Turquoise fronted Amazon (Amazona aestiva) or Blue-fronted Parrot
Cuiaba River
The Pantanal
Brazil
South America
Click On Image To Enlarge.
Along the Cuiaba River high in a tree, we came upon a parrot outside of its nesting hole. At first the bird was inside the hole, but eventually it came out so we could get a better shot. This image is highly cropped because it was so far away. Normally I would have considered the bird to be too far away, but in the end it was the only time throughout the trip the bird was seen.
The blue-fronted amazon (Amazona aestiva), also called the turquoise-fronted amazon and blue-fronted parrot, is a South American species of amazon parrot, the common name is derived from the distinctive blue marking on its head just above its beak.
There is no overt sexual dimorphism to the human eye, but analysis of the feathers using spectrometry, a method which allows the plumage to be seen as it would be by a parrot’s
tetrachromatic vision, shows clear differences between the plumage of the sexes. Juveniles of parrots are duller and have dark irises.
The blue-fronted amazon was one of the many species originally described by Linnaeus in his 18th century work, Systema Naturae. Its specific epithet is the feminine form of the Latin adjective aestivus, “of the summer”.
The range of the blue-fronted amazon extends over eastern and northern Bolivia, eastern Brazil, Paraguay and northern Argentina. It is found in forests (though generally avoids extensive humid forests such as the Amazon), woodland, savanna and palm groves.
The blue-fronted amazon nests in tree cavities. The oval eggs are white and measure around 38 x 30 mm. There are usually three to five in a clutch. The female incubates the eggs for about 27 days and the chicks leave the nest about 60 days after hatching. - Info. from Wikipedia
Turquoise fronted Amazon (Amazona aestiva) or Blue-fronted Parrot
Cuiaba River
The Pantanal
Brazil
South America
Click On Image To Enlarge.
Along the Cuiaba River high in a tree, we came upon a parrot outside of its nesting hole. At first the bird was inside the hole, but eventually it came out so we could get a better shot. This image is highly cropped because it was so far away. Normally I would have considered the bird to be too far away, but in the end it was the only time throughout the trip the bird was seen.
The blue-fronted amazon (Amazona aestiva), also called the turquoise-fronted amazon and blue-fronted parrot, is a South American species of amazon parrot, the common name is derived from the distinctive blue marking on its head just above its beak.
There is no overt sexual dimorphism to the human eye, but analysis of the feathers using spectrometry, a method which allows the plumage to be seen as it would be by a parrot’s
tetrachromatic vision, shows clear differences between the plumage of the sexes. Juveniles of parrots are duller and have dark irises.
The blue-fronted amazon was one of the many species originally described by Linnaeus in his 18th century work, Systema Naturae. Its specific epithet is the feminine form of the Latin adjective aestivus, “of the summer”.
The range of the blue-fronted amazon extends over eastern and northern Bolivia, eastern Brazil, Paraguay and northern Argentina. It is found in forests (though generally avoids extensive humid forests such as the Amazon), woodland, savanna and palm groves.
The blue-fronted amazon nests in tree cavities. The oval eggs are white and measure around 38 x 30 mm. There are usually three to five in a clutch. The female incubates the eggs for about 27 days and the chicks leave the nest about 60 days after hatching. - Info. from Wikipedia