Psittacula wardi [Newton 1867]

Seychelles Parakeet

Psittacula wardi (Newton 1867)

Description: Green; back of head, nape and narrow stripes to cheek washed with blue; broad cheek-stripe and obscure narrow line from cere to eye black; abdomen yellowish-green; purple-red patch on wing coverts; upperside of middle tail-feathers blue with yellow tips, outer feathers green; tail underside yellow; bill red with yellow tip; iris yellowish; feet grey.

Hen without black cheek-stripe.

Immatures as hen, but with shorter tail-feathers.

Length: 41 cm, wing length 182 - 204 mm, tail length 136 - 271 mm.

Distribution: Probably Islands of Mahé and Silhouette in Seychelles, possibly also Praslin.

Note: Psittacula wardi regarded by some taxonomists and authors to be a sub-specie of the Alexandrine Parakeet (Psittacula eupatria), because they have the wing patch in common. But the Seychelles Parakeet was just 41 cm in length and lacked the red in the neck compared to the Alexandrine Parakeet (Psittacula eupatria).

Habitat: Forest; regularly foraged in grain fields.

Status: Became extinct shortly before 1906.

Behaviour: Virtually unknown; when Newton visited Seychelles in 1866 he could not find species on Mahé any more; he observed parakeets on Silhoutte in grain field at edge of forest at 200 m; they were shy and unapproachable; Newton attributed decline in population to shooting and trapping by farmers as well as clearing of forest to make way for coconut plantations; last evidence for existence of species supplied by H.M Warry in June 1881, who collected two specimens for the museum in Liverpool and New York.

Aviculture: Unknown.