Peach-fronted Parakeet (Aratinga aurea)
Peach-fronted Parakeet, Minas Gerais, Brazil, April 2001 - click for a larger image Brazil
April 2001

The Peach-fronted Parakeet is possibly the commonest Aratinga parakeet found in Brazil, mainly south of the Amazon as far as Paraguay and northern Argentina.

Its name comes from its peach-orange forehead which has a bluish border towards the crown. The orange round its eye is not entirely bare orbital skin but is highlighted by orange feathers.

Peach-fronted Parakeet, Goiás, Brazil, April 2001 - click for a larger image It is a bird of mainly open country - savanna, cerrado, etc. and in Emas National Park they were often to be seen perched on termite mounds in which they sometimes build their nests.

They feed on seeds, including crops of soya, maize, etc., but are also known to feed on termites, moths and beetles.

Peach-fronted Parakeet, Linhares, Espirito Santo, Brazil, March 2004 - click for a larger image The Peach-fronted Parakeet was one of the earliest New World birds to be illustrated featuring in paintings by Lazarus Roting in about 1614 and by Marcgrave in 1648. Today, you can find illustrations in HBW, Pages 322 and 434; and in Sick, Plate 17.
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