Red-bellied Poicephalus

[katana600]

The Red-bellied parrot is a one of nine subspecies of the Poicephalus genus from the African continent. Others include: Brown-headed parrot; Cape parrot; Meyer’s parrot; Niam-niam parrot; Red-fronted parrot; Rüppell’s parrot; Senegal; and Yellow-fronted parrots.

 

The word poicephalus comes from Latin to mean “many colored head”. The only color you won’t find associated with a poicephalus is blue. The red bellied parrot is slightly larger than the Senegal and Meyers parrot. The adult males are often confused with Senegals because of the similarity in color. The way to differentiate is the color of the eyes, the adult Red-Bellied parrot will have red irises while the Senegal’s are yellow.

 

The general area associated with Red Bellied parrots are the hot savannahs of eastern African, from Tanzania to Ethiopia. They primarily feed on acacia seed pods and will travel great distances when figs are in season.

 

The red bellied parrot is considered stocky and compact. They get to be about 8 ½ inches long and the average weight is 125 grams. They are a sexually dimorphic parrot which means you can tell an adult male from a female by their color differences. The adult hen is mostly gray with a green iridescent wash over the wings. Her lower body and legs are a bright florescent green. Her chest may have a peachy overtone and an blush of color on the tips of the feathers of her chest. The adult male is similar in color on his head, legs and back as the female, but his lower chest is bright reddish orange. Juveniles are said to look more like the male and after they molt you can differentiate the gender more clearly.

 

This little parrot has a great big personality in a small package. Although the speaking voice is not as clear or human sounding as the African grey or others, they can learn to talk quite clearly. Some people think their talking sounds like a cartoon character. Red bellied parrots love to cuddle and have hands on contact. They are a relatively quiet parrot and have been often recommended for apartment dwelling. They do attach to one favorite person but can be trained to get along with everyone in the family. They are often considered the clowns of the Poicephalus family. They love to work an audience and thrive on the laughter of their companion humans.

Edited May 26, 2012 by katana600
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[Ray P]

Great intro Dee

After I read your post about Java I have looked them up and they sound like a awesome parrot.

[katana600]

Thanks Ray. Other than Java, I don't have any experience with this species or genus, but in reading and trying to learn more after we brought her home, I have read that they are great starter parrots. I would have to agree because she was the one who gave me the introduction to parrots and brought me to this forum to read more about African parrots in general. She has all the intelligence and behaviors of the larger parrots but in six years she has had few drawbacks. Right in the beginning she was sassy and nippy to everyone but me. In time she has learned to stop being on the defensive and will fly around the room paying a visit to each family member and even lets them scratch her head and under her "chin". I have to say everything I learned to care for her and teach her to be a good flock member, I learned from this forum. Her behavior follows very closely that of the African grey.

 

I do love that each of us finds tidbits to pass along and be the catalyst for the rest to expand and keep the discussions going.

[danmcq]

Nice intro Dee! I look forward to hearing and seeing more post about this wonderful species.

[Ray P]

You are doing great and now that Java has her own place on this board she does not have to take a back seat to any other fid.

Hope to here a lot more about Java..

Ray

[Kimijean]

A couple of months ago I adopted a Meyer's Parrot. Sophie. The lady I got her from said she's around 14 yrs old, but if I go by what looks like the year on her band she's 19. Either way she's a real sweetheart. She really took to my 16 yr old son but seems to at least like both of us. She's very hands on, we can touch her all over (unlike my IRN's) and she'll hang upside down from my son's hand. )

 

Kim

[TWIX]

Thought i should add a photo to the thread, i was wondering what they look like!

 

[Luvparrots]

Excellent read Dee! It's great to hear about the characteristics of sweet Java!!!

[katana600]

Oh gosh, this is so much fun. Yes, that picture is a male red-bellied parrot. They are so creative and outgoing. When I first got Java I described her as a four hundred pound gorilla trapped in a tiny little grey body. She is fearless and still very loving and affectionate. They love to hang upside down. From what I have read in the past, the acacia has a bell shaped flower or seed pod that would necessitate the upside down posture to get in there for their dinner. The acacia also has some wicked thorns. From what I can gather the red-bellied parrot has only been bred in the US for about twenty five years.