Orange-Winged Amazon
Place to admire: China
Scientific name: Amazona amazonica
IUCN-status: Least concern
General information
Although the Orange-Winged Amazon is a non-endangered bird species, its population in the wild is declining thanks to human activities. Since 1981, more than 300,000 specimens have already been captured from the wild to be sold on the (illegal) international trade. This indicates that the (illegal) trade is creating a serious threat. In addition, the local population hunts this bird species for food. Moreover, thanks to humans, more and more natural habitats of the Orange-Winged Amazon are disappearing.
Habitat
The Orange-Winged Amazon is found in South America. This bird species lives in Bolivia, Brazil, Colombia, Ecuador, French Guiana, Guyana, Peru, Suriname, Venezuela, Trinidad and Tobago.
In these areas, the Orange-Winged Amazon inhabits subtropical and tropical lowland and mangrove forests, flooded grasslands, rural gardens and urban environments.
Diet
The Orange-Winged Amazon in a herbivore. This means that this bird species mainly eats plant material. In addition, this bird species is also known as frugivore (fruit eater) and granivore (grain eater).
This bird species forages on fruits, seeds, nuts, blossoms, flowers, leaf buds and berries.
Appearance
The Orange-Winged Amazon has a size of 31 centimeters, weighing 298 to 469 grams. This bird species has a green plumage. The front crest and the area at the base of the bill to below the eye contains a yellow color. The upper jaw is partly gray and partly dark gray. When the Orange-Winged Amazon flies, you can see the orange feathers of the wings and of the tail.
Natural behavior
The Orange-Winged Amazon is a diurnal active bird species. This bird species leaves the roosting site after sunrise. The roost is called the roost in birding terms. The Orange-Winged Amazon leaves as a pair or in flocks for foraging sites. This bird species spends most of the day foraging on the branches in the canopy.
To keep the condition of its bill good, the Orange-Winged Amazon occasionally bites on wood and bark. This is because the beak is used by this bird species to climb through the tree and, of course, to feed.
The Orange-Winged Amazon is the scout at the clay walls. The swarm will be the first to visit the clay walls to eat minerals. They need these minerals to detoxify the toxic parts of the unripe fruit. When the coast is clear, other Parrot species will also come to the clay walls to feed on the minerals.