Duchess Lorikeet
Vini margarethae
Beautiful and unmistakable lorikeet, endemic to the Solomon Islands. Rose-red with green wings and a black-bordered yellow band across the chest. Found in forested and forest edge habitats from lowlands up into the mountains. Forages at flowering and fruiting trees. Gives squeaky and chattery calls as they shoot overhead.
Identification
The duchess lorikeet is 20 cm (8 in) in length, and weighs 40–60 g (1.4–2.1 oz). An adult is mainly bright red, with purple to black hindcrowns and yellow-orange eyes. It has an orange bill and a wide yellow chest band along with a thin yellow collar on the mantle bordered by a purple or black line. It has a dull mauve to black lower breast, with dull yellow underwings. Its tail are red, with green upper tail coverts and yellow tips. Females look the same as males, but additionally have yellow patches on the side of the rump.<p>Juvenile lorikeets have black markings on the head and underparts, along with a dusky black patch on the occiput. The breast band is a faint yellow and the yellow collar on the mantle has a dusky wash. They have a brown to black bill, with grey eyes.
Taxonomy
The duchess lorikeet was formally described in 1879 by the English clergyman and ornithologist Henry Baker Tristram from a specimen collected at Makira Harbour, San Cristoval, Solomon Islands. Tristam coined the binomial name Charmosyna margarethae. The specific epithet was chosen to honour Princess Louise Margaret of Prussia who became the Duchess of Connaught and Strathearn when she married Queen Victoria's son Prince Arthur in 1879. The lorikeet was moved to its own genus, Charmosynoides, based on a molecular phylogenetic study published in 2020. The name Charmosynoides is a combination of the genus name Charmosyna with the Ancient Greek -oides meaning "resembling".
- Scientific name
- Vini margarethae
- Authority
- (Tristram, 1879)
- Order
- Psittaciformes
- Family
- Psittaculidae
- Genus
- Vini
Range and habitat
The species is found only on Bougainville Island and 6 islands in the Solomon Islands. It is a localised species that is absent from large areas of habitat in its range that are potentially suitable for it. It is most often found in lower montane forest and in coconut plantations. It is found from sea level to an elevation of 1,350 m (4,430 ft) asl. It may be nomadic and inhabit habitats at different altitudes.
- Migration
- Resident species
Behavior
The calls of the duchess lorikeet are generally more squeaky than that of other species of lorikeets. Their flight calls are loud and high-pitched, while high-pitched screek notes are made while feeding.<p>The lorikeet mostly feed on nectar, pollen, and small fruits, especially Schefflera.<p>Much of the lowland forest in its range is scheduled to be logged, although it could survive at higher altitudes. Another threat to the species is the possibility of large scale pet trade.
Conservation
- Population trend
- declining
Photos
Distribution
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