Amazona brasiliensis (Linnaeus, 1758)

Size and Weight

The red-tailed amazon, Amazona brasiliensis, weighs around 425 g (15.0 oz) and measures approximately 35 cm (14 in) long.

Tail Markings

As its common name suggests, the species has a broad red band on its tail. This band is mostly limited to the inner webs of the tail feathers, so it is mainly visible from below or when the tail is spread open. The tail also has a broad yellow tip, and the outer tail feathers (rectrices) are dark purplish-blue at their base.

General Plumage Coloration

Most of the bird's plumage is green. The throat, cheeks and auricular feathers are purple-blue, the forecrown is red, and all rectrices have a broad dark blue tip.

Facial and Bill Features

The bird has a yellowish bill with a blackish tip on the upper mandible, a pale gray eye ring, and orange irises. Juveniles have duller plumage and brown irises.

Native Range

The red-tailed amazon is native to the Serra do Mar coastal forests.

Altitudinal Distribution

This species is almost entirely restricted to lowlands, and typically occurs at altitudes below 200 meters (660 feet) above sea level, though it may sometimes reach altitudes up to 700 m (2,300 ft).

Primary Conservation Threat Driver

Brazil's recent industrialization, paired with intense economic and population growth, is largely responsible for the red-tailed amazon's endangered status.

Logging Extent

Every year, extensive logging clears large pristine areas of forest that once supported thousands of plant, insect, and animal species; areas the size of small countries are cleared in just months.

Logging Impacts on Habitat and Food

This ongoing logging continues to destroy the parrot's limited geographic range and the native plant species that provide it with food and shelter. As a result, the birds are forced to move into less suitable areas, and often cannot find enough food and die.

Extinction Driver Context

Habitat destruction is one of the main drivers pushing the red-tailed amazon toward extinction.

Habitat Clearing Rate

Brazil's growing demand for lumber, agricultural land, and housing developments has cleared the bird's forest habitat at an unprecedented rate. In fact, 93% of the original Atlantic coastal forest, the parrot's main habitat, has been cleared.

Habitat Fragmentation Effects on Foraging

The remaining 7% of the original habitat is heavily fragmented by paths and roads, which makes it hard for large flocks of red-tailed amazons to find enough food in any single fragment of forest. This fragmentation is especially harmful to the species because red-tailed amazons only forage within a 4700 km strip of coastal forest between Rio de Janeiro and Curituba.

Additional Fragmentation Threats

Fragmentation does not only limit the birds' access to food, it also creates additional threats. As roads and residential areas expand, remaining patches of habitat become so fragmented that the parrots are forced to live in edge habitats. These edge habitats leave the parrots' nest sites vulnerable to predation by both humans and other animals.