| Crimson rosella | |
|---|---|
 | |
| Adult inWilsons Promontory, Victoria | |
Scientific classification | |
| Kingdom: | Animalia |
| Phylum: | Chordata |
| Class: | Aves |
| Order: | Psittaciformes |
| Family: | Psittaculidae |
| Genus: | Platycercus |
| Species: | P. elegans |
| Binomial name | |
| Platycercus elegans (Gmelin, 1788) | |
| Subspecies | |
| |
 | |
| Crimson rosella range (in red; all-year resident) | |
| Synonyms[2] | |
Psittacus elegans,Gmelin | |
Thecrimson rosella (Platycercus elegans) is aparrot native to eastern and south eastern Australia which has been introduced toNew Zealand andNorfolk Island. It is commonly found in, but not restricted to, mountain forests andgardens. Thespecies as it now stands has subsumed two former separate species, theyellow rosella and theAdelaide rosella. Molecular studies show one of the three red-coloured races,P. e. nigrescens, is genetically more distinct.
The crimson rosella wasformally described in 1788 by the German naturalistJohann Friedrich Gmelin in his revised and expanded edition ofCarl Linnaeus'sSystema Naturae. He placed it with the parrots in thegenusPsittacus and coined thebinomial namePsittacus elegans.[3] This Latin name had been used in 1605 by theFlemish botanistCarolus Clusius in his bookExoticorum libri decem for thehawk-headed parrot,[4][5] however this predates the start ofLinnean taxonomy.[2]
The crimson rosella had been described and named byJohn Latham in 1781 as the "Beautiful Lory", from a specimen in the collection of SirJoseph Banks,[6] and then as the "Pennantian Parrot" in 1787[7] in honour ofThomas Pennant.[8] However, Latham did not give the species abinomial name until 1790, when he named itPsittacus pennantii.[9]
Nicholas Aylward Vigors defined the genusPlatycercus in 1825, based on the distinctive architecture of the feathers in the tail and wing, and designated the crimson rosella (asPlatycercus pennantii) as thetype species.[10]
Most authors used Latham's combinationPlatycercus pennantii until 1891, when Italian zoologistTommaso Salvadori established thatP. elegans had priority, leading to its universal adoption thereafter.[11][12]
Edward Pierson Ramsay described thesubspeciesnigrescens in 1888, noting its darker crimson plumage, black back and nape, and smaller size yet larger bill.[13] It was also known as "northern crimson parrot" or "Campbell's parakeet", after Alexander James Campbell.[8]
In 1941,Herbert Condon proposed that the yellow and Adelaide rosellas be reclassified as subspecies of the crimson rosella.[14]
"Crimson rosella" has been designated the official name by theInternational Ornithologists' Union (IOC);[15] however, it was not given this name until the publication of the 1926 RAOU checklist. Before this it had been known as the crimson parrot, while the term "rosella" had been restricted to theeastern rosella.[8] The name "blue-cheeked rosella" was proposed for the united specieselegans,[16] but was not generally taken up.[17]
Today, the red-coloured races are generally known as thecrimson rosella, with the alternate namesred lowry,Pennant's parakeet,Campbell parakeet, (blue) mountain parrot, (blue) mountain lowry or just plainlowry occasionally heard.[18] Cayley reported that the first two alternate names were most common in the early part of the twentieth century. OnNorfolk Island it is called simplyred parrot.
Theyellow rosella, also known by a variety of alternate common names includingMurrumbidgee lowry,murray rosella,swamp lowry andyellow-rumped parakeet,[19] was described asPlatycercus flaveolus byJohn Gould, who gave it the last common name mentioned. It was reduced to subspecies status once hybridization was noted where ranges overlap. However, some authorities maintain the hybridization is not widespread and hence preserve its specific status. This view is in the minority.[17]
Platycercus elegans is a medium-sized Australian parrot at 36 cm (14 in) long, much of which is tail. There are seven subspecies, three of which are actually crimson. The red is replaced by yellow in the case of var.flaveolus and a mixture of red, orange and yellow in the Adelaide rosella.
Adults and juveniles generally show strikingly different colouration in south-eastern populations, with predominantly greenish-olive body plumage on the juvenile, most persistent on the nape and breast. Juveniles are said to 'ripen' as they get older and turn from green to red. All races have blue cheeks and black-scalloped blue-margined wings and predominantly blue tail with predominantly red coloration. The crimson rosella's blue tail feathers are one of the favourite decorations of thesatin bowerbird. The bill is pale grey and the iris dark brown.
There is very littlesexual dimorphism in crimson rosellas. The most noticeable difference between sexes is that males are up to 15% larger, and have a relatively larger and wider beak.
P. elegans elegans, the nominate race ofVictoria and easternNew South Wales.P. elegans nigrescens, occurring onQueensland's northeastern coast, andP. elegans melanoptera on Kangaroo Island. The main distinction between these is size:nigrescens is the smallest of the three andmelanoptera is the largest; both are slightly darker than the nominate race.
The juveniles ofP. e. nigrescens lack the greenish immature plumage of the other subspecies of crimson rosella.
The yellow rosella, which lives along theMurray River and several of its tributaries, was reclassified (1968) as a subspecies,P. elegans flaveolus, of the crimson rosella as the two were found to interbreed where their ranges overlap. The main difference between the two is that the crimson areas are replaced with light yellow and the tail is more greenish.[20]
_-two_eating_seeds.jpg)
The Adelaide rosella ofAdelaide and the surrounding area was also thought to be a separate species, but is presently believed to be ahybrid swarm, having originated through interbreeding of the crimson and yellow rosellas. Both of these still interbreed with the Adelaide rosella where its range crosses theirs, and it exhibits variation in its plumage from dark orange-red in the south of its distribution to a pale orange-yellow in the north. Variants that are very close to the yellow race are designatedsubadelaidae.[21]
The crimson rosella occurs from southeastern South Australia, throughTasmania, Victoria and coastal New South Wales into southeastern Queensland. A disparate population occurs inNorth Queensland.[20]
Around 1910, a small number of crimson rosellas were released off theOtago Heads,New Zealand, along witheastern rosellas. These interbred and by the 1950s no pure crimson rosellas remained. This mixed population has remained there ever since. Crimson rosellas were also present in Wellington City from 1963[22] through the early 1990s as an introduced species. Two crimson rosellas were also recorded from theTararua foothills in 1971.[22] It is now thought to be extinct in the wild in New Zealand.[23]
Crimson rosellas were taken toNorfolk Island as cage birds during the first penal settlement. Escaping into the wild, they were reported before 1838, and became numerous by 1900.[24] There they are often known as "red parrots", to distinguish them from the nativeNorfolk Island parakeet or "green parrots".
Crimson rosellas are common in coastal and mountain forests at all altitudes. They primarily live in forests and woodlands, preferring older and wetter forests. They can be found in tropical, subtropical, and temperate rainforests, both wet and drysclerophyll forests,riparian forests, and woodlands, all the way from sea level up to the tree line. They will also live in human-affected areas such as farmlands, pastures, fire-breaks, parks, reserves, gardens, and golf-courses. They are rarely found in treeless areas. At night, they roost on high tree branches.
Almost all rosellas are sedentary, although occasional populations are considered nomadic; no rosellas are migratory. Outside of the breeding season, crimson rosellas tend to congregate in pairs or small groups and feeding parties. The largest groups are usually composed of juveniles, who will gather in flocks of up to 20 individuals. When they forage, they are conspicuous and chatter noisily. Rosellas are monogamous, and during the breeding season, adult birds will not congregate in groups and will only forage with their mate.
According to a new study crimson rosellas can identify birds of their own subspecies based on the smell of other birds.[25]
Crimson rosellas forage in trees, bushes, and on the ground for the fruit, seeds, nectar, berries, and nuts of a wide variety of plants, including members of theMyrtaceae,Asteraceae, andRosaceae families. Despite feeding on fruits and seeds, rosellas are not useful to the plants as seed-spreaders, because they crush and destroy the seeds in the process of eating them.[26] Their diet often puts them at odds with farmers whose fruit and grain harvests can be damaged by the birds, which has resulted in large numbers of rosellas being shot in the past. Adelaide rosellas are known to feed on dormant cherry flower buds.[27] Rosellas will also eat many insects and their larvae, including termites, aphids, beetles, weevils, caterpillars, moths, and water boatmen.[28]
_-on_feeder-2c.jpg)
Nesting sites are hollows greater than 1 metre (3.3 feet) deep in tree trunks, limbs, and stumps. These may be up to 30 metres (98 feet) above the ground.[29] The nesting site is selected by the female. Once the site is selected, the pair will prepare it by lining it with wood debris made from the hollow itself by gnawing and shredding it with their beaks. They do not bring in material from outside the hollow. Only one pair will nest in a particular tree. A pair will guard their nest by perching near it and chattering at other rosellas that approach. They will also guard a buffer zone of several trees radius around their nest, preventing other pairs from nesting in that area.
The breeding season of the crimson rosella lasts from September through to February, and varies depending on the rainfall of each year; it starts earlier and lasts longer during wet years. The laying period is on average during mid- to late October. Clutch size ranges from 3–8eggs, which are laid asynchronously at an average interval of 2.1 days; the eggs are white and slightly shiny and measure 28 by 23 millimetres (1+1⁄8 in × 7⁄8 in).[29] The meanincubation period is 19.7 days, and ranges from 16 to 28 days. Only the mother incubates the eggs. The eggs hatch around mid-December; on average 3.6 eggs successfully hatch. There is a bias towards female nestlings, as 41.8% of young are male. For the first six days, only the mother feeds the nestlings. After this time, both parents feed them. The young become independent in February, after which they spend a few more weeks with their parents before departing to become part of a flock of juveniles. Juveniles reach maturity (gain adult plumage) at 16 months of age.
The nominate bird is mainly red, and a few colour mutations exist, such as the blue, yellow, white, and cinnamon, inaviculture.
Predators of crimson rosellas include theperegrine falcon,grey goshawk andpowerful owl,[30] as well as feral cats andfoxes.Possums andcurrawongs are also believed to occasionally take eggs from the nest.[31] Surprisingly, however, the crimson rosella is its own worst enemy. During the breeding season, it is common for females to fly to other nests and destroy the eggs and in fact, this is the most common cause for an egg failing to hatch.[32] This behaviour is thought to be a function of competition for suitable nesting hollows, since a nest will be abandoned if all the eggs in it are destroyed, and a pair of rosellas will tend to nest in the same area from year to year.
A new study has shown thathybrid birds were more likely to fight off diseases than were pure breeds; an example of the biological phenomenon ofheterosis, in which a crossbreed is stronger than its two purebred ancestors. Scientists from the Centre for Integrative Ecology atDeakin University in Geelong, Victoria, studied the infection patterns of beak and feather diseases in crimson rosellas across southern Australia. This included several hybrid populations in northeastern Victoria and southern New South Wales, located in between the range of the two parent subspecies. (Platycercus elegans flaveolus andP. elegans elegans). They found that when the subspecies mated, the resulting offspring seemed to cope better with a potentially deadly virus.[33]
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