Niam Niam Parrot

P. crassus

Description: The Brown headed Parrot 's yellow under wing coverts distinguish it from this rarely imported bird which has the iris red and the under wing coverts green. The upper mandible is dark grey and the lower mandible whitish. Length: 25 cm (10 in).

Immature birds have the crown and nape greyish brown, marked with olive-yellow; the under parts are yel­lowish green. The bill is yellowish with a dark grey tip to the upper mandible.

Range/Habitat: The Niam Niam Parrot inhabits central-western Africa: eastern Cameroon to south-western Sudan.

Aviculture: The dullest coloured mem­ber of the genus, it is almost unknown in aviculture. A few were imported into Britain in 1978. The first (and perhaps only) recorded captive breed­ing was that described by Joao and Brickell (1981) in Mozambique. Four birds were obtained in 1967, one of which died soon after receipt. They were very nervous. Banana leaves were placed around the sides of the aviary for privacy. They were fed on sun­flower seed and canary, apple and orange, boiled corn-on-the-cob, beans, peas in the pod, cabbage stalks and indigenous weeds.

The extra female was removed and the true pair was provided with a nest­box. Four eggs were laid and incuba­tion commenced with the fourth egg. The male spent long periods in the nest beside the incubating female and roosted there at night. Three eggs hatched, the first after 27 days. On hatching the chicks were covered in fine greyish white down; the second down was a darker grey. The young left the nest within an hour of each other when 13 weeks old. They re­turned to the nest at night. The only extra rearing food provided was maize meal with water added.