Yellow-crowned Parakeet

About the Yellow-crowned Parakeet

The yellow-crowned parakeet (Cyanoramphus auriceps) also known as the yellow-fronted parakeet is a species of parakeet endemic to the islands of New Zealand. The species is found across the main three islands of New Zealand, North Island, South Island and Stewart Island/Rakiura, as well as on the subantarctic Auckland Islands. It has declined due to predation from introduced species such as stoats, although unlike the red-crowned parakeet, it has not been extirpated from the mainland of New Zealand. Its Māori name is kākāriki.

The yellow-crowned parakeet was once widely distributed across all of New Zealand, both the main islands and the outlying ones. However, due to both the aforementioned introduced mammals and human destruction of habitat, these parakeets have become much scarcer in the last few decades. While uncommon, they are still the most common parakeet in New Zealand.

This species was first described by Heinrich Kuhl in 1820 and originally named Psittacus auriceps. Yellow-crowned parakeets are 23 cm long and primarily bright green. They have a red band fronting their eponymous golden crown. Their wings, when spread in flight... Wikipedia →