Plum-headed Parakeet + Birds of the Week Invitation XXXIX

To be a bird watcher is to be an occasional voyeur. When I took photos of this couple, the male Plum-headed parakeet (Psittacula cyanocephala) seemed to have caught sight of me. Why else would it look so goggle eyed when he was busy (what’s the word?) snogging his lovely grey headed girl? You’ll notice the male’s colourful plumage: a plum head, bright orange bill, the black neck ring, the blue neck feathers shading into the yellow of the belly, the green of the back with a red shoulder patch like the Alexandrine‘s, and the long blue tail with its base outlined in black. The lady is marginally less of a fop: grey head, orange bill, yellow feathers on the neck and belly, green on the back, no shoulder patch, and a long blue tail. They can be found almost anywhere in India, Bangladesh, Nepal, Bhutan, and Sri Lanka.

I would have loved a resident colony in our garden, but they haven’t made friends with the local rose-ringed parakeets. Their absence had made me think that they are out-competed in an urban setting, but then I saw photos of them in other parts of Mumbai. Also, the featured photo was taken just outside Almora. Last week I’d written about a huge mixed flock of rose-ringed, Alexandrine, and plum-headed parakeet that I saw near Nepal’s Chitwan NP. So, at least in more bucolic settings, they coexist.

There aren’t many places on WordPress where bird watchers can share posts. If you post any photos of birds this week (starting today and up to next Monday), it would be great if you could leave a link in the comments, or a pingback, for others to follow. You don’t have to post a recent photo, nor do you have to post a photo of the same bird as mine, but do use the tag “Bird of the Week” to help others find your post. For more information see the main landing page for this invitation.

Birds of the Week XXXVIII

By I. J. Khanewala

I travel on work. When that gets too tiring then I relax by travelling for holidays. The holidays are pretty hectic, so I need to unwind by getting back home. But that means work.

25 comments

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  15. What lovely specimens! Here, staying in Spain, the constant companions are ubiquitous Monk Parakeets, only present since the 1970s as pet-shop escapes. A photo? Not a chance. Too far away, too sheltered behind leaves for a good capture.

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