. The population is estimated to be 50,000 or greater, but it is decreasing due to a combination of the illegal hunting and trapping of wild individuals and

habitat loss Habitat destruction (also termed habitat loss and habitat reduction) is the process by which a natural habitat becomes incapable of supporting its native species. The organisms that previously inhabited the site are displaced or dead, thereby ...

. Based on records created before 1995, there were approximately 208,000 individuals in

. According to records from 1996–2013, around 107,000 remain, which represents a 48.4% drop in population.

Threats

It is estimated that up to 8,000 individuals are illegally captured for the pet trade every year. There are no current conservation measures in place, but many areas across the Mexican parrotlet's range are already

protected Protection is any measure taken to guard a thing against damage caused by outside forces. Protection can be provided to physical objects, including organisms, to systems, and to intangible things like civil and political rights. Although th ...

Behavior

Social

Mexican parrotlets are highly social and

gregarious Sociality is the degree to which individuals in an animal population tend to associate in social groups (gregariousness) and form cooperative societies. Sociality is a survival response to evolutionary pressures. For example, when a mother wasp ...

birds, most often found in flocks of 4-30 individuals made up of pairs and family groups. When flying in these flocks, they fly quickly and in relatively tight formations. They create a variety of squeaky, excited-sounding

chirps A chirp is a signal in which the frequency increases (''up-chirp'') or decreases (''down-chirp'') with time. In some sources, the term ''chirp'' is used interchangeably with sweep signal. It is commonly applied to sonar, radar, and laser system ...

while perched or in flight. While feeding, they make occasional squawks.

Reproduction

Mexican parrotlets typically breed between May and July, and lay

clutches A clutch is a mechanical device that engages and disengages power transmission, especially from a drive shaft to a driven shaft. In the simplest application, clutches connect and disconnect two rotating shafts (drive shafts or line shafts) ...

of up to 3 small, white eggs. They are typically incubated for at least 19 days, and chicks fledge 4–5 weeks after hatching. Mexican parrotlets can live to be over 20 years old. Mexican parrotlets usually nest in

tree In botany, a tree is a perennial plant with an elongated stem, or trunk, usually supporting branches and leaves. In some usages, the definition of a tree may be narrower, including only woody plants with secondary growth, plants that are ...

cavities, cacti, and other similar structures.

Diet

Mexican parrotlets most commonly eat seeds, grass seeds, berries, and ''

Ficus ''Ficus'' ( or ) is a genus of about 850 species of woody trees, shrubs, vines, epiphytes and hemiepiphytes in the family Moraceae. Collectively known as fig trees or figs, they are native throughout the tropics with a few species extendi ...

'' (fig) fruits, which may be ripe or half-ripe. They forage both on the ground and in trees and shrubs as large flocks. They are known to wander frequently in search of food, making regional population estimates difficult.

Aviculture

Mexican parrotlets are uncommon, though not unheard of, in aviculture. Because of their protections, they cannot legally be captured from the wild and sold as pets, so the captive population relies on breeding programs.

References

External links

World Parrot Trust
Parrot Encyclopedia: species profile
Neotropical Birds
by Cornell Lab of Ornithology: species profile
eBird
by Cornell Lab of Ornithology: species profile {{Taxonbar, from=Q1084869 Forpus Endemic birds of Mexico Parrotlet, Mexican Near threatened fauna of North America Birds described in 1856 Taxa named by Charles de Souancé Taxonomy articles created by Polbot Birds of the Sierra Madre Occidental Jalisco dry forests