Amazona

Parrots from the Amazona genus are commonly known as Amazon Parrots. They are medium sized parrots of mainly green plumage native in a wide range from South America to Mexico and the Caribbean. The Amazona genus consists of 30 species and several sub-species.

The parrots in the Amazona genus are very common as pets and also among breeders. Some species are now threatened due to a large demand of pet birds. Capturing wild birds for pet trade is now illegal according to CITES, which will hopefully allow the population of those species to increase.

Amazon Parrots require a lot of attention if they are to be kept as single pet bird. They are very noisy by nature and can scream very loud and very long if they are lacking attention or get upset.

One should be aware that birds often relate to a single person and may seem repulsive to all others. They are highly intelligent and able to imitate different sounds, words or simple sentences. They can live for 50 years or longer in captivity so you get a friend for life with a pet Amazon parrot.

In an outdoor aviary be aware that they generally do not tolerate frost but require at least 5ºC in winter and therefore need an insulated and heated shed.

Naming

The Amazon Parrots was originally named Amazone in the 18th century by the French naturalist Georges-Louis Leclerc also known as Comte de Buffon, who believed these parrots was native to the Amazonian jungles - hence the name. In 1830 the genus Amazona was established by French ornithologist René Primevère Lesson as a proper Latinized version of the previous name.

Amazona aestiva (Linnaeus, 1758) - Turquoise-fronted Amazon
- Amazona aestiva aestiva (Linnaeus, 1758)
- Amazona aestiva xanthopteryx (von Berlepsch, 1896)
Amazona agilis (Linnaeus, 1758) - Black-billed Amazon
Amazona albifrons (Sparrman, 1788) - White-fronted Amazon
- Amazona albifrons albifrons (Sparrman, 1788)
- Amazona albifrons nana (Miller, W, 1905)
- Amazona albifrons saltuensis (Nelson, 1899)
Amazona amazonica (Linnaeus, 1766) - Orange-winged Amazon
Amazona arausiaca (Statius Müller, PL, 1776) - Red-necked Amazon
Amazona auropalliata (Lesson, R, 1842) - Yellow-naped Amazon
- Amazona auropalliata auropalliata (Lesson, R, 1842)
- Amazona auropalliata caribaea (Lousada, 1989)
- Amazona auropalliata parvipes (Monroe & Howell, TR, 1966)
Amazona autumnalis (Linnaeus, 1758) - Red-lored Amazon
- Amazona autumnalis autumnalis (Linnaeus, 1758)
- Amazona autumnalis lilacina (Lesson, R, 1844)
- Amazona autumnalis salvini (Salvadori, 1891)
Amazona barbadensis (Gmelin, JF, 1788) - Yellow-shouldered Amazon
Amazona brasiliensis (Linnaeus, 1758) - Red-tailed Amazon
Amazona collaria (Linnaeus, 1758) - Yellow-billed Amazon
Amazona diadema (von Spix, 1824) - Diademed Amazon
Amazona dufresniana (Shaw, 1812) - Blue-cheeked Amazon
Amazona farinosa (Boddaert, 1783) - Southern Mealy Amazon
Amazona festiva (Linnaeus, 1758) - Festive Amazon
- Amazona festiva festiva (Linnaeus, 1758)
- Amazona festiva bodini (Finsch, 1873)
Amazona finschi (Sclater, PL, 1864) - Lilac-crowned Amazon
Amazona guatemalae (Sclater, PL, 1860) - Northern Mealy Amazon
- Amazona guatemalae guatemalae (Sclater, PL, 1860)
- Amazona guatemalae virenticeps (Salvadori, 1891)
Amazona guildingii (Vigors, 1837) - St. Vincent Amazon
Amazona imperialis (Richmond, 1899) - Imperial Amazon
Amazona kawalli (Grantsau & Camargo, 1989) - Kawall's Amazon
Amazona leucocephala (Linnaeus, 1758) - Cuban Amazon
- Amazona leucocephala leucocephala (Linnaeus, 1758)
- Amazona leucocephala bahamensis (Bryant, H, 1867)
- Amazona leucocephala caymanensis (Cory, 1886)
- Amazona leucocephala hesterna (Bangs, 1916)
Amazona mercenarius (Tschudi, 1844) - Scaly-naped Amazon
- Amazona mercenarius mercenarius (Tschudi, 1844)
- Amazona mercenarius canipalliata (Cabanis, 1874)
Amazona ochrocephala (Gmelin, JF, 1788) - Yellow-crowned Amazon
- Amazona ochrocephala ochrocephala (Gmelin, JF, 1788)
- Amazona ochrocephala nattereri (Finsch, 1865)
- Amazona ochrocephala panamensis (Cabanis, 1874)
- Amazona ochrocephala xantholaema (von Berlepsch, 1913)
Amazona oratrix (Ridgway, 1887) - Yellow-headed Amazon
- Amazona oratrix oratrix (Ridgway, 1887)
- Amazona oratrix belizensis (Monroe & Howell, TR, 1966)
- Amazona oratrix hondurensis (Lousada & Howell, SNG, 1997)
Amazona pretrei (Temminck, 1830) - Red-spectacled Amazon
Amazona rhodocorytha (Salvadori, 1890) - Red-browed Amazon
Amazona tresmariae (Nelson, 1900) - Tres Marias Amazon
Amazona tucumana (Cabanis, 1885) - Tucuman Amazon
Amazona ventralis (Statius Müller, PL, 1776) - Hispaniolan Amazon
Amazona versicolor (Statius Müller, PL, 1776) - St. Lucia Amazon
Amazona vinacea (Kuhl, 1820) - Vinaceous-breasted Amazon
Amazona viridigenalis (Cassin, 1853) - Red-crowned Amazon
Amazona vittata (Boddaert, 1783) - Puerto Rican Amazon
- Amazona vittata vittata (Boddaert, 1783)
- Amazona vittata gracilipes (Ridgway, 1915)
Amazona xantholora (Gray, GR, 1859) - Yucatan Amazon

Species and subspecies