Designed by Paul Smith 2006. This website is copyrighted by law.
Material contained herewith may not be used without the prior written permission of FAUNA Paraguay.
Photographs on this web-site were taken by Paul Smith, Hemme Batjes, Regis Nossent, Frank Fragano,
Alberto Esquivel, Arne Lesterhuis, José Luis Cartes, Rebecca Zarza,
and Hugo del Castillo and are used with their permission.
SCALY-HEADED PARROT Pionus maximiliani
Though his common name conjours up some kind of parrot x reptile hybrid, the Scaly-headed is actually quite an attractive bird. He is perhaps the most widespread "true parrot" in Paraguay, with two subspecies occurring here, one in the Chaco and one in the Atlantic forest. As with other parrots they make popular pets, but hunting pressure does not appear to be affecting their populations at present.
FIGURE 1 - Adult ssp. siy, Central Chaco (Paul Smith September 2006).
FIGURE 2 - Same individual (Paul Smith September 2006).
FIGURE 3 - Adults ssp.melanoblepharus, PROCOSARA, PN San Rafael (Sylvia Qu June 2008 - ECOSARA Biodiversity Database).
FIGURE 4 - Adults ssp.melanoblepharus, PROCOSARA, PN San Rafael (Paul Smith December 2006 - ECOSARA Biodiversity Database).
FIGURE 5 - Captive bird with excessive blue pigment ssp. melanoblepharus, PROCOSARA, PN San Rafael (Paul Smith September 2006 - ECOSARA Biodiversity Database).
FIGURE 6 - Adults ssp.melanoblepharus feeding young, PROCOSARA, PN San Rafael (Paul Smith November 2007 - ECOSARA Biodiversity Database).
FIGURE 7 - Adult ssp.melanoblepharus, PROCOSARA, PN San Rafael (Alberto Esquivel February 2008 - ECOSARA Biodiversity Database).
VIDEO - Same individual as Figs 1 and 2 (Paul Smith September 2006).
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Pionus maximiliani flight call recorded PROCOSARA, PN San Rafael (Paul Smith March 2007 - ECOSARA Biodiversity Database).
Click the link to hear the call. Longer versions of this call can be downloaded from the Paraguay page of our partner website Xeno-Canto - the largest collection of freely downloadable Neotropical bird calls available online.