Black-headed Parrot
Pionites melanocephalus
Silhouette: Sheatherius · PhyloPic
- KingdomAnimalia (Animals)
- PhylumChordata (Chordates)
- ClassAves (Birds)
- OrderPsittaciformes (Parrots)
- FamilyPsittacidae (New World and African Parrots)
- GenusPionites (Caiques)
- SpeciesPionites melanocephalus (Black-headed Parrot)
About the Black-headed Parrot
The black-headed parrot (Pionites melanocephalus; sometimes incorrectly Pionites melanocephala) is a species of bird in subfamily Arinae of the family Psittacidae, the African and New World parrots. Other colloquial names are black-crowned parrot, black-capped parrot, black-headed caique, and for subspecies P. m. pallidus, pallid caique. It is found in Brazil, Colombia, Ecuador, French Guiana, Guyana, Peru, Suriname, and Venezuela.
The black-headed parrot was formally described in 1758 by the Swedish naturalist Carl Linnaeus in the tenth edition of his Systema Naturae. He placed it with all the other parrots in the genus Psittacus and coined the binomial name Psittacus melanocephalus. Linnaeus based his account on the "white-breasted parrot" that had been described and illustrated in 1751 by the English naturalist George Edwards in his multivolume work "A Natural History of Uncommon Birds". Linnaeus gave the type locality as Mexico but this has been changed to Caracas in Venezuela as given by Edwards. The black-headed parrot is now placed together with the white-bellied parrot in the genus Pionites that was introduced in 1890 by the German ornithologist Ferdinand Heine... Wikipedia →
Recent sightings of Black-headed Parrot in Sierra de la Macarena National Park
LIVEiNaturalistClosest Relatives at Sierra de la Macarena National Park
Chestnut-fronted Macaw
Ara severus
Yellow-crowned Parrot
Amazona ochrocephala
Blue-headed Parrot
Pionus menstruus
Cobalt-winged Parakeet
Brotogeris cyanoptera
Brown-throated Parakeet
Aratinga pertinax
White-eyed Parakeet
Aratinga leucophthalma
Scarlet Macaw
Ara macao
Red-bellied Macaw
Orthopsittaca manilata
Orange-winged Parrot
Amazona amazonica
Spectacled Parrotlet
Forpus conspicillatus
Mealy Parrot
Amazona farinosa
Maroon-tailed Parakeet
Pyrrhura melanura
Global Distribution
Warmer areas are where this animal is recorded most often.
Parks Where Found
| # | Park | Country | Daily sighting probability |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Yasuní National Park | 🇪🇨 Ecuador | |
| 2 | Cuyabeno Wildlife Reserve | 🇪🇨 Ecuador | |
| 3 | Amacayacu National Natural Park | 🇨🇴 Colombia | |
| 4 | Sierra de la Macarena National Park | 🇨🇴 Colombia | |
| 5 | Brownsberg Nature Park | 🇸🇷 Suriname | |
| 6 | Canaima National Park | 🇻🇪 Venezuela | |
| 7 | Anavilhanas National Park | 🇧🇷 Brazil |
Quick answers
What are the chances of seeing a Black-headed Parrot in Sierra de la Macarena National Park?
About 10% of wildlife watchers report a Black-headed Parrot sighting in Sierra de la Macarena National Park, based on 160 verified sightings from GBIF citizen-science data.
When is the best time to see Black-headed Parrot in Sierra de la Macarena National Park?
May has the highest sighting rate for Black-headed Parrot in Sierra de la Macarena National Park in our monthly data.