Red bellied Parrot (Abyssinian or Red-breasted)

P. rufiventris

Description: Adults can be sexed at a glance by the feature after which they are named; the lower breast and abdo­men are deep orange in the male. In the female the feathers in this area are greyish brown tipped with pale bluish green. Under wing coverts are deep orange in the male and greyish brown in the female. The rump and under tail coverts are pale green and the rest of the plumage is dark brown. The beak is black and the iris is orange. Length: 22 cm (9 in). Weight: 125 g(4½ oz).

Immature birds resemble females but males can be distinguished by their orange wing coverts and orange mar­kings on the abdomen.

Range/Habitat: The Red-bellied Parrot inhabits mid-eastern Africa; it is found in Ethiopia, Tanzania and Somalia, frequenting lowland thornbush and acacia scrub, particularly where there are baobab trees. In places, it ascends to 2,000 m (6,500 ft) to feed on figs.

Aviculture: this parrot was almost un­known in aviculture until the 1980s. In the 1920s, a few were imported into Britain. David Seth-Smith stated (1931a) that it:

... has the reputation of being difficult to keep in captivity. Indeed, a small collec­tion of three which reached this country a few years ago appear to have all died soon after their arrival. They were extremely shy, and evidently captured as adult birds.

A hand-reared bird, taken from a nest in Somaliland in 1901, proved much longer-lived. It was presented to London Zoo in 1927 and lived there until at least 1931 and probably much longer. Wild-caught Poicephalus adults are very nervous, thus this species' suitability to aviculture should not be judged by the three birds sent to London Zoo.

In the early 1980s, a number of Red­bellied Parrots were imported into Europe. Prices were not high. In 1984, several hundred were imported into Sweden. Many pet shops were offering this species at the equivalent of US $150-200 per pair.

This species was bred in Mozam­bique by A. Joao and Neville Brickell (1981) in the mid- or early 1970s. The pair obtained was semi-tame and soon settled down in an aviary. They bred seven months later. Three eggs were laid and incubation commenced with the first egg, which hatched after 28 days. Both adults incubated after the first week. The three young left the nest at 12 weeks old and were fed by the male for the next three weeks. The young birds were duller than the adults and the two males had a faint pinkish red frontal band.

Swiss aviculturist D. Ferrari (1983) reared one youngster in 1982. The species is also being bred in Germany.