Parrot ’ s family
T
He Parrots are a very large family of easily recognized birds , generally restricted to the tropics around the globe . They range from huge macaws , exemplified by the spectacular Scarlet
Macaw of the Neutrophils ( above ) to tiny parrot lets and lovebirds , represented here by a pair of
Rosy-faced Lovebirds ( left ) from southwestern Africa .
Parrots are a vast and interesting lot . It seems clear that they are distinct from other types of birds , and yet there has been much debate about their relationships . The most recent evidence tends to split the psittiformes into 3 or 4 families . For the moment , I follow here the approach used by Christakis & Boles ( 2008 ) and set out three families : the Nestorian [ three New Zealand parrots ], the Cacatuidae [ Cockatoos ], and the rest of them here , in the Psitticidae . The division between cockatoos and the rest has been in place for a decade ( e . g ., Collar 1997 ), but the split of the New Zealand set is new . It may be that lories and lorikeets are a distinct lineage , but the parameters are not well resolved , so for now they are a subfamily ( Loraine ). The remaining Psittacidae has 181 species in the Old World , and 148 species in the New World . . Recourse : creagrus . home . montereybay . com /
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