The collared lory (''Vini solitaria'') 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

Psittaculidae Psittaculidae is a family containing Old World parrots. It consists of five subfamilies: Agapornithinae, Loriinae, Platycercinae, Psittacellinae and Psittaculinae. This family has been accepted into ''The Clements Checklist of Birds of the World' ...

. It is

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 the islands of Fiji. It is the only Fijian rainforest bird to adapt to

urban Urban means "related to a city". In that sense, the term may refer to: * Urban area, geographical area distinct from rural areas * Urban culture, the culture of towns and cities Urban may also refer to: General * Urban (name), a list of people ...

landscapes and can be found in urban Suva. Measuring , it has bright red underparts and face with a purple crown and greenish upperparts. Males and females are similar in plumage, although the latter have a paler crown.

Taxonomy

The collared lory was first described by German naturalist

Georg Adolf Suckow Georg Adolf Suckow sometimes Adolph (28 January 1751, Jena – 13 March 1813, Heidelberg) was a German physicist, chemist, mineralogist, mining engineer and naturalist. Suckow was a professor of physics, chemistry, and natural history at the Unive ...

in 1800, and placed in the genus ''Phigys'' by English naturalist

George Robert Gray George Robert Gray FRS (8 July 1808 – 6 May 1872) was an English zoologist and author, and head of the ornithological section of the British Museum, now the Natural History Museum, in London for forty-one years. He was the younger brother ...

in 1870. It was moved to the genus '' Vini'' based on a molecular phylogenetic study of the lorikeets published in 2020. The Fijian name is ''kula''. The bird was prized throughout western

Polynesia Polynesia () "many" and νῆσος () "island"), to, Polinisia; mi, Porinihia; haw, Polenekia; fj, Polinisia; sm, Polenisia; rar, Porinetia; ty, Pōrīnetia; tvl, Polenisia; tkl, Polenihia (, ) is a subregion of Oceania, made up of ...

for its vibrant plumage and the maritime trading networks based on "kula" feathers existed between Fiji,

Samoa Samoa, officially the Independent State of Samoa; sm, Sāmoa, and until 1997 known as Western Samoa, is a Polynesian island country consisting of two main islands ( Savai'i and Upolu); two smaller, inhabited islands ( Manono and Apolima); ...

, and

Tonga Tonga (, ; ), officially the Kingdom of Tonga ( to, Puleʻanga Fakatuʻi ʻo Tonga), is a Polynesian country and archipelago. The country has 171 islands – of which 45 are inhabited. Its total surface area is about , scattered over in ...

up until colonial times. Both the bird and its plumage are called "ula" in Samoan and "kula" in Tongan. Alternate common names include Fiji lory, ruffled lory, and solitary lory. The latter is a misnomer; the species is not solitary.

Description

Phigys solitarius -San Diego Zoo, California, USA-8a (1)

Adult birds are around long and exhibit slight

sexual dimorphism Sexual dimorphism is the condition where the sexes of the same animal and/or plant species exhibit different morphological characteristics, particularly characteristics not directly involved in reproduction. The condition occurs in most an ...

. The male has bright scarlet cheeks, throat, breast, and upper abdomen. The crown is dark purple. The nape is lime green and red and some of the feathers on the nape are elongated. The wings, back, and tail are greenish. The lower abdomen is purple. The bill is yellow-orange, the feet pink-orange, and the

iris Iris most often refers to: *Iris (anatomy), part of the eye *Iris (mythology), a Greek goddess * ''Iris'' (plant), a genus of flowering plants * Iris (color), an ambiguous color term Iris or IRIS may also refer to: Arts and media Fictional ent ...

es are orange-red. The female is similar but with a paler crown that has a greenish hue posteriorly. Juveniles are duller with vague purple transverse striations on the upper abdomen and breast, and they have a brown beak and pale brown irises.Forshaw, p. 80Forshaw (2006). plate 15.

Distribution and habitat

Its 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 ...

is subtropical or tropical moist lowland

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. It has adapted to human habitation and can be found in Suva. It occurs on Fiji's larger islands, and on the

Lau Islands The Lau Islands aka little Tonga (also called the Lau Group, the Eastern Group, the Eastern Archipelago) of Fiji are situated in the southern Pacific Ocean, just east of the Koro Sea. Of this chain of about sixty islands and islets, about thirty ...

outwards to

Lakeba Lakeba (pronounced ) is an island in Fiji’s Southern Lau Archipelago; the provincial capital of Lau is located here. The island is the tenth largest in Fiji, with a land area of nearly 60 square kilometers.Steadman (2006) It is fertile and wel ...

and Oneata. While the species is today restricted to Fiji, fossil evidence shows that it once occurred in

as well, and was extirpated by early human settlers.Steadman D, (2006). ''Extinction and Biogeography in Tropical Pacific Birds'', University of Chicago Press.

Behaviour

The collared lory is a fast and straight flyer with quick shallow wingbeats, and can be found in pairs or small groups. The call is a high pitched single or double shriek.Forshaw, p. 81

Feeding

The diet of the collared lory consists fruit, seeds, nectar and blossoms. Trees favoured include the drala (''

Erythrina variegata ''Erythrina variegata'', commonly known as tiger's claw or Indian coral tree, is a species of '' Erythrina'' native to the tropical and subtropical regions of eastern Africa, the Indian subcontinent, northern Australia, and the islands of the In ...

''), the coconut palm (''

Cocos nucifera The coconut tree (''Cocos nucifera'') is a member of the palm tree family (Arecaceae) and the only living species of the genus ''Cocos''. The term "coconut" (or the archaic "cocoanut") can refer to the whole coconut palm, the seed, or the f ...

'') and the introduced and invasive African tulip tree (''

Spathodea campanulata ''Spathodea'' is a genus in the plant family Bignoniaceae. The single species it contains, ''Spathodea campanulata'', is commonly known as the African tulip tree. The tree grows between tall and is native to tropical dry forests of Africa. It ha ...

'').

Breeding

The

nest A nest is a structure built for certain animals to hold eggs or young. Although nests are most closely associated with birds, members of all classes of vertebrates and some invertebrates construct nests. They may be composed of organic materi ...

is a hollow in a tree, or sometimes in a hole in a rotting coconut still attached to the tree. The clutch size is two eggs in captivity, the size in the wild is unknown but presumed to be the same. Incubation is around 30 days, and the nestling stage lasts about 9 weeks.

Aviculture

The collared lory was bred and exhibited in

London London is the capital and List of urban areas in the United Kingdom, largest city of England and the United Kingdom, with a population of just under 9 million. It stands on the River Thames in south-east England at the head of a estuary dow ...

and

Taronga Zoo Taronga Zoo is a zoo located in Sydney, New South Wales, Australia, in the suburb of Mosman, on the shores of Sydney Harbour. The opening hours are between 9:30 a.m. to 5 p.m. Taronga is an Aboriginal word meaning 'beautiful water view'. It ...

s in the early 1940s. The species became tame readily in captivity but early attempts to keep birds alive proved difficult.Low, p. 139-42 This species was first bred in the UK (1941)by the Marquess of Tavistock (later the 12th Duke of Bedford) for which he was awarded a commemorative medal by the Foreign Bird League. Not so many recent zoos have this species, but there are some, including

Weltvogelpark Walsrode Weltvogelpark Walsrode, known as Walsrode Bird Park or Jubs in English until 2010, is a bird park located in the middle of the Lüneburg Heath in North Germany within the municipality of Bomlitz near Walsrode in the state of Lower Saxony, Germany ...

ZooParc de Beauval The ZooParc de Beauval (), more commonly called Beauval Zoo or, more simply, Beauval, is a French zoological park located in Saint-Aignan-sur-Cher, Centre-Val de Loire. It features more than 35,000 animals on 40 hectares, which is one of the larg ...

Loro Parque Loro Parque (Spanish for "parrot park") or 'Loro Park' is a 135,000 m² (13.5 ha) zoo on the outskirts of Puerto de la Cruz on Tenerife, Spain where it houses an extensive and diverse reserve of animal and plant species. The park was conceived a ...

San Diego Zoo The San Diego Zoo is a zoo in Balboa Park, San Diego, California, housing 4000 animals of more than 650 species and subspecies on of Balboa Park leased from the City of San Diego. Its parent organization, San Diego Zoo Wildlife Alliance, is a p ...

and Kula Eco Park.

Photographs

File:Collared Lory matei08.ogg, Matei, Taveuni, Fiji Isles File:Phigys solitarius -back -San Diego Zoo-8a-2c.jpg, At San Diego Zoo File:Phigys solitarius -San Diego Zoo -8.jpg, At

File:Phigys solitarius -San Diego Zoo -9.jpg, At San Diego Zoo File:Phigys solitarius -San Diego Zoo-6.jpg, At San Diego Zoo File:Phigys solitarius -San Diego Zoo -food bowl-8a.jpg, At San Diego Zoo

References

Cited texts

* * *

External links

{{Taxonbar, from=Q920157

collared lory The collared lory (''Vini solitaria'') is a species of parrot in the family Psittaculidae. It is endemic to the islands of Fiji. It is the only Fijian rainforest bird to adapt to urban area, urban landscapes and can be found in urban Suva. Measur ...

Endemic birds of Fiji

Articles containing video clips Taxonomy articles created by Polbot Taxobox binomials not recognized by IUCN