Parrots of the World Trivia Quiz

Answer: Psittaciformes

Though some are close to extinction, there are currently around 350 living species in the order Psittaciformes.

Answer: hyacinth macaw

Hyacinth macaws are indigenous to the forests of central South America. They have a beautiful deep blue plumage and can have wingspans of 130-150 cm. Increased popularity as pets has has put a great deal of strain on their numbers in the wild. Hyacinths are not cheap to purchase since a cursory review of prices for this species indicate a cost of more than 10,000 USD.

Answer: conures

Conures are a popular and varied group of parrots that range in sizes that are as small as a parakeet to slightly smaller than an Amazon. They are found in Central and South America. Cherry-headed conures, native to Ecuador and Peru, form the largest part of the feral parrot population in San Francisco.

Answer: eclectus parrots

Eclectus parrots are unusual in the vastly different colors of the males and females. Males are bright green with a light upper mandible and black lower mandible while females are red-headed with bluish purple breasts and black beaks. Eclectus are native to the Solomon Islands, New Guinea, northeastern Australia and the Moluccas.

In order to determine the sex of monomorphic parrots, you must get their DNA analyzed or have them surgically sexed.

Answer: quakers

Quaker parrots are also known as monk parakeets and come from Argentina and Brazil. Another unusual trait of this species is that quaker parents often receive assistance from other "helper" birds in feeding their young chicks.

Answer: Spix's macaws

The Spix's macaw is a very beautiful bird with light blue plumage. Native to Brazil, it would only nest in the Tabebuia aurea tree. This very restrictive habitat requirement as well as its popularity in captive bird collections have brought it to the brink of complete extinction as a species.

There are conservation projects underway which are attempting to increase the numbers in captivity with the hope of someday re-introducing the Spix's macaw to the wild.

Answer: amazons

Amazon parrots are among the most popular species to keep as pets. They are gregarious and generally have a great ability to mimic human speech.

Answer: cockatoos

Goffin's, sulphur-crested and Moluccan cockatoos are easy to spot with their brilliant white plumage. The palm cockatoo is one of the few black-plumed members of this group.

Answer: kakapo

Kakapo males weigh up to 7.7 pounds with females weighing in at up to 4.4 lbs. Kakapos are native to New Zealand and the name is a Maori word meaning "night parrot". As the name suggests they are nocturnal and are also unable to fly.

Answer: caique

The caique is found in the rain-forests of northern Brazil and southern Venezuela. The caique gets its "seven-color" nickname from distinctive black, green, yellow, orange, white and blue feathers.

Answer: lories and lorikeets

Lories and lorikeets have tongues with many tufts of papillae which allow them to feed on the nectar of flowers and on the juice of soft fruits. Some of these parrots have among the most brilliantly colored feathers of any species.

Answer: Timneh

Timneh greys are smaller and slightly darker than the Congo and have a maroon tipped tail instead of the Congo's red one. They are both very popular as pets.

Answer: pionus parrots

Pionus parrots have a generally dull green plumage with a patch of bright red feathers on their tails. They are native to Central and South America.

Answer: keas

The kea parrot of New Zealand is the only parrot species which thrives in alpine regions.

Answer: Sir Winston Churchill

Charlie, a blue and gold macaw, was bought by Sir Winston Churchill in 1937. Churchill apparently taught Charlie to shout obscenities mostly aimed at the Nazis. His owner in 2004, Peter Oram, believed that Charlie was born in 1899.