Puerto Rican Amazon - Amazona vittata

Puerto Rican Amazon - Amazona vittata.

IUCN STATUS CATEGORY Critically Endangered

HABITAT Puerto Rico was formerly entirely forested, and the Puerto Rican Amazon (or Parrot) was recorded in all forest types; the wild population is now restricted to wet rain forest in the Luquillo Mountains.

GEOGRAPHICAL SPREAD Restricted to Puerto Rico.

CURRENT POPULATION Widespread and abundant in early historic times, probably numbering in the hundreds of thousands; in decline from the latter half of the 19th century onward, perhaps 2,000 in the 1930s, 200 in the 1950s, until a low of 13 was reached in 1975. Following intensive management, the wild population numbered 41 birds in 1993, with a substantial stock in captivity. Fourteen young parrots fledged in the wild in 1994, and seven chicks also hatched in captivity.

SIZE 30cm.

WEIGHT 0.25 to 0.30kg

AVERAGE LIFE EXPECTANCY Not available.

NORMAL DIET Mainly fruit, some leaves.

NORMAL LIFESTYLE The species typically occurs in pairs, and frequent different trees according to fruiting season. Nests are made in sheltered tree-holes (sometimes in limestone crevices) and are used year after year; clutch size varies between two and four, but many pairs fail to lay eggs.

PREVIOUS GEOGRAPHICAL SPREAD Formerly present throughout Puerto Rico, and present at the turn of the century on the island of Culebra, off the east coast; bones have been found on Mona. Parrots, presumably this species, also recorded on Vieques (PR) and St Thomas in the US Virgin Islands.

REASONS FOR DECLINE Forest clearance accompanying European settlement during the 18th and 19th centuries appears to have been the primary cause of decline. Also affected by the pet trade, felling of nesting trees for honey collection, general disturbance, disease and predation.

CURRENT THREATS Natural disaster now poses a major threat to the small population of this species. The carefully nurtured 1989 population of 47 birds was reduced to 22 after the region was struck by Hurricane Hugo.

CONSERVATION PROJECTS Much attention is now given to nest site maintenance and intervention in event of predator or parasite attack. Captive breeding was started in 1970 and has resulted in a substantial breeding flock, and options for release into the wild are being evaluated.

SPECIAL FEATURES The species provides another case study of the compounding effects a variety of threats can exert on a population diminished by habitat loss, and the intensity of management effort needed to bring about even modest recovery.

REFERENCES

Collar, N.J., Gonzaga, L.P., Krabbe, N., Madroņo Nieto, A., Naranjo, L.G., Parker (III), T.A., and Wege, D.C. 1992. Threatened Birds of the Americas. The ICBP/IUCN Red Data Book. ICBP (now BirdLife International), Cambridge.

Collar, N.J., Crosby, M.J., and Stattersfield, A.J. 1994. Birds to Watch 2. The World List of Threatened Birds. BirdLife International, Cambridge.

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