Sulphur-winged parakeet

Sulphur-winged parakeet
In Costa Rica
Conservation status
Least Concern  (IUCN 3.1)
Scientific classification
Domain:	Eukaryota
Kingdom:	Animalia
Phylum:	Chordata
Class:	Aves
Order:	Psittaciformes
Family:	Psittacidae
Genus:	Pyrrhura
Species:	P. hoffmanni
Binomial name
Pyrrhura hoffmanni (Cabanis, 1861)

The sulphur-winged parakeet (Pyrrhura hoffmanni), also known as the Hoffmann's conure in aviculture, is a medium-small parrot endemic to humid highland forests and woodlands in Costa Rica and western Panama. It occurs up to 3000 m asl, and locally down to 1300 m in the wet season. It is named for the German naturalist Karl Hoffmann.

Description

The sulphur-winged parakeet is 23 cm long and weighs 75 g. The adult is mainly green. Scaled with orange-yellow on the head and chest. There is a red spot on the auriculars and the tail is broadly tipped dull red (entirely dull red from below). The outer primaries are blue, but the most obvious feature in flight is the extensive yellow on the inner wing. Young birds are similar to the adults, but duller and with much less yellow in the wing.

Behaviour

The flight call of the sulphur-winged parakeet a grating toweet-deet-deet-toweet, and when perched it has a reedy zeeweet.

Food and feeding

Sulphur-winged parakeet feeds in flocks of 5–15 birds at treetop level, taking various seeds and fruits including figs.

Breeding

The white eggs are laid in an unlined nest cavity 8–20 m high in a tree, which may be an old woodpecker hole or a broken stub.

References

• Stiles and Skutch, A guide to the birds of Costa Rica ISBN 0-8014-9600-4