Hispaniolan Parrot – Amazona ventralis

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Family Psittacidae (African & American parrots) – Amazone d’Hispaniola en français
First publication : 25 June 2021 – Last update : 25 June 2021

There are many parrots in the Caribbean islands, but these are often in declining, rare or threatened. Several species are unfortunately already extinct. They are birds sensitive to many destructive human activities: capture for cage birds, hunting, destruction of natural habitats, industrial agriculture, etc. This one is endemic to Hispaniola (although a small population has been introduced by humans to Puerto Rico), an island administered by two countries. In Haiti, where deforestation has destroyed almost all natural environments, there is already no longer sustainable population.

In the Dominican Republic, it remains locally common; this is good news but it is nevertheless declining even in urban and peri-urban areas where other Psittacidae survive (notably the Hispaniolan Parakeet) in good densities. It therefore largely depends on protected areas such as nature reserves and national parks.

Villa Barrancolí: a great spot to find the parrot!

In the high mountains of Valle Nuevo National Park (Constanza), the Hispaniolan Parrot was one of my main targets. It is present there alongside the Hispaniolan Parakeet, another endemic. With hours of watching their behavior, I was able to approach the parakeet and get photos, but the parrot only showed itself in flight and from a distance.

On the first day at Villa Barrancolí, I heard the call of the parrot and a pair flew over the gardens. I didn’t see it well for several days until I visited the village of Puerto Escondido. As I walked along the forest edge, I saw and heard a lot of parrots. I only took photos in flight, and visited again hoping to improve the images.

**Hispaniolan Parrot**, Villa Barrancolí (Puerto Escondido), Dominican Republic, June 2021
In flight, we can admire the blue flight-feathers and primary wing-coverts.

Instead of crossing the river to the village, I went up the hill on the other side. There, the Hispaniolan Parrot is common. However, the birds move according to the availability of food and I only managed to get distant photos of birds resting for a moment on dry branches.

**Hispaniolan Parrot**, Villa Barrancolí (Puerto Escondido), Dominican Republic, June 2021
Seen from afar, it appears mainly green and little contrasted, except for the grey face with a pale forehead. The whitish eye-ring is usually striking.

It was while working on the Hispaniola Pewee page in my cabin that I was finally able to take some good pictures. I heard the calls, went out, and saw that a few pairs had come into the garden to enjoy ripe fruit. They turned out to be tame enough. We can therefore say that this place offers good potential for the observation of this declining endemic. The conservation of the national park depends on its success with tourists and Villa Barrancolí is the best, if not the only accomodation available that can be a base for exploring the park.

Valéry Schollaert

**Hispaniolan Parrot**, Villa Barrancolí (Puerto Escondido), Dominican Republic, June 2021
Seen at close range, we can see some pinkish areas as well as grey and pale blue on the ear-coverts.

Its behaviour is usual for parrots. It lives in faithful pairs and lays in a cavity, often a woodpecker hole dug in a palm tree. Two to four eggs are incubated by both parents (duration unknown in nature but, in captivity, lasting twenty-five days) and the young fledge at eight weeks. Diet is made of fruits and seeds.

Taxonomy

This monotypic parrot is part of a Caribbean clade that includes many species, several of which being sadly extinct. The respective position of each remains uncertain. The Hispaniolas Parrot is usually placed with the Cuban Parrot and the Yellow-billed Parrot; all three have even been grouped into one species. This close relationship is however, unlikely since the plumages are very distinct.