Appearance
The Cuban Amazon is a medium-sized parrot 28–33 centimetres long. It is mainly green with some blue feathers in its wings. The green feathers are edged with a terminal black rim. Its lower face, chin and throat are rosy pink, and its forehead and eye-rings are white. The extent of the various colours of the head, the extent of the rosy pink on the upper chest, and the extent of the dull red on the abdomen vary between the subspecies. Its irises are pale olive-green, its beak is horn-coloured, and the feathers over the ears are blackish. The legs are pink. The juvenile has little or no red on the abdomen, less black edging on the green feathers, and some of the feathers on the top of its head may be pale yellow rather than white.
Distribution
The Cuban Amazon lives in different habitats on different islands. It was once found throughout Cuba, but it is now mainly confined to the forested areas of the main island and Isla de la Juventud. There are about 10,000 individuals in Cuba including an estimated 1,100–1,320 on Isla de la Juventud.On the Cayman Islands the parrot lives in dry forest and on agricultural land. The population living on Grand Cayman numbers about 3,400 individuals , and the population on Cayman Brac consists of 400–500 individuals. The population on Little Cayman was extirpated in the 1940s.
The populations were estimated at about 3,550 individuals on Abaco and 6,350 on Inagua in 2006. The population on the Acklins and Crooked Islands was extirpated in the 1940s, while it, based on fossil remains and archeological findings, historically also has been present on several other islands in the Bahamas and on Grand Turk Island.
Status
Due to ongoing habitat loss, occasional natural disasters and trapping for the wild parrot trade, the Cuban Amazon is evaluated as Near Threatened on the IUCN Red List of Threatened Species. It is protected with a listing on Appendix I of CITES, which prohibits international trade of listed wild-caught species.Behavior
In the winter Cuban Amazons gather in flocks, and disperse into pairs during the breeding season.Habitat
The Cuban Amazon lives in different habitats on different islands. It was once found throughout Cuba, but it is now mainly confined to the forested areas of the main island and Isla de la Juventud. There are about 10,000 individuals in Cuba including an estimated 1,100–1,320 on Isla de la Juventud.On the Cayman Islands the parrot lives in dry forest and on agricultural land. The population living on Grand Cayman numbers about 3,400 individuals , and the population on Cayman Brac consists of 400–500 individuals. The population on Little Cayman was extirpated in the 1940s.
The populations were estimated at about 3,550 individuals on Abaco and 6,350 on Inagua in 2006. The population on the Acklins and Crooked Islands was extirpated in the 1940s, while it, based on fossil remains and archeological findings, historically also has been present on several other islands in the Bahamas and on Grand Turk Island.
Reproduction
The breeding season is from March to September. Cuban Amazons nest in tree cavities throughout most of its range, the only exception being that the parrots living on the Abaco Islands nest underground in limestone solution holes, where they are protected from pineyard wildfires. Two to four white eggs are laid, which are incubated by the female for 26–28 days.Food
The Cuban Amazon feeds on a number of fruits and seeds including the fruits of palm trees and West Indian mahogany seeds.Cultural
The Cuban Amazon was seldom-seen in aviculture outside of Cuba and Florida until the 1980s and is considered one of the more difficult to breed Amazon parrots, with aggressive behaviour from cock birds towards their mates and their own chicks a relatively common occurrence. Despite increased availability in recent times, the Cuban Amazon is still one of the highest-priced of all amazons. Several colour mutations have been observed in captive-bred stock.References:
Some text fragments are auto parsed from Wikipedia.
