Kleptoparasitism in four species of parrots from Australia

Approximately 60% of avian species are sexually monomorphic, and most of the parrots could not be sexed by feather colors or any other morphological characteristics in appearances. It has been reported that specific DNA sequences could be amplified by using polymerase chain reaction (PCR) with the specific primers of chromodomain helicase DNA binding protein 1 (CHD-1) gene. In birds, there are two genes related to CHD-1, CHD-W and CHD-Z, which are located in chromosome W and Z, respectively. Since these two genes are evolutionarily conserved, and their sequences vary sex specific manner, application of the differences between the nucleotide sequences could be used for sex identification. Multiple primers, including P1/P2/P3, P4/P5, P2/P8, 2550F/2718R, primer1/2 and 1272H/1237L have been designed according to the sequence of introns or exons in CHD-1 gene. By using different combinations of these specific primers for PCR, 19 species of examined parrots could be successfully determined in this study. Amplification and sequencing fragments of mitochondrial DNA (mtDNA) genes, such as cytochrome oxidese I (COI), cytochrome b (Cytb), 12S ribosomal RNA (12S) and 16S ribosomal RNA (16S) are widely used for species identification. In this study, Cytb and 12S were tried to identify different species of parrots. Comparisons of sequences were conducted by using the BLASTn portal within the National Centre for Biotechnology Information (NCBI) database. The threshold value for sequence similarities of Cytb or 12S rRNA genes between analyzed samples and database is 98%. Twenty-six species of parrots were analyzed in this study. Results showed that the sequences of Cytb gene in 19 species of examined parrots could be found in NCBI. Furthermore, 13 species of analyzed parrots have the high similarity in 12S gene published in database. However, 2 species were found neither the sequences of cyt b nor 12S rRNA published in NCBI. Hence, in addition by comparison of mtDNA to identify parrot species is an accurate method, uploading the unpublished sequences would help the integrity of database. In addition to use mitochondrial DNA for species identification, random amplified polymorphic DNA (RAPD) were used to identify 17 different parrot species. In this study, 40 random primers were employed. One of these primer, OPH-17, was successfully amplified a specific band in Orthopsittaca manilata. After analyzing 8 sequences amplified from the same individual, there are no significant correlations among these 8 sequences. Thus, it is not possible to find species specific sequence using the 40 random primers in this study. More stricted conditions way are further tried to inprove reproducibility.

Do fire and rainfall drive spatial and temporal population shifts in parrots? A case study using urban parrot populations

Occupation of desert environments often requires evolutionary specialisations that minimise food and water requirements. One physiological adjustment to living in a hot, dry climate that has been found in several laboratory studies of birds is a reduced basal metabolic rate (BMR), which often translates into a diminished rate of evaporative water loss (EWL). In free-living birds, these physiological traits are thought to result in a lower field metabolic rate and water flux. We studied metabolism and water flux of a number of species of Australian parrots, both in the laboratory and in the field. After combining our laboratory data with values from the literature, we performed allometric analyses to search for evolutionary specialisation in metabolism and water flux in desert-adapted parrots. Our data do not support the idea that parrots living in arid environments have a reduced BMR. Field metabolic rates of parrots from western Australia were indistinguishable from those of other nonpasserine birds. Laboratory EWL was significantly lower for parrots living in desert environments than for those occupying more mesic habitats, and often lower than that expected from body size. Some species of parrots that live in desert regions of Australia have evolved mechanisms that reduce EWL, but this does not involve a reduction in BMR. In the field, parrots living in Western Australia had a lower water influx than predicted for nonpasserines, but this did not approach the value often found in other desert-adapted species. Values for the water economy index (water flux in free-living animals relative to their energy metabolism) were among the lowest that have been reported for desert-adapted birds.

Human advance on natural habitats is a major cause of biodiversity loss. This transformation process represents a profound change in wooded environments, disrupting original communities of flora and fauna. Many species are highly dependent on forests, especially parrots (Psittaciformes) with almost a third of their species threatened by extinction. Most parrot species occur in tropical and subtropical forests, and given the forest dependence of most species, this is the main reason why habitat loss has been highlighted as the main threat for the group. Such habitat loss acts in synergy with other important threats (e.g., logging and poaching), which become especially problematic in certain developing countries along tropical latitudes. In this study, we used available information on parrot distributions, species traits, IUCN assessment, habitat loss and timber extraction for different periods, and distribution of protected areas, to determine conservation hotspots for the group, and analyze potential changes in the conservation status of these species. We detected four conservation hotspots for parrots: two in the Neotropics and two in Oceania, all of them facing different degrees of threat in regard of current habitat loss and agricultural trends. Our results suggest that the future of the group is subject to policymaking in specific regions, especially in the northeastern Andes and the Atlantic Forest. In addition, we predicted that agricultural expansion will have a further negative effect on the conservation status of parrots, pushing many parrot species to the edge of extinction in the near future. Our results have conservation implications by recommending protected areas in specific parrot conservation hotspots. Our recommendations to mitigate conservation risks to this group of umbrella species would also benefit many other coexisting species as well.

Summary Parrots have long been appreciated as pets for their ability to mimic human speech, but do they understand what they say? Studies into the nature of their considerable intelligence and possible consciousness still have questions to answer. Although feral parrots invading cities may create the impression of resilience, many species are currently at risk of extinction. Michael Gross reports.

SummaryPopulations of both Imperial and Red-necked Parrots on Dominica have declined during the present century with substantial contractions in range, particularly from the southern portion of the island. Parrot densities may be relatively low anyway due to the effects of centuries of hunting. However, declines have been accelerated by habitat destruction and loss of food plants and nesting sites as a result of both human encroachment on the forest and damage caused by Hurricanes David and Allen in 1979 and 1980 respectively. The hunting of birds for meat and for the live cage-bird trade were important threats in the past but conservation education programmes over the last 10 years, and enforcement of legislation prohibiting those activities, have greatly reduced these pressures. Ten years after the debilitating effects of the two hurricanes, the populations of both parrot species (but particularly Red-necks) are showing signs of recovery. Present estimates (May 1990) are of c.80 Imperial Parrots and c.300 Red-necked Parrots in the wild. The major threat to both parrot species is presently habitat destruction, with forested areas being cleared at an accelerating rate for the planting of tree crops, particularly bananas. This process has been aided by recent development programmes towards the building and improvement of feeder roads, making previously remote areas much more accessible. The need for the north-west portion of the Northern Forest Reserve (which includes the entire Morne Diablotin massif) to be declared a national park is ever more critical if the two parrot species are to survive in the long term.

Despite New Guinea's importance for parrot species, there is an almost total lack of quantitative data on abundances or habitat associations of parrots on the island. We present such data for 15 parrot species within the species-rich (21 species) Crater Mountain Wildlife Management Area, Papua New Guinea. The four most abundant parrot species made up 70% of all parrots recorded in primary forest and 76% in old gardens. Several species had estimated densities of 10?60 birds per km2 and we suggest that the most abundant species on New Guinea are at least as common as those on the surrounding islands. Two species of particular conservation importance, Palm Cockatoo Probosciger aterrimus and Pesquefs Parrot Psittrichas fulgidus had estimated densities of just one bird per km2, while several other notably rare species included Dusky Lory Pseudeos fuscata and the fig-parrots Cyclopsitta diopthalma and Psittaculirostris desmarestii. Most parrot species were strongly associated with the lower and flatter areas of the site, where mature secondary forest dominated. Again, this is a pattern shared with parrots on nearby islands, and the finding emphasizes the importance of protecting lower-altitude mature forests within the region.

This research project addresses the imperative task of parrot species recognition through the integration of Convolutional Neural Network (CNN) and Support Vector Machine (SVM) methodologies. Focused on three distinct parrot species—'Blue and Gold Macaw,' 'Ringneck Parakeet,' and 'Sun Conure'—the study explores the efficacy of advanced machine learning techniques in ornithological research. The CNN serves as a robust feature extractor, autonomously learning intricate visual patterns crucial for species identification. Meanwhile, the SVM acts as a discriminative classifier, optimizing decision boundaries in the feature space. Comparative analysis reveals the CNN's superior accuracy of 95%, surpassing the SVM's 83.33%. The visual representation, a bar chart, provides a clear and accessible depiction of the research findings. Titled "Comparative Analysis of CNN and SVM for Accuracy Assessment of Parrot Species," the chart ensures relevance and context for the audience. Overall, this research contributes valuable insights into the potential of deep learning in parrot species recognition, with implications for automated wildlife monitoring and biodiversity conservation in the realm of ornithology.

Parrots as overlooked seed dispersers

Parrots (Psittaciformes) are among the most threatened bird orders with 28 % (111 of 398) of extant species classified as threatened under IUCN criteria. We confirmed that parrots have a lower Red List Index (higher aggregate extinction risk) than other comparable bird groups, and modeled the factors associated with extinction risk. Our analyses included intrinsic biological, life history and ecological attributes, external anthropogenic threats, and socio-economic variables associated with the countries where the parrot species occur, while we controlled for phylogenetic dependence among species. We found that the likelihood of parrot species being classified as threatened was less for species with larger historical distribution size, but was greater for species with high forest dependency, large body size, long generation time, and greater proportion of the human population living in urban areas in the countries encompassing the parrots’ home ranges. The severity of extinction risk (from vulnerable to critically endangered) was positively related to the per capita gross domestic product (GDP) of the countries of occurrence, endemism to a single country, and lower for species used as pets. A disproportionate number of 16 extinct parrot species were endemic to islands and single countries, and were large bodied, habitat specialists. Agriculture, hunting, trapping, and logging are the most frequent threats to parrots worldwide, with variation in importance among regions. We use multiple methods to rank countries with disproportionately high numbers of threatened parrot species. Our results promote understanding of global and regional factors associated with endangerment in this highly threatened taxonomic group, and will enhance the prioritization of conservation actions.

ABSTRACTAustralia, New Zealand, New Guinea, Wallacea, and the islands of the Pacific Ocean collectively possess 42% of the world’s parrot species, including half of all Critically Endangered species. We used comparative methods to review the factors related to extinction risk of 167 extant and 5 extinct parrot species from this region, subsequently referred to as ‘Oceania’. We tested a range of ecological and socio-economic variables as predictors of extinction risk for parrots in the region while controlling for phylogeny. Parrot species were most likely to be threatened if they had small historical ranges, large bodies, or a high dependency on forest, or if they were endemic to a single country, or native to a country with high unemployment. Our analysis identifies invasive species as an especially severe threat to the parrots of Oceania. We present maps of parrot species’ diversity and draw attention to regions of conservation concern. Our comparative analysis presents an important overview of the factors contributing to the decline of parrots in Oceania, and provides a strong basis for comparison with other parts of the world.

The number of hollow-bearing trees, and associated hollows, in urban habitats continues to decline as cities expand. Remaining hollows may be unsuitable for species of parrot that have specific preferences or requirements for certain characteristics of tree-hollows. To determine the distribution of hollow-bearing trees and tree-hollows in Sydney, Australia, we surveyed 264 sites within parks, streets, golf courses, patches of remnant vegetation and continuous forest. To determine whether species of parrot were associated with specific hollow characteristics, motion-activated video-cameras were installed to monitor use of hollows in remnant vegetation and continuous forest. The number of both hollows and hollow-bearing trees varied significantly among habitats, with all urban habitats having significantly fewer hollow-bearing trees than did continuous forest. There was no significant difference in the number of hollows within remnant vegetation and continuous forest. Hollow visitation by Rainbow Lorikeets (Trichoglossus haematodus), Sulphur-crested Cockatoos (Cacatua galerita) and Australian King-Parrots (Alisterus scapularis) was significantly associated with particular hollow characteristics, most importantly type of hollow, orientation of hollow and species of tree. Knowledge of the distribution of hollow-bearing trees throughout landscapes, as well as the characteristics of hollows that are associated with particular species of parrot, is crucial to conserve populations of hollow-dependent bird species in urban areas.

Mail surveys were sent to field staff of the Agriculture Protection Board of Western Australia to assess the distribution and status of four species of parrot in the agricultural region of south-west Western Australia in 1970, 1980 and 1990. The surveys indicated that the populations of the Regent Parrot (Polytelis anthopeplus) and the Western Rosella (Platycercus icterotis) have declined in range considerably since 1970. The populations of the Red-capped Parrot (Purpureicephalus spurius) and the Port Lincoln Ringneck (Barnardius zonarius) have suffered little or not at all during the same period. Factors which appear to have contributed to the observed changes in distribution and status include clearing for agriculture, dietary preferences, physiology, habitat requirements, altered fire regimes, grazing by exotic herbivores and reduced winter rainfall. These surveys have shown that species which were formerly considered common and widespread have declined with little comment having been made of these changes. The implications of this are serious, both for these formerly common species and for rarer bird species which have similar ecological requirements. The technique of mail surveys has considerable merit for quickly assessing the status of some species of birds, but will be limited by the expertise of the respondents and the degree to which the species in question can be observed.

Proceedings of the Zoological Society of LondonVolume 42, Issue 1 p. 90-91 On an apparently new Species of Parrot from Eastern Peru. Otto Finsch Ph.D., C.M.Z.S., &C, Otto Finsch Ph.D., C.M.Z.S., &C Curator to the Bremen Museum.Search for more papers by this author Otto Finsch Ph.D., C.M.Z.S., &C, Otto Finsch Ph.D., C.M.Z.S., &C Curator to the Bremen Museum.Search for more papers by this author First published: January 1874 https://doi.org/10.1111/j.1096-3642.1874.tb02453.xRead the full textAboutPDF ToolsRequest permissionExport citationAdd to favoritesTrack citation ShareShare Give accessShare full text accessShare full-text accessPlease review our Terms and Conditions of Use and check box below to share full-text version of article.I have read and accept the Wiley Online Library Terms and Conditions of UseShareable LinkUse the link below to share a full-text version of this article with your friends and colleagues. Learn more.Copy URL Share a linkShare onFacebookTwitterLinked InRedditWechat No abstract is available for this article. Volume42, Issue1January 1874Pages 90-91 RelatedInformation

IbisVolume 22, Issue 2 p. 237-239 Descriptions of two new Species of Parrots and a new Piyeon from South America George N. Lawrence., Search for more papers by this author George N. Lawrence., Search for more papers by this author First published: April 1880 https://doi.org/10.1111/j.1474-919X.1880.tb06968.xCitations: 1AboutPDF ToolsRequest permissionExport citationAdd to favoritesTrack citation ShareShare Give accessShare full text accessShare full-text accessPlease review our Terms and Conditions of Use and check box below to share full-text version of article.I have read and accept the Wiley Online Library Terms and Conditions of UseShareable LinkUse the link below to share a full-text version of this article with your friends and colleagues. Learn more.Copy URL Share a linkShare onEmailFacebookTwitterLinked InRedditWechat Citing Literature Volume22, Issue2April 1880Pages 237-239 RelatedInformation