Depending on which birding field guide you have you may see these birds lumped together with Pyrrhura melanura as the nominate with these subspecies or as two separate species as per the title of this post.
- P. m. berlepschi
- P. m. chapmani
- P. m. melanura
- P. m. pacifica
- P. m. souancei
I did see them in 3 separate locations in Ecuador so I know I have at least two varieties! The photos above were taken at Wildsumaco Lodge and were the only Maroon-tailed Parakeets I saw perched. I also saw them flying through trees at the Waterfall Trail in Mindo & from the canopy tower at Napo Wildlife center. The ones at Mindo and Rio Silanche are definitely the Choco Parakeet being the only species seen in the western side of the Andes (red). The ones above could possibly be P.m. souancei (dark green) or the nominate (lighter green). The ones at Napo were most likely Pyrrhura melanura. Splits are so confusing!
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This is pretty much all I get with smaller birds like Pyrrhura Parakeets – just a fleeting glimpse!
Here’s some bird porn to make up for it – filmed at Wildsumaco.