Iris Lorikeet
Trichoglossus iris
A small green parrot with a red forehead, an orange bill, a dark purple eye patch and crown, and a yellow collar. Juveniles show a brown bill. Found in small groups, mainly in the foothills, in forest and a variety of wooded areas. Confined to Wetar and Timor, where it overlaps with the larger and longer-tailed Marigold and Olive-headed Lorikeets. Iris Lorikeet shows a red forehead and pale throat, lacking the dark-hooded appearance of those lorikeets. Gives high-pitched screeches, “eeek,” similar to other lorikeets, but less harsh.
Identification
The iris lorikeet is 20 cm (8 in) long. It is mostly green with pale-green transverse striations on its underside. The head is red above the eye and there is a purple band from the eyes extending over the ears. The beak is red-orange, the iris is orange, and the legs are bluish-grey. The male and female are almost identical, but the red on the head of the female is paler and less extensive. Juveniles resemble females, but have a brownish bill, brown irises, duller purple bands and less red on the head. The extent and shade of the red and purple on the head varies between two or three subspecies.
Taxonomy
The iris lorikeet was formerly placed in the genus Psitteuteles but was moved to a newly introduced genus Saudareos based on the results of a molecular genetic analysis of the lorikeets published in 2020.There are two or three poorly differentiated subspecies:
- Scientific name
- Trichoglossus iris
- Authority
- (Temminck, 1835)
- Order
- Psittaciformes
- Family
- Psittaculidae
- Genus
- Trichoglossus
Range and habitat
- Migration
- Resident species
Conservation
- Population trend
- declining
Photos
Distribution
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