Poicephalus
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| Poicephalus parrots | |
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| Senegal parrot eating fruit | |
Scientific classification  | |
| Kingdom: | Animalia |
| Phylum: | Chordata |
| Class: | Aves |
| Order: | Psittaciformes |
| Family: | Psittacidae |
| Subfamily: | Psittacinae |
| Genus: | Poicephalus Swainson, 1837 |
| Type species | |
| Psittacus senegalus[1] Linnaeus, 1766 | |
The genus Poicephalus belongs to the subfamily Psittacinae of the true parrots (Psittacidae) and comprises ten species of parrots native to various regions of the Afrotropical realm, which encompasses Sub-Saharan Africa, ranging from Senegal in the west, Ethiopia in the east, and to South Africa in the south.[2][3] Like lovebirds (Agapornis) and vasa parrots (Coracopsis), the latter being endemic to Madagascar, the Poicephalus parrots are typical specimens of Afrotropical zoogeography. Several of the species exist in slightly different forms, or subspecies.
Poicephalus parrots have been kept as pets and companion birds for centuries, the Senegal parrot perhaps being the most famous species. The trade in this species most likely began in the early 19th century, when Senegal parrots first appeared as companion birds in Europe.[4] Alongside African grey parrots, Senegal parrots still range among the mostly frequently imported parrots from Africa.[5]
Taxonomy
[edit]The genus Poicephalus was introduced by the English naturalist William Swainson in 1837. Swainson listed several species in the genus but did not specify the type species.[6] In 1840 the English zoologist George Gray designated the type as Psittacus senegalensis Swainson, a junior synonym of Psittacus senegalus Linaeus, the senegal parrot.[7][8] The name is from the Ancient Greek phaios "grey" and -kephalos "headed".[9]
The genus contains ten species.[10]
- Red-fronted parrot, or Jardine's parrot, P. gulielmi
- Yellow-fronted parrot, P. flavifrons
- Brown-necked parrot, or uncape parrot, P. fuscicollis
- Cape parrot, or Levaillant's parrot, P. robustus
- Meyer's parrot, P. meyeri
- Rüppell's parrot, P. rueppellii
- Brown-headed parrot, P. cryptoxanthus
- Niam-Niam parrot, P. crassus
- Senegal parrot, P. senegalus
- Red-bellied parrot, P. rufiventris
Appearance
[edit]
Members of the Poicephalus genus are stocky birds with short broad tails and relatively large heads and beaks that often differ in color from their trunks. Although they are parrots with rectrices of medium length, their pinion feathers reach down almost to the end of the rectrices, making their wings appear to be remarkably long.
According to H. Strunden, Poicephalus, from Ancient Greek, means "grey head" (poliós = grey and kephalé = head).[11]
Most species in the Poicephalus genus are predominantly green. However, grey is also common, and the feathers on their heads frequently vary in colour from the rest of the plumage. Senegal parrots and brown-headed parrots for example have blackish or dark brown heads, while the head plumage of brown-necked and Cape parrots is grey-brown to silver-grey. With the exception of the red-fronted parrot, the different colours of head and body plumage of these four species do not overlap or blend. The red-fronted parrot only shows a more fluent transition, with merely the slate grey ear patches and the red front and crown clearly set apart. Another variation is found in male Rüppell's parrots, whose brown plumage is overlaid with silver-grey at the ear patches and the top of their heads, with only a tinge of green on the top-side plumage. Female Rüppell's parrots, on the other hand, have a bright blue back section, rump, and upper tail coverts, while the feathers on their lower ventral region and vent are a dull blue.
Several of the species show marked sexual dimorphism, Rüppell's parrots, brown-necked parrots, cape parrots, and red-bellied parrots are dimorphic, the other species of Poicephalus parrots cannot be distinguished by the colours of their plumage. The difference is especially clear in red-bellied parrots, where males have red or bright orange plumage on breast, belly and below their wings while the feathers of females are all grey-brown in these areas.
The smallest species in the genus is the Meyer's parrot, with adults reaching a body-length of only 22 centimeters (≈ 8,66 in.) and weighing approximately 120 g (≈ 4,23 oz). The largest species, the Cape parrot, by contrast, is usually almost as large as an African grey parrot, adult males reaching a size of 32 centimeters (≈ 12,6 in.) and a weight of about 400 g (≈ 14,1 oz).
Many Poicephalus parrots have bulky heads and powerful beaks, the colour of which varying with the species. While brown-headed parrots and Niam-Niam parrots have a grey upper mandible and an off-white lower one, other species have a homogeneously grey-coloured beak or a horn-coloured one with a darker tip.
The Cape parrot stands out with a particularly sturdy beak in relation to its overall size which it needs to obtain its main food source, the hard-shelled fruit of Podocarpus trees. British parrot specialist Rosemary Low has pointed out that, among the genus, only the Cape parrot is able to crack open walnuts with its beak. Except for macaws, this is a rare ability among parrots in general.[12]
Distribution
[edit]All ten species of Poicephalus parrots live in Africa, south of the Sahara. Their natural habitat ranges from the coastal regions of the Red Sea and the Gulf of Aden in the north to the Drakensberg in South Africa and the northern edge of the Kalahari Desert and the Namib in the south. Thus Poicephalus parrots can be found in any tropical and subtropical habitat across Africa, except the high-altitude mountains, although they also live in the subtropical Afromontane regions and a geographical region where Kalahari desert and the South African Highveld merge. The Sahel and the two other deserts within their habitat (Namib and Kalahari Desert) are natural distribution boundaries because they are no appropriate biotopes for parrots. To the southeast, increasing deforestation limits their range. So much so that the Cape parrot populations, already considered one of the most threatened large parrot species of Africa, have become disjunct in an area reaching from the Eastern Cape Province to KwaZulu-Natal.
Poicephalus parrots have spread to only a few islands on the African shore; while brown-headed parrots can be found on Pemba Island in the