Black-headed Parrot vs Turquoise-fronted Amazon
Pionites melanocephalus compared with Amazona aestiva
Side-by-Side Comparison
| Attribute | Black-headed Parrot | Turquoise-fronted Amazon |
|---|---|---|
| Scientific Name | Pionites melanocephalus | Amazona aestiva |
| Order | Psittaciformes | Psittaciformes |
| Family | Psittacidae | Psittacidae |
| Conservation Status | Least Concern | Near Threatened |
| Length | — | 36.0 cm (14.2 in) |
| Wingspan | 27.1 cm (10.7 in) | 55.0 cm (21.7 in) |
| Weight | 151.33333333333334 g (5.34 oz) | 400.0 g (14.11 oz) |
| Diet | -- | Seeds, nuts, fruits, berries, and flowers. Feeds in tree canopy in noisy flocks. Occasionally raids … |
| Clutch Size | 2 | 1-5 |
| Population Trend | — | — |
Size Comparison
Habitat Comparison
Turquoise-fronted Amazon
Tropical and subtropical forests, woodland, savanna, and palm groves in South America.
Song & Call Comparison
Black-headed Parrot
Turquoise-fronted Amazon
Loud, raucous squawking and screaming calls. Capable of impressive vocal mimicry including human speech. Contact call is a rolling 'arr-arr'. Highly vocal in social groups.
Geographic Range & Migration
Black-headed Parrot
Turquoise-fronted Amazon
Interior of South America including Brazil, Bolivia, Paraguay, and northern Argentina.
Conservation Status
Black-headed Parrot
Turquoise-fronted Amazon
How to Tell Them Apart
Black-headed Parrot
Turquoise-fronted Amazon
Green body with a turquoise-blue forehead, yellow face, and red and blue wing patches. Red at the bend of the wing visible in flight.
Strong, hooked, dark grey upper mandible with a paler lower mandible
About These Birds
Black-headed Parrot
The Black-headed Parrot is a medium-sized, robust parrot with a jet-black head, bright yellow-orange nape and thighs, and vivid green upperparts. It inhabits humid lowland forests north of the Amazon River, ranging from Colombia and Venezuela to Brazil and Peru. It forages in the canopy and midstory, feeding on seeds, fruits, and berries, often in noisy flocks.
Turquoise-fronted Amazon
The turquoise-fronted amazon is one of the most popular pet parrots in the world, prized for its ability to mimic human speech and its engaging personality. In the wild, these sociable parrots roost communally in large flocks and fly in pairs to feeding sites at dawn. Habitat loss and trapping for the pet trade threaten wild populations.