The Deluge

                                              The Deluge


The  26th of July 2005 , as Incharge of Core banking, was no ordinary day for me. Months of hard work was going to be put to test.. Was confident and well prepared, yet in the sub-conscious tad anxiety prevailed . Out of 3 pilot branches selected  for introducing core-banking in Central  bank, two other branches had failed miserably  as the data to be uploaded was    full of flaws.Experts from TCS along with system analysts  from our Zonal Office were deputed to carryout the process of transferring data from old system to the new one after the day-end . I was to stay back late to oversee all arrangements..My  house being a 20 minutes drive from my branch , my husband was to pick me up at around 9.30 p.m.

                   The two teams, arrived on time, just as the day-end  came to a close.They were served tea and snacks. In the course of conversation, the head of the team inquired, as to  who would stay over night  with  them  from my branch. . I was in for a surprise , as nothing as such had been discussed earlier.As the staff members were about to leave, without wasting any time, I started requesting the male colleagues ,who could volunteer to stay overnight. Each one had some or the other excuse to offer.After much cajoling and requesting, two of them consented,in lieu of  a complimentary off.

                                                       The team of experts sat down to work..I and the other two had nothing to do, we just had to be there .Just after an hour or so, two staff members returned. . A profound sense of respect  arose  in my mind for them. .,Their conscience had woken up , duty was calling , so I thought.. Sheepishly they explained  that  that was not the case.They had to return, as all the roads were flooded and  had no option but to  turn back..There was cloudburst in BKC area resultant , the Mithi river was in spate.Slowly, one by one,  others too returned  . As I peeped out from my branch premises  I realised the gravity of the situation.. The road in front was flooded. Four wheelers, two wheelers, autos were floating on the water.A few staff members  didnt return. They braved the floods and got stuck in buses, trains, and at  platforms.  had to go  without  water, food and sleep the whole night. Soon after, my  husband called me up to inform that he would be unable to pick me up, as all roads leading to BKC were flooded..All the staff was forced to stay the night over. Literally , all the universe had conspired to come to my  help ..
                      Special dinner had been arranged  for the two teams already, now had to add to   the order to accommodate the rest who had returned.All enjoyed  a sumptuous dinner and thanked me profusely.. Later all went to sleep, making themselves, as comfortable as possible.Some slept on the office tables, some on carpets. All ladies in the GM's cabin. We were fortunate to have a nights sleep comfortably..
                        We woke up late in the morning,The first news was positive,  the data  transfer was successful. The second one not so positive. The water and electricity supply was cut off.However there  was  enough water left  to serve our morning ablusions .All groceries and vegetables had been consumed , so   the canteen organisor was unable to serve breakfast..Staying back in the branch was futile .We had to  set out  to reach our homes..It was a challenge though , Wading through knee deep water , we reached  the overbridge  near Mhada office.This was the epicentre of the deluge. As we marched forward, the water started surging. Now we were neck deep in water. The strong currents stopped us from  even standing straight.We quickly made a human chain and held our hands together.  ensuring we didnt get  swept away.The only worry was, what if the water kept surging further.There would be  meek chance of our  survival..God almighty, we called out to nobody in particular, as we clasped our hands tightly and clung to each other. .We moved  forward at snails pace, into the unknown territory.There was divine intervention, as the water was still neck deep, with  no further surge.Slowly as we marched forward  the water receded to our shoulder level..As we all sighed a breath of relief, one of my footwear got swept away by the force of the strong currents..Now I was in for double trouble.Negotiating the strong currents and facing the agony of little stones hurting my feet badly. at every step. Still we moved on  forward adding to our woes, now  we  felt thirsty and hungry,  our energies  hitting  the ebb..By now we   had reached Santacruz, and lo ! few Samaritans from the slums   lined up alongside the road  were offering water bottles and  packets of  Parle -G biscuits. We just grabbed it from them, bringing a cheer on our otherwise battered and pale  faces, giving some respite from the ordeal we had gone  through..  With renewed energy and hope,  we moved on....At about 1.30 in the afternoon we reached closer  to my house in Vile Parle ..I called my husband and told him to keep tea  ready for my colleagues,  about 12/13 of them.It took us 4 1/2 hrs to reach my house , which was otherwise a 20 mins drive from my branch . Alas I  reached  to the comforts of my  sweet home..accompanied by my  colleagues..My  husband  served them with  hot tea and   poha. As all of us  were hungry the tea and poha tasted so tasty as they never had .They thanked  my husband from their heart ..The they  set out on   the journey to their respective homes.
                                                              In the last 12 hours  , I had experienced all kinds of emotions.from  anxiety, satisfaction,joy, fear, desperation, hope, to name it all.It also taught me that human life is so  transient and that we have no control over the future..

                                     

The indian Koel

                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                        


MALE KOEL



FEMALE KOEL

THE ASian Koel (Eudynamys scolopaceus  is a member of the cuckoo order of birds, the Cuculiformes
Cuckoo – The Koel is 39- 46 cm in length. It is a long and slim bird. It has a long tail, pointed wings and curved bill. The male is glistening black, with yellowish green bill and crimson eyes. They have short wings but long tail. The female is dark brown, with profusely spotted and barred with white. Females have green beak and red eyes. Males and females are distinct in appearance. Tail is dark gray and slightly white in colour. The crown is dark brown and the bill is pale green in colour. Females are slightly smaller than the males.

Presence in India : They are mostly found in every part of India
The Indian koel are migrants that arrive here in Australia to breed from New Guinea. The arrival of the Indian koel is normally around the very end of winter and these Australian birds stay until the end of the summer months.

Habitat : Cuckoo prefers tall forests, suburban areas open moorlands, desert to tropical rainforests.

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BEHAVIOUR:The Asian Koel is a brood parasite, and lays its single egg in the nests of a variety of birds, including the Jungle Crow, and House Crow.

Diet : Cuckoos are carnivorous. They feed on fruits, insects , caterpillars, grasshoppers, lizards, small snakes and mammals. They feed in the canopy of the trees.

Reproduction : Its breeding season rests from September to February. It is a brood parasite. Cuckoo lay egg in the nest of the other bird. It prefers leafy trees for foraging . A single egg is laid in the host's nest and once hatched the chick forces the other eggs and hatchlings out of the nest. When the chick leaves the nest it roosts in the outer branches of a tree, parents search for food to satisfy the young ones. Young ones resembles the females, but they have dark eyes.

Taxonomy: Cuculus scolopaceus Linnaeus, 1758, Malabar.
Genus name sometimes incorrectly spelt Eudynamis. Australian birds are sometimes treated as a separate species (E. cyanocephala), and black-billed populations of Sulawesi to Moluccas and New Guinea as another (E. melanorhyncha); while both rufiventer and subcyanocephala are present in New Guinea, however, they are not known to breed sympatrically as two distinct species; and two forms (orientalis, ?cyanocephala) occur on Seram, but it is unknown if both breed there; songs and calls appear to be similar for all forms throughout their collective ....
Subspecies and Distribution:

• scolopacea (Linnaeus, 1758) - Nepal, Pakistan and India to Sri Lanka, Laccadives and Maldives.
• chinensis Cabanis & Heine, 1863 - S China and Indochina; winters S to Borneo.
• harterti Ingram, 1912 - Hainan  

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INDIAN ROBIN

The Indian Robin is a species of bird in the Muscicapidae family. It is widespread in the Indian Subcontinent, and ranges across Bangladesh, Bhutan, India, Nepal, Pakistan, and Sri Lanka.. Their long tails are held erect and their chestnut undertail covert and dark body make them easily distinguishable from the Pied Bushchat and the Oriental Magpie Robin. They are commonly found in open scrub areas and often seen running along the ground or perching on low thorny shrubs and rocks

Scientific name: Saxicoloides fulicatus  Male Robin   Female robin  Rank: Species Higher classification: Saxicoloides The name robin is also applied to a dozen other chat-thrushes in the genera Erithacus and Tarsiger, as well as to a few other related species, notably the Indian robin (Saxicoloides fulicata), which is about 15 cm (6 inches) long, with black plumage set off by a white shoulder patch and reddish patches on the underparts. The males of northern populations have a brown back whose extent gradually reduces southwards with populations in the southern peninsula having an all black back. They are commonly found in open scrub areas and often seen running along the ground or perching on low thorny shrubs and rocks. Their long tails are held erect and their chestnut undertail covert and dark body make them easily distinguishable from the Pied Bushchat and the Oriental Magpie Robin Description  In Tirunelveli the plumage with the main being mainly black with a white shoulder patch or stripe whose visible extent can vary with posture. The northern populations have the upper plumage brownish while the southern populations are black above. The males have chestnut undertail coverts and these are visible as the bird usually holds the 6–8 cm long tail raised upright. The females are brownish above, have no white shoulder stripe and are greyish below with the vent a paler shade of chestnut than the males. Birds of the northern populations are larger than those from southern India or Sri Lanka. Juvenile birds are much like females but the throat is mottled Several populations are named based on their plumage differences. The nominate subspecies refers to the population found across southern Peninsular India. Race leucopterus is found in Sri Lanka. Race cambaiensis of western India and erythrura (=erythrurus) of eastern India (south to around Sambalpur]) have the males with brown backs. The population intermedius includes forms between cambaiensis, erythrura and fulicata in central India and parts of the Deccan region. A race munda was named for a specimen from Punjab but is now considered synonymous with cambaiensis. Older classifications treat the population in southern India under the name ptymatura while considering the type locality as Sri Lanka although the type locality has subsequently been restricted to Pondicherry Local names recorded by Jerdon include Nalanchi (Telugu), Wannatikuruvi (Tamil, Washerman bird), Kalchuri (Hindi) The genus name indicates that it looks similar to Saxicola, the genus of the Pied Bushchat, a bird often found in similar habitats.  Distribution and habitat This bird is found in open stony, grassy and scrub forest habitats. They are mainly found in dry habitats and are mostly absent from the thicker forest regions and high rainfall areas. All populations are resident and non-migratory. The species is often found close to human habitation and will frequently perch on rooftops The species was introduced into the New York region but did not establish. A vagrant or escape has been noted from the Maldives. ECOLOGY Population densities of 193-240 individuals per square km have been estimated in the Pondicherry University campus. The ratio of males to females was about 1.5:1. Territory size for males is estimated at about 6650 m2. Males can be aggressive to others during the breeding season and will even attack reflections Human activities such as felling and firewood removal in forests appear to benefit them.  Food They feed mostly on insects but are known to take frogs and lizards especially when feeding young at the nest.Individuals may forage late in the evening to capture insects attracted to lights.  Breeding The breeding season is December to September but varies according to region and usually begins with the first rains. Peak breeding in northern India is in June and is earlier in Southern India In Sri Lanka it breeds in March to June and August to September. Males sing during this season and display by lowering and spreading their tail feathers and strutting around the female, displaying their sides and fluffing their undertail coverts. The songs of males have variants for inviting mates and for deterring other males. Males will drive away other males and patrol their territory by flying with slow wing-beats from perch to perch. They may sometimes peck at their reflections. An aggressive display involves fluffing up the feathers and holding the bill high. Male feeding young (Parli, India). Nests are built between rocks, in holes of  walls or in a tree hollow Nests are lined with animal hair and it has been noted that many nests have pieces of snake sloughs. The eggs are of regular oval form, but many are elongated and a few pointed. They have a fair amount of gloss. The ground-colour is white, often tinged with faint green or pink, and this is rather closely spotted, speckled, streaked, and mottled, with rich reddish or umber-brown and brownish yellow, with some underlying lavender. The markings are denser at the larger end of the egg, where they form an irregular cap. Some eggs are blotched with dark reddish brown at the large end. Eggs are about 0.76–0.84 inch (1.9–2.1 cm) long and 0.55–0.62 inch (1.4–1.6 cm) wide.Three to four eggs is the usual clutch. An abnormal clutch of seven has been noted although none of the eggs hatched at this nest Only the female incubates Eggs hatch in about 10–12 days. Chicks have black down Both males and females feed the young, the males sometimes passing food to the female which in turn feeds the young. Nestlings may feign dead (thanatosis) when handled. Nestlings may be preyed on by the Rufous Treepie.The same nest site may be reused in subsequent years.An old anecdotal record of these birds laying their eggs in the nests of Turdoides babblers has not been supported by later observers. Laboratory studies have demonstrated cyclic changes in the melanin pigmentation of the tissue surrounding the testes. The dark pigmentation is lost during the breeding season and regained later. Parasites Several parasites including a cestode have been identified in this species. In demeanour the bird is very sprightly, hopping about with the head held stiffly high and the tail cocked well forward over the back ; in fact its normal poise is that of the English Wren, and the bird being larger with a longer tail the attitude appears more exaggerated.   It feeds for the most part on the ground, and perches by preference on walls, posts, roofs, and large gnarled tree-trunks, rather than on the boughs of trees. The food consists chiefly of insects and their larvae. It has only an apology for a song, which is used while courting is in progress .... Indian Robin looks totally different compared  to American Robin. TAXONOMY This species was first described in 1766 by Carl Linnaeus in the twelfth edition of his Systema Naturae as Turdus migratorius. The binomial name derives from two Latin words: Turdus, 'thrush,' and migratorius from migrare 'to go.' The term robin for this species has been recorded since at least 1703 There are about 65 species of medium to large thrushes in the genus Turdus, characterized by rounded heads, longish pointed wings, and usually melodious songs A study of the mitochondrial cytochrome b gene indicates that the American Robin is not part of the Central/South American clade of Turdus thrushes; instead it shows genetic similarities to the Kurrichane Thrush, T. libonyanus, and the Olive Thrush, T. olivaceus, both African species. This conflicts with a 2007 DNA study of 60 of 65 Turdus species which places the American Robin's closest relative as the Rufous-collared Robin (T. rufitorques) of Central America. Though having distinct plumage, the two species are similar in vocalization and behavior. Beyond this, it lies in a small group of four species of otherwise Central American distribution, suggesting it recently spread northwards into North America. INTERESTING FACTS During breeding season, male American Robins grow black feathers on their heads to attract females. Once the mating season is over, these feathers are lost. There is a Crayola crayon named Robin’s Egg Blue. These birds have been observed wading belly deep in water to catch small fish. A group of robins are collectively known as a "worm" of robins.

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Prarabdhha ( destiny) and Karma (action)

I strongly believe in the philosophy of prarabdhha and karma. As you sow , so you reap.good deeds give good fruits, bad deeds give bad fruits and nothing leads to nothing There's nothing as FREE LUNCH in this universe.I believe that a sincere, honest and hardworking  working woman is an  epitome of selfless soul, as she is not dependent on anybody for her survival, she is empowered and free, yet  she serves her husband, children, in-laws and tends to household chores in addition to managing her job as efficiently , if not  better than her male counterpart.People play games and feel that they they have fooled the other person. But believe me this is very short-lived. Honesty, sincerety and integrity  leaves a lasting impression. And this alone gives one the inner satisfaction. This feeling of  joy  cannot be replaced by any amount of artificial or manipulative action.It takes one whole life to please the in-laws side, sometimes this is even less. But one has to strive hard and honestly do ones duty. In due course, you are rewarded, you are accepted. The blessings of the in-laws is as important for her family to prosper as her own self being acknowledged by them. The life of a woman is very demanding. This world hardly realizes this fact. Once you have been acknowledged , that sense of fulfillment is very difficult to express. Till then your own life has come to full circle and then you realize what a tremendous achievement you have made. You have made the life of so many people easy.A working woman for me is thus a super heroine !!!!!!!!! and an indian woman at that.


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the Bulbul bird

Scientific name: Andropadus

Higher classification: Bulbul

Rank: Genus

Lower classifications: Sombre Greenbul, Ansorge's Greenbul, Plain Greenbul, Slender-billed Greenbul, Grey Greenbul, Yellow-whiskered Greenbul, Shelley's Greenbul, Stripe-cheeked Greenbul, Cameroon Greenbul, Grey-throated Greenbul, Mountain Greenbul, Little GreenbulMore

The Red-vented Bulbul is easily identified by its short crest giving the head a squarish appearance. The body is dark brown with a scaly pattern while the head is darker or black. The rump is white while the vent is red. The black tail is tipped in white. The Himalayan races have a more prominent crest and are more streaked on the underside. The Race intermedius of the Western Himalayas has a black hood extending to the mid-breast. Population bengalensis of Central and Eastern Himalayas and the Gangetic plain has a dark hood, lacks the scale like pattern on the underside and instead has dark streaks on the paler lower belly. Race stanfordi of the South Assam hills is similar to intermedius. The desert race humayuni has a paler brown mantle. The nominate race cafer is found in Peninsular India. Northeast Indian race wetmorei is between cafer, humayuni and bengalensis. about 20 cm in length, with a long tail. Sri Lankan race haemorrhous (=haemorrhousus^[6]) has a dark mantle with narrow pale edges. Race humayuni is known to hybridize with Pycnonotus leucogenys and these hybrids were once described as a subspecies magrathi marked by their pale rumps and yellow-orange or pink vents.^[9] In eastern Myanmar there is some natural hybridization with Pycnonotus aurigaster.

 

P. leucogenys x P. c. humayuni hybrid (magrathi)

Sexes are similar in plumage, but young birds are duller than adults.^[5] The typical call has been transcribed as ginger beer but a number of sharp single note calls likened as pick are also produced. Their alarm calls are usually responded to and heeded by many other species of bird.

Red-whiskered Bulbul

Habitat: 

Bulbuls are common in urban areas, where they inhabit parks, gardens and along creeks.

What does it do?

Feeding: 

Red-whiskered Bulbuls feed on a variety of native and introduced fruits, insects and flower buds. Groups of up to 50 or so birds may gather around a food source, although smaller groups of three to five birds are more common. Birds chatter noisily as they actively feed among the dense bushes.

Breeding: 

Red-whiskered Bulbuls build an open cup nest of rootlets, bark and leaves, lined with soft fibre. The nest is usually placed in a low tree fork. Two or three broods may be reared in a season. Both birds incubate the eggs and care for the young birds. The eggs are pale pink, streaked and spotted with shades of red.

=http://www.youtube.com/embed/kA9LqhkRSWQ?feature=player_detailpage. watch the song of the bulbul.

The common Mynah

An aggressive and confident bird, the common myna has adapted well to the urban environment, making it one of the most abundant and familiar birds in Asia.black tail . The bill, legs and the bare skin around the eyes are bright yellow, and bristly feathers on the forehead form a short crown . This large, stocky myna also has contrasting white patches on its wings, which are most visible when the bird is in flight . The male and female common myna are very similar in appearance, although the male is usually slightly larger, but the juvenile bird is duller than the adult, with browner plumage, and lacks the glossy sheen on the head . Like other birds of the Sturnidae family, the common myna has large and strong feet that allow it to walk on the ground rather than hop, while the stout, straight bill enables it to be fairly flexible in its food choice . The common myna is highly vocal at all times, and can also be identified by its ceaseless, loud chattering of various conversational-like gurgles and whistles, and it is even capable of learning to mimic human speech when in captivity   This well-known bird has distinctive chestnut-brown upperparts, with a glossy black head, brownish-black upper-wings and a white-tipped










Taxonomy and subspecies
The Common Myna has two subspecies

• Acridotheres tristis tristis (Linnaeus, 1758). Widespread, including Sri Lanka.
• A. t. melanosternus Legge, 1879. Endemic to Sri Lanka.

The subspecies melanosternus is darker than the nominate subspecies, has half-black and half-white primary coverts and has a larger yellow cheek-patch.^[The type locality of the nominate subspecies is Pondicherry, India

The Common Myna or Indian Myna (Acridotheres tristis) also sometimes spelled Mynah, is a member of family Sturnidae (starlings and mynas) native to Asia. An omnivorous open woodland bird with a strong territorial instinct, the Myna has adapted extremely well to urban environments.
The Common Myna is an important motif in Indian culture and appears both in Sanskrit and Prakrit literature. "Myna" is derived from the Hindi language mainā which itself is derived from Sanskrit madanā.


http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=tBOYZAJAN9o&feature=player_detailpage

PARROT or PARAKEET

                    Parrots, also known as psittacines ( /ˈsɪtəsaɪnz/),^[2][3] are birds of the roughly 372 species in 86 genera that make up the order Psittaciformes,^[4                                                                                                                                                                                                            The parrots are a broad order of more than 350 birds. Macaws, Amazons, lorikeets, lovebirds, cockatoos and many others are all considered parrots.
Though there is great diversity among these birds, there are similarities as well. All parrots have curved beaks and all are zygodactyls, meaning they have four toes on each foot, two pointing forward and two projecting backward. Most parrots eat fruit, flowers, buds, nuts, seeds, and some small creatures such as insects.
Parrots are found in warm climates all over most of the world. The greatest diversities exist in Australasia, Central America, and South America.
Many parrots are kept as pets, especially macaws, Amazon parrots, cockatiels, parakeets, and cockatoos. These birds have been popular companions throughout history because they are intelligent, charismatic, colorful, and musical. Some birds can imitate many nonavian sounds, including human speech. The male African gray parrot (Psittacus erithacus) is the most accomplished user of human speech in the animal world; this rain forest-dweller is an uncanny mimic.
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Some parrot species are highly endangered. In other cases, once tame birds have reproduced in the wild and established thriving feral populations in foreign ecosystems. The monk (green) parakeet, for example, now lives in several U.S. states.


Conservation and threats


Many parrot species are in decline, and several are extinct. Of the 350 or so living species, 130 are listed as near threatened or worse by the IUCN.^[64] There are several reasons for the decline of so many species, the principal threats being habitat loss and degradation, hunting and, for certain species, the wild-bird trade. Parrots are persecuted because, in some areas, they are (or have been) hunted for food and feathers, and as agricultural pests.




Taxonomy

 Origins and evolution

Blue-and-yellow Macaw eating a walnut held by a foot

Researchers are unsure about the origins of parrots. Psittaciforme diversity in South America and Australasia suggests that the order may have evolved in Gondwanaland, centred in Australasia.^[8] The scarcity of parrots in the fossil record, however, presents difficulties in proving so.
A single 15 mm fragment from a large lower bill (UCMP 143274), found in deposits from the Lance Creek Formation in Niobrara County, Wyoming, had been thought to be the oldest parrot fossil and is presumed to have originated from the Late Cretaceous period, which makes it about 70 million years old.^[9] There have been studies, though, that establishes that this fossil is almost certainly not from a bird, but from a caenagnathid theropod or a non-avian dinosaur with a birdlike beak.^[10][11]
It is now generally assumed that the Psittaciformes, or their common ancestors with a number of related bird orders, were present somewhere in the world around the Cretaceous–Paleogene extinction event (K-Pg extinction), some 65 mya (million years ago). If so, they probably had not evolved their morphological autapomorphies yet, but were generalised arboreal birds, roughly similar (though not necessarily closely related) to today's potoos or frogmouths (see also Palaeopsittacus below). Though these birds (Cypselomorphae) are a phylogenetically challenging group, they seem at least closer to the parrot ancestors than for example the modern aquatic birds (Aequornithes). The present-day combined evidence is widely in support of the hypothesis of Psittaciformes being "near passerines"; i.e. they almost certainly belong to the radiation of mostly land-living birds that emerged in close proximity to the K-Pg extinction. They have been variously allied to groups such as falcons, songbirds, trogons, woodpeckers, as well as "Coraciiformes", hawks and owls, and the puzzling mousebirds. This seems to be by and large correct. Other proposed relationships, such as to pigeons, are considered more spurious today.
Europe is the origin of the first presumed parrot fossils, which date from about 50 million years ago (mya). The climate there and then was tropical, consistent with the Paleocene-Eocene Thermal Maximum. Initially, a neoavian named Mopsitta tanta, uncovered in Denmark's Early Eocene Fur Formation and dated to 54 mya (million years ago), was assigned to the Psittaciformes; it was described from a single humerus.^[12] However, the rather nondescript bone is not unequivocally psittaciform, and more recently it was pointed out that it may rather belong to a newly-discovered ibis of the genus Rhynchaeites, whose fossil legs were found in the same deposits.

The feathers of a Yellow-headed Amazon. The blue component of the green colouration is due to light scattering while the yellow is due to pigment.

Fossils assignable to Psittaciformes (though not yet the present-day parrots) date from slightly later in the Eocene, starting around 50 mya. Several fairly complete skeletons of parrot-like birds have been found in England and Germany.^[13] Some uncertainty remains, but on the whole it seems more likely that these are not direct ancestors of the modern parrots, but related lineages which evolved in the Northern Hemisphere and have since died out. These are probably not "missing links" between ancestral and modern parrots, but rather psittaciform lineages that evolved parallel to true parrots and cockatoos and had their own peculiar autapomorphies:

• Psittacopes (Early/Middle Eocene of Geiseltal, Germany)—basal?
• Serudaptus—pseudasturid or psittacid?
• Pseudasturidae (Halcyornithidae may be correct name)
  • Pseudasturides – formerly Pseudastur
• Vastanavidae
  • Vastanavis (Early Eocene of Vastan, India)
• Quercypsittidae
  • Quercypsitta (Late Eocene)

The earliest records of modern parrots date to about 23–20 mya and are also from Europe. Subsequently, the fossil record—again mainly from Europe—consists of bones clearly recognisable as belonging to parrots of modern type. The Southern Hemisphere does not have nearly as rich a fossil record for the period of interest as the Northern, and contains no known parrot-like remains earlier than the early to middle Miocene, around 20 mya. At this point, however, is found the first unambiguous parrot fossil (as opposed to a parrot-like one), an upper jaw which is indistinguishable from that of modern cockatoos. A few modern genera are tentatively dated to a Miocene origin, but their unequivocal record stretches back only some 5 million years (see genus articles for more).

Fossil skull of a presumed parrot relative from the Eocene Green River Formation in Wyoming.

The named fossil genera of parrots are probably all in the Psittacidae or close to its ancestry:

• Archaeopsittacus (Late Oligocene/Early Miocene)
• Xenopsitta (Early Miocene of Czechia)
• Psittacidae gen. et spp. indet. (Bathans Early/Middle Miocene of Otago, New Zealand)—several species
• Bavaripsitta (Middle Miocene of Steinberg, Germany)
• Psittacidae gen. et sp. indet. (Middle Miocene of France)—erroneously placed in Pararallus dispar, includes "Psittacus" lartetianus

Some Paleogene fossils are not unequivocally accepted to be of psittaciforms:

• Palaeopsittacus (Early – Middle Eocene of NW Europe)—caprimulgiform (podargid?) or quercypsittid?
• "Precursor" (Early Eocene)—part of this apparent chimera seems to be of a pseudasturid or psittacid
• Pulchrapollia (Early Eocene)—includes "Primobucco" olsoni—psittaciform (pseudasturid or psittacid)?

Molecular studies suggest that parrots evolved ~59 million years ago (range 66–51 million years ago) in Gondwanaland.^[14] The three major clades of Neotropical parrots originated ~50 million years ago (range 57–41 million years ago).

 Phylogeny

Parrots Psittacidae Cacatuidae Strigopidae Other birds Phylogenetic relationship between the three parrot families based on the available literature[8][15][16]

Parrot phylogeny is in flux. The classifications as presented reflect the current status, which is disputed and therefore subject to change when new studies resolve some open questions. For that reason, this classification should be treated as preliminary. The Psittaciformes comprise three main lineages: Strigopidae, Psittacidae and Cacatuidae.
The Strigopidae were considered part of the Psittacidae, but recent studies place this group of New Zealand species at the base of the parrot tree next to the remaining members of the Psittacidae as well as all members of the Cacatuidae.^[8][15][16]
The Cacatuidae are quite distinct, having a movable head crest, a different arrangement of the carotid arteries, a gall bladder, differences in the skull bones, and lack the Dyck texture feathers which, in the Psittacidae, scatters light in such a way as to produce the vibrant colours of so many parrots. Colourful feathers with high levels of psittacofulvin resist the feather-degrading bacterium Bacillus licheniformis better than white ones.^[17]
Lorikeets were previously regarded as a third family, Loriidae,^[18] but studies using large amounts of DNA data place the group in the middle of the Psittacidae family, with as closest relatives the fig parrots (two of the three genera of the tribe Cyclopsittacini, subfamily Psittacinae) and the Budgerigar (tribe Melopsittacini, subfamily Platycercinae).^[8][15][16]

[edit] Systematics

The following classification is a version in which several subfamilies are recognised. Molecular data (see above) suggests that several subfamilies might indeed be valid and perhaps even be elevated to family rank, but the arrangement of tribes in these is not well resolved.

Skeleton of a parrot

Family Strigopidae: The New Zealand parrots.

• Tribe Nestorini: 1 genus with only 2 living species, the Kea and Kākā of the New Zealand region.
• Tribe Strigopini: The flightless, critically endangered Kakapo of New Zealand.

Family Cacatuidae: Cockatoos

• Traditional subdivisions have been found incorrect in recent studies and no new subdivision has been proposed yet.

Family Psittacidae: true parrots
-Clade 1

• Tribe Psittacini: Afrotropical parrots, about a dozen species in two genera.
• Tribe Arini: Neotropical parrots, about 160 species in some 30 genera. Probably 2 distinct lineages:^[15][19]

-Clade 2

• Tribe Psittrichadini: Three genera with four species.

-Clade 3

• Tribe Micropsittinae: Six species of pygmy parrot, all in a single genus.
• Tribe Psittaculini: Paleotropic psittaculine parrots, distributed from India to Australasia.

-Clade 4

• Tribe Platycercini: Rosellas and relatives; around 20 species in eight genera.

-Clade 5

• Tribe Melopsittacini: one genus with one species, the Budgerigar.
• Tribe Lorini: Around a dozen genera with some 50 species of lorikeets and lories, centered in New Guinea, spreading to Australia, Indonesia, and the islands of the south Pacific.
• Tribe Cyclopsittacini: fig parrots, two genera, all from New Guinea or nearby.

-Clade 6

• Unnamed Tribe: Genera Loriculus, Agapornis and Bolbopsittacus.

	Strigopidae  Nestorini  Strigopini
	Cacatuidae   Psittacidae  Neotropical parrots Psittacini Psittrichadini Psittaculini Pigmy parrots Broad-tailed parrots Fig parrots Budgerigar Lories and Lorikeets Bolbopsittacus Loriculus Agapornis Psittacella

Morphology

Glossy Black Cockatoo showing the parrot's strong bill, clawed feet, and sideways positioned eyes

Extant species range in size from the Buff-faced Pygmy Parrot, at under 10 g (0.35 oz.) in weight and 8 cm (3.2 inches) in length, to the Hyacinth Macaw, at 1.0 meter (3.3 feet) in length, and the Kakapo, at 4.0 kg (8.8 lbs) in weight. Among the families, the three Strigopidae species are all large parrots, and the cockatoos tend to be large birds as well. The Psittacidae parrots are far more variable, ranging the full spectrum of sizes shown by the family.
The most obvious physical characteristic is the strong, curved, broad bill. The upper mandible is prominent, curves downward, and comes to a point. It is not fused to the skull, which allows it to move independently, and contributes to the tremendous biting pressure the birds are able to exert. The lower mandible is shorter, with a sharp, upward-facing cutting edge, which moves against the flat portion of the upper mandible in an anvil-like fashion. There are touch receptors along the inner edges of the kerantinised bill, which are collectively known as the 'bill tip organ', allowing for highly dextrous manipulations. Seed-eating parrots have a strong tongue (containing similar touch receptors to those in the bill tip organ), which helps to manipulate seeds or position nuts in the bill so that the mandibles can apply an appropriate cracking force. The head is large, with eyes positioned high and laterally in the skull, so the visual field of parrots are unlike any other birds. Without turning its head, a parrot can see from just below its bill tip, all above its head, and to quite far behind its head. Parrots also have quite a wide frontal binocular field for a bird, although this is nowhere near as large as primate binocular visual fields.^[20]
Parrots have strong zygodactyl feet with sharp, elongated claws, which are used for climbing and swinging. Most species are capable of using their feet to manipulate food and other objects with a high degree of dexterity, in a similar manner to a human using his hands. A study conducted with Australian parrots has demonstrated that they exhibit "handedness"—that is a distinct preference with regards to the foot used to pick up food, with adult parrots being almost exclusively "left-footed" or "right footed", and with the prevalence of each preference within the population varying from species to species.^[21]
Cockatoo species have a mobile crest of feathers on the top of their heads which can be raised for display, and retracted. No other parrots can do so, but the Pacific lorikeets in the genera Vini and Phigys are able to ruffle the feathers of the crown and nape and the Red-fan Parrot (or Hawk-headed Parrot) has a prominen
Parrots have a strong, direct flight. Most species spend much of their time perched or climbing in tree canopies. They often use their bills for climbing by gripping or hooking on branches and other supports. On the ground parrots often walk with a rolling gait.

 Diet

A Yellow-tailed Black Cockatoo using its strong bill to search for grubs

The diet of parrots consists of seeds, fruit, nectar, pollen, buds, and sometimes arthropods and other animal prey. The most important of these for most true parrots and cockatoos are seeds; the evolution of the large and powerful bill can be explained primarily as an adaptation to opening and consuming seeds. All true parrots except the Pesquet's Parrot employ the same method to obtain the seed from the husk; the seed is held between the mandibles and the lower mandible crushes the husk, whereupon the seed is rotated in the bill and the remaining husk is removed.^[28] A foot is sometimes used to help holding large seeds in place. Parrots are seed predators rather than seed dispersers; and in many cases where species are recorded as consuming fruit they are only eating the fruit to get at the seed. As seeds often have poisons to protect them, parrots are careful to remove seed coats and other fruit parts which are chemically well defended, prior to ingestion. Many species in the Americas, Africa, and Papua New Guinea consume clay which both releases minerals and absorbs toxic compounds from the gut.^[29]

Parrots at a clay lick in Ecuador.

The lories and lorikeets, hanging parrots and Swift Parrot are primarily nectar and pollen consumers, and have tongues with brush tips to collect this source of food, as well as some specialised gut adaptations to accommodate this diet.^[30] Many other species also consume nectar as well when it becomes available.
In addition to feeding on seeds and flowers, some parrot species will prey on animals, especially invertebrate larvae. Golden-winged Parakeets prey on water snails, and famously the Keas of New Zealand will kill juvenile petrels and even attack and indirectly kill adult sheep.^[31] Another New Zealand parrot, the Antipodes Island Parakeet, enters the burrows of nesting Grey-backed Storm Petrels and kills the incubating adults.^[32] Some cockatoos and the Kākā will excavate branches and wood to obtain grubs.

 Breeding

Although there are a few exceptions, parrots are monogamous breeders which nest in cavities and hold no territories other than their nesting sites.^[28][33] The pair bonds of the parrots and cockatoos are strong and a pair will remain close even during the non-breeding season, even if they join larger flocks. As with many birds, pair bond formation is preceded by courtship displays; these are relatively simple in the case of cockatoos. In Psittacidae parrots common breeding displays, usually undertaken by the male, include slow deliberate steps known as a "parade" or "stately walk" and the "eye-blaze", where the pupil of the eye constricts to reveal the edge of the iris.^[28] Allopreening is used by the pair to help maintain the bond. Cooperative breeding, where birds other than the breeding pair help the pair raise the young and is common in some bird families, is extremely rare in parrots, and has only unambiguously been demonstrated in the Golden Parakeet (which may also exhibit polyamorous, or group breeding, behaviour with multiple females contributing to the clutch).^[34]

A parrot native to shillong.

The vast majority of parrots are, like this Blue-winged Parrotlet, cavity nesters.

Only the Monk Parakeet and five species of Agapornis lovebird build nests in trees,^[35] and three Australian and New Zealand ground parrots nest on the ground. All other parrots and cockatoos nest in cavities, either tree hollows or cavities dug into cliffs, banks or the ground. The use of holes in cliffs is more common in the Americas. Many species will use termite nests, possibly to reduce the conspicuousness of the nesting site or to create a favourable microclimate.^[36] In most cases both parents will participate in the nest excavation. The length of the burrow varies with species, but is usually between 0.5–2 m in length. The nests of cockatoos are often lined with sticks, wood chips and other plant material. In the larger species of parrot and cockatoo the availability of nesting hollows may be limited, leading to intense competition for them both within the species and between species, as well as with other bird families. The intensity of this competition can limit breeding success in some cases.^[37][38] Some species are colonial, with the Burrowing Parrot nesting in colonies up to 70,000 strong.^[39] Coloniality is not as common in parrots as might be expected, possibly because most species adopt old cavities rather than excavate their own.^[40]
The eggs of parrots are white. In most species the female undertakes all the incubation, although incubation is shared in cockatoos, the Blue Lorikeet, and the Vernal Hanging Parrot. The female remains in the nest for almost all of the incubation period and is fed both by the male and during short breaks. Incubation varies from 17 to 35 days, with larger species having longer incubation periods. The newly born young are altricial, either lacking feathers or with sparse white down. The young spend anything from three weeks to four months in the nest, depending on species, and may receive parental care for several months thereafter.^[41]
As typical of K-selected species, the macaws and other larger parrot species have low reproductive rates. They require several years to reach maturity, produce one or very few young per year, and do not necessarily breed every year.

] Intelligence and learning

Sun Conure demonstrating parrots' puzzle-solving skills

Studies with captive birds have given insight into which birds are the most intelligent. While parrots are able to mimic human speech, studies with the African Grey Parrot have shown that some are able to associate words with their meanings and form simple sentences (see Alex and N'kisi). Along with crows, ravens, and jays (family Corvidae), parrots are considered the most intelligent of birds. The brain-to body size ratio of psittacines and corvines is actually comparable to that of higher primates.^[42] One argument against the supposed intelligent capabilities of bird species is that birds have a relatively small cerebral cortex, which is the part of the brain considered to be the main area of intelligence in other animals. However, birds use a different part of the brain, the medio-rostral neostriatum / hyperstriatum ventrale, as the seat of their intelligence. Not surprisingly, research has shown that these species tend to have the largest hyperstriata, and Dr Harvey J. Karten, a neuroscientist at the University of California, San Diego, who studied bird physiology, has discovered that the lower part of the avian brain is functionally similar to that in humans. Not only have parrots demonstrated intelligence through scientific testing of their language-using ability, but some species of parrot such as the Kea are also highly skilled at using tools and solving puzzles.^[43]
Learning in early life is apparently important to all parrots, and much of that learning is social learning. Social interactions are often practised with siblings, and in several species creches are formed with several broods, and these as well are important for learning social skills. Foraging behaviour is generally learnt from parents, and can be a very protracted affair. Supra-generalists and specialists are generally independent of their parents much quicker than partly specialised species which may have to learn skills over a long period of time as various resources become seasonally available. Play forms a large part of learning in parrots; it can be solitary, and related to motor skills, or social. Species may engage in play fights or wild flights to practice predator evasion. An absence of stimuli can retard the development of young birds, as demonstrated by a group of Vasa Parrots kept in tiny cages with domesticated chickens from the age of 3 months; at 9 months these birds still behaved in the same way as 3 month olds, but had adopted some chicken behaviour.^[28] In a similar fashion captive birds in zoo collections or pets can, if deprived of stimuli, develop stereotyped behaviours and harmful behaviours like self plucking. Aviculturists working with parrots have identified the need for environmental enrichment to keep parrots stimulated.t feather neck frill which can be raised and lowered at will. The predominant colour of plumage in parrots is green, though most species have some red or another colour in small quantities. Cockatoos are the main exception to this, having lost the green and blue plumage colours in their evolutionary history they are now predominately black or white with some red, pink or yellow. Strong sexual dimorphism in plumage is not typical amongst the parrots, with some notable exceptions, the most striking being the Eclectus Parrot.


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