Black-winged Parrot

About the Black-winged Parrot

The black-winged parrot (Hapalopsittaca melanotis), also known as the black-eared parrot, is a species of bird in subfamily Arinae of the family Psittacidae, the African and New World parrots. It is found in Bolivia and Peru.

Early in the 20th century the black-winged parrot shared genus Pionopsitta with the pileated parrot (P. pileata). It has two subspecies, the nominate H. m. melanotis (Lafresnaye, 1847) and H. m. peruviana (Carriker, 1932). There have been suggestions that peruviana deserves to be treated as a full species.

The black-winged parrot is about 24 cm (9.4 in) long. Adults of both subspecies are mostly green that is more yellowish on their underparts. Their crown has a blue-gray tinge, their lores are blue, and pinkish feathers surround the eye. The nominate subspecies has black ear coverts; those of H. m. peruviana are buff. The nominate has a wide blue-gray collar; that of peruviana is narrower. Both subspecies have largely black wings but for the mostly blue primaries. Their tail is green tipped, with blackish blue.

The two subspecies of the black-winged parrot have disjunct ranges. The... Wikipedia →