Blue Crowned

General plumage green, more yellowish on underparts; forehead, crown, lores, cheeks and ear-coverts dull blue; breast sometimes tinged with blue; outer webs of flight feathers bluish-brown becoming chestnut on the coverts; under wing-coverts dusky olive; undersides of flight feathers olive-bronze; long central tail feathers green above, lateral feathers brownish-red tipped with golden-olive; underside of tail brownish-red; creamy-white periophthalmic ring; upper mandible horn-coloured becoming grey towards tip, lower mandible grey-black; iris yellow; legs pink-brown

Distribution: From eastern Columbia and Northern Venezuela south to Paraguay and northern Argentina; also on Margarita Island, Venezuela.

Aratinga acuticaudata acuticaudata (also known as the Sharp-tailed conure) This is the nominate species and is described above. Ranges from extreme south-western Mato Grosso, Brazil and the lowlands of eastern Bolivia south to Uruguay and the provinces of Buenos Aires and La Pampa in Argentina.

Aratinga acuticaudata haemorrhous Blue of head paler and restricted to forehead and forecrown; no bluish wash on breast; lower mandible horn-coloured like the upper. Range is Brazil in southwest Mato Grasso, Piaui and northern Bahia.

Aratinga acuticaudata neumanni also known as Bolivian Blue-crown conure, like haemorrhous, but darker, less golden-green above and below; darker blue on crown and extending back to nape; larger than haemorrhous. Known only from intermediate altitudes (1,500- 2,650 m.) in the provinces of Cochabamba, Santa Cruz and probably Chuquisaca and Tarija,

Forshaw lists only the above three subspecies. Both Arndt and Silva list a 4th and 5th and mention a possible 6th subspecies.

Aratinga acuticaudata koenigialso known as Venezuelan Blue-crowned conure. As haemorrhous, but with less brownish-red to inner webs of tail underside, upper and lower mandibles horn-coloured. Distribution is northern Venezuela and adjoining eastern Columbia.

Aratinga acuticaudata neoxena also known as the Margarita conure As haemorrhous, but breast and abdomen distinctly bluish-green, upper and lower mandible horn-coloured; smaller. Occurs in Boca del Rio on Venezuelan island of Margarita.

Aratinga acuticaudata nigrirostris Like neumanni but the lower mandible is black, while the upper mandible is whitish. Exact distribution is unknown but certainly occurs in the province of Santa Cruz, Bolivia.

The Blue-crowned conure likes open areas, savannah with thorn bushes and trees; forest edges; occasionally forages in cultivated areas. It's natural diet consists of seeds, fruits, berries, nuts and flowers.