Wildlifeof India
Blue-winged Parakeet
Parrots
Photo: Santhosh Kumar KV · CC BY-SA 4.0 (May be cropped or resized)
Psittacula columboides
Basic stats
Diet
Plants and seeds
Habitat
Forest; nests in tree holes, often tall Mesua ferrea, especially old woodpecker and barbet nests
Range
Endemic to the Western Ghats of southern India
Clutch size
4 eggs (usual clutch)
Incubation period
About 23 days
The blue-winged parakeet, also called the Malabar parakeet, is bluish grey with a long blue tail tipped in yellow and dark wings with blue, contrasting with the dull grey head and body. A black neck ring is complete in both sexes, and males and females are easily told apart by bill colour. It is found in small flocks that fly rapidly over forest clearings, giving screeching keek-keek-keek calls that differ from those of other parakeets in its range (Wikipedia, general species account).
It is endemic to the Western Ghats. Breeding starts in the dry season after the north-east monsoon, with eggs laid in December and January, and the chicks fledge in about a month, before the south-west monsoon breaks in June. SoIB 2023 treats it as a Western Ghats endemic and rates it a Low conservation priority, with a Moderate range of about 115,000 km², an inconclusive long-term trend of about −32% and a stable current trend (Wikipedia, general species account; SoIB 2023).
Quick answers
- What does the Blue-winged Parakeet eat?
- Plants and seeds
- What habitat does the Blue-winged Parakeet live in?
- Forest; nests in tree holes, often tall Mesua ferrea, especially old woodpecker and barbet nests
- Where is the Blue-winged Parakeet found?
- Endemic to the Western Ghats of southern India
- How many eggs does the Blue-winged Parakeet lay?
- 4 eggs (usual clutch)
- How long are the eggs of the Blue-winged Parakeet incubated?
- About 23 days