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 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.

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 were 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.