Mitred Conure

Scientific Information:

Mitred Conures (Aratinga mitrata) - also known as Red-headed Conures, or Mitred Parakeets - are the second largest of the Conures.  Mitreds are native to the Andes from north-central Peru, south through Bolivia, to north-western Argentina. Introduced populations exist in California, Florida and Hawaii.

Description:

The Mitred Conure is a relatively long-tailed species with a total length of 13 to 15 inches (34 to 38 cm).
They are amongst the most beautiful conures. Adults are mainly green with varying amounts of red to the face and thighs. They have relatively conspicuous bare white eye-rings and heavy, pale bone-colored bills.
Unlike its relatives, the Red Masked, White Eye, and Cuban conures - adult mitred conures at most show one or two red feathers at the bend of the wing.
Immature birds show little or no red to the plumage. Mitred Conures can take up to ten years to develop their full red-headed coloration, hence the drastic difference between individuals. Even with adult, fully-colored birds, there is a great variance in the amount of red they end up with.

http://www.conurequeen.com/mitred-conure.html

http://10000birds.com/mysteries-of-the-mitred-parakeets.htm

around southwestern Nassau and Queens Counties for about 30 years now,

and of my recent article about them in The Kingbird (Vol 59, No. 3, September 2009)

breeding in NY State not yet confirmed.

http://www.mail-archive.com/nysbirds-l@cornell.edu/msg01327.html

records from 1/1/2010:

Jan 2010 in Woodhaven, Queens:  http://www.brooklynparrots.com/2010_01_01_archive.html

twitter:
@queensparrotsny   ( http://twitter.com/#search?q=queensparrotsny   )

pictures of them on flickr: http://www.flickr.com/groups/cityparrots/

http://wildparrotsny.wordpress.com/

Subject: RE: Mitred Parakeet fly-by
From: "Grover, Bob" <rgrover AT gpinet.com>
Date: Mon, 10 Jan 2011 11:50:55 -0500

On a related but more countable note, the West Islip (SW Suffolk) Monk Parakeet

flock made an appearance in my yard yesterday with eight birds. If they had

shown themselves a few weeks ago, I could have ruined a CBC save!!

Bob Grover

-----Original Message-----

From: bounce-7649875-3714742 AT list.cornell.edu

[mailto:bounce-7649875-3714742 AT list.cornell.edu] On Behalf Of Seth Ausubel

Sent: Monday, January 10, 2011 11:34 AM

To: post NYSBirds

Subject: [nysbirds-l] Mitred Parakeet fly-by

I was just lingering briefly at my apartment window which has an

expansive view, when a flock of Mitred Parakeets flew by.  I could

hear their screeching through the closed window.  Looked like 12 or 13

birds which is about the right number for the flock that is seen in

winter and spring around central Queens County.

Seth Ausubel

Forest Hills, NY

Hello NYSBirders,

You may be aware of my interest in the feral Mitred Parakeets (Aratinga mitrata) that have been around southwestern Nassau and Queens Counties for about 30 years now, and of my recent article about them in The Kingbird (Vol 59, No. 3, September 2009).

It would be a significant contribution to our knowledge of the avifauna of

NY State to confirm that they are breeding, but of course that can't happen

until the breeding season.  In the mean time, now through mid-spring is the

season when the birds are most visible.  They typically gather in flocks at

this time of year, foraging over a wide area of Queens and Nassau. They feed

on fruiting trees (ornamental and otherwise), and return to many of the same

locations year after year.  Some nice photos taken in January [2010] in Woodhaven,

Queens can be viewed at www.brooklynparrots.com

<http://www.brooklynparrots.com/>   (scroll down the page).

http://www.brooklynparrots.com/2010_01_01_archive.html

I would be interested to get information on any sightings of these birds.

Specific dates, locations, numbers of birds, and any other observations are

most welcome.  Please note that I'm talking about Mitred Parakeets, not Monk

Parakeets.

Thanks,

Seth Ausubel

Forest Hills, NY

Thu, 04 Feb 2010

Tuesday, January 12, 2010

New Photos of Wild Queens NY Parrots in Winter

Wild Conures in Queens, New York, January, 2010. Photo by Dominika Gardocka.

Dominika Gardocka is a talented Queens-based photographer and artist whose web site is www.Manika-art.com. This past week, in the midst of extraordinary cold weather, Dominka shot some incredible photos of the wild parrots of Queens. These parrots (which appear to be Mitred Conures, a similar type of parrot to that which also lives in the wild in San Francisco) are among New York's most elusive and mysterious parrot flock, and we've examined their story in the past. I still don't know how these parrots can survive New York's brutal winters, because, unlike our hardy wild Monk Parakeets, the conures hail from the tropics.