Description

Description

The Orange winged amazon is a large Amazon parrot is endemic to South America’s tropical areas. It can easily be confused with Blue-fronted amazons, but the Orange-winged amazons, as per their name, are the only amazons with orange wing feathers. Males and females look similar, but the male has more of a blue forehead while the female has more yellow on her face.

The orange winged amazon is a mainly green parrot about 33 cm (13 in) long and weighing about 340 g. It has blue and yellow feathers on its head which varies in extent between individuals. The upper mandible is partly horn colored (gray) and partly dark-gray. It has orange feathers in the wings and tail, which can be seen when in flight. The male and female are identical in external appearance. The orange-winged amazon (Amazona amazonica), also known locally as orange-winged parrot and loro guaro, is a large amazon parrot

Breeding of Orange winged amazons

The orange-winged amazon nests in tree cavities. The eggs are white and there are usually two to five in a clutch.

Orange winged amazons are monogamous and form life lasting pair bonds. The breeding season varies, depending on the location. They are solitary nesters, and their nest is a hole high in a tree. 2 to 5 white eggs are laid and incubation is for about 21 days, just by the female. During the day, the male stays near the nest, roosting at the communal roost at night. Both parents feed the chicks, which fledge when they are about two months old. Young reach reproductive maturity when they are 3 to 4 years old

The orange winged amazon has been introduced to Tenerife in the Canary Islands, where it has been observed successfully hybridizing with a feral scaly headed parrot (Pionus maximiliani) and also attempting to breed with feral monk parakeet(Myiopsitta monachus) and rose ringed parakeet(Psittacula krameri), even involving itself in the former species’ unusual nest-building behaviour.

Diet and feeding

The orange-winged amazons are noisy birds and makes loud, high-pitched screams. It eats fruit, seeds, nuts, blossoms, leaf buds, and berries, including the fruit of palm trees and sometimes cocoa, mangoes, and oranges. It roosts communally in palm and other trees, and large numbers can be seen at the roost sites at dawn and dusk. It is becoming common as a feral bird in the Maimi, Florida area, and there are colonies in London, England.

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