Malherbe's Parakeet
Encyclopedia
The Malherbe's Parakeet, Cyanoramphus malherbi, is a small parrot
endemic to New Zealand
. In New Zealand it is commonly known as the Orange-fronted Parakeet, a name it shares with a species from Middle America
. The species is critically endangered
with less than 50 individuals left in the wild.
For many years the Malherbe's Parakeet was considered a subspecies
or as colour variant of the commoner Yellow-crowned Parakeet
. More recent research has shown that it is a valid species. They live in Nothofagus
forest in the South Island
of New Zealand, although they may have had a wider range of habitats prior to the arrival of humans. They have been threatened by the felling of old growth forest
, which provided the older trees which they nested in, by overgrazing of the low bushes which they fed in, and by predation by introduced
rats, stoats and cats.
The species name honours the French ornithologist Alfred Malherbe
Parrot
Parrots, also known as psittacines , are birds of the roughly 372 species in 86 genera that make up the order Psittaciformes, found in most tropical and subtropical regions. The order is subdivided into three families: the Psittacidae , the Cacatuidae and the Strigopidae...
endemic to New Zealand
New Zealand
New Zealand is an island country in the south-western Pacific Ocean comprising two main landmasses and numerous smaller islands. The country is situated some east of Australia across the Tasman Sea, and roughly south of the Pacific island nations of New Caledonia, Fiji, and Tonga...
. In New Zealand it is commonly known as the Orange-fronted Parakeet, a name it shares with a species from Middle America
Orange-fronted Parakeet
The Orange-fronted Parakeet or Orange-fronted Conure , also known as the Half-moon Conure, is a medium-sized parrot which is a resident from western Mexico to Costa Rica.-Taxonomy:There are three subspecies:...
. The species is critically endangered
Critically endangered
Version 2010.3 of the IUCN Red List of Threatened Species identified 3744 Critically Endangered species, subspecies and varieties, stocks and subpopulations.Critically Endangered by kingdom:*1993 Animalia*2 Fungi*1745 Plantae*4 Protista-References:...
with less than 50 individuals left in the wild.
For many years the Malherbe's Parakeet was considered a subspecies
Subspecies
Subspecies in biological classification, is either a taxonomic rank subordinate to species, ora taxonomic unit in that rank . A subspecies cannot be recognized in isolation: a species will either be recognized as having no subspecies at all or two or more, never just one...
or as colour variant of the commoner Yellow-crowned Parakeet
Yellow-crowned Parakeet
The Yellow-crowned Parakeet, Cyanoramphus auriceps, is a species of parakeet endemic to the islands of New Zealand. The species is found across the main three islands of New Zealand, North Island, South Island and Stewart Island/Rakiura, as well as on the subantarctic Auckland Islands...
. More recent research has shown that it is a valid species. They live in Nothofagus
Nothofagus
Nothofagus, also known as the southern beeches, is a genus of 35 species of trees and shrubs native to the temperate oceanic to tropical Southern Hemisphere in southern South America and Australasia...
forest in the South Island
South Island
The South Island is the larger of the two major islands of New Zealand, the other being the more populous North Island. It is bordered to the north by Cook Strait, to the west by the Tasman Sea, to the south and east by the Pacific Ocean...
of New Zealand, although they may have had a wider range of habitats prior to the arrival of humans. They have been threatened by the felling of old growth forest
Old growth forest
An old-growth forest is a forest that has attained great age , and thereby exhibits unique ecological features. An old growth forest has also usually reached a climax community...
, which provided the older trees which they nested in, by overgrazing of the low bushes which they fed in, and by predation by introduced
Introduced species
An introduced species — or neozoon, alien, exotic, non-indigenous, or non-native species, or simply an introduction, is a species living outside its indigenous or native distributional range, and has arrived in an ecosystem or plant community by human activity, either deliberate or accidental...
rats, stoats and cats.
The species name honours the French ornithologist Alfred Malherbe
Alfred Malherbe
Alfred Malherbe was a French magistrate and amateur naturalist. He was the administrator of the Museum of Metz.Malherbe was the author of Monographie des picidées . He identified Levaillant's Woodpecker, which was named for another French scientist, François Le Vaillant....