The blue-headed parrot, also known as the blue-headed pionus (Pionus menstruus) is a medium-sized parrot of about in length. The body is mostly green, with a blue head and neck, and red undertail coverts. Compared to other parrot species (like amazons) they are very quiet. They are affectionate, but not known for their talking ability.
Taxonomy
The blue-headed parrot was formally described in 1766 by the Swedish naturalist Carl Linnaeus in the twelfth edition of his Systema Naturae. He placed it with all the other parrots in the genus Psittacus and coined the binomial name Psittacus menstruus. Linnaeus based his description on earlier accounts by Mathurin Jacques Brisson and George Edwards. In 1760 Brisson had published a description of "Le perroquet a teste bleue de la Guiane" from a preserved specimen that had been collected in French Guiana. In 1764 Edwards had included a description and a hand-coloured etching of a live bird in the third volume of his Gleanings of Natural History. The blue-headed parrot is now one of eight parrots placed in the genus Pionus that was introduced in 1832 by the German naturalist Johann Georg Wagler. The genus name is from Ancient Greek piōn, pionos meaning "fat". The specific epithet menstruus is Latin meaning "menstrual".
Three subspecies are recognised:
Description
right|thumb|At [[La Senda Verde Animal Refuge, Bolivia]]
The blue-headed parrot is about and seeds, and sometimes grain.
Breeding
The blue-headed parrot nests in tree cavities. The eggs are white and there are usually three to five in a clutch. The female incubates the eggs for about 26 days and the chicks leave the nest about 70 days after hatching.