Species Description

The Blue-crowned Conure is one of the larger birds in the genus Aratinga measuring approximately 37 cm (14.5 inches) in length and weighing between 140 and 190 grams (4.9 - 6.7 ounces). Blue-crowns have many features common to the Aratingas, including green plumage, long, tapered tails, horn and black-colored beaks, and white, featherless eye (periophthalmic) rings.

Blue-crowns are predominantly green, with dull blue coloring on the forehead, crown, cheeks, and ears. The breast feathers may also be tinged with blue, though they are more commonly green to yellow-green. Closed wing coloring matches that of the body while extended wings show blue-brown, becoming chestnut on the outer flight feathers. The tail feathers are green on top, maroon to red-brown on the underside. Legs are pink-brown with grey-brown claws. The upper mandible is horn-colored, tapering to a needle-sharp, grey-black tip. The lower mandible is horn-colored in juveniles, fading to grey-black by the bird's second year, Some subspecies retain the horn-colored lower mandible throughout adulthood.

The Blue-crowned Parakeet's nest is a hole in a tree. The eggs are white and there are usually three to four in a clutch. The female incubates the eggs for 26 days, and the chicks fledge from the nest about 52 days after hatching.

Habitat

They inhabit grassland, forest margins, and semi-arid regions.

Distribution

Native to large parts of South America, from eastern Colombia in the north to northern Argentina in the south.