Plum-headed Parakeet, walk through aviary at Adelaide Zoo

Australia has many beautiful parrots, some of them like the Galah are seen in flocks of hundreds and sometimes even thousands. One of our most beautiful is the usually hard to find Princess Parrot; I’ve only ever seen it in aviaries.

The Indian sub-continent can boast another truly beautiful parrot, the Plum-headed Parakeet, shown in the photos on this post. This bird was photographed late last year in a walk-through aviary at the Adelaide Zoo, a place I love to go to hone my bird photography skills. There are several walk-through aviaries, each with a good range of birds in them.

Only the male has the bright plum coloured head; the female is a duller grey. In their natural environment they are often found in forests near cultivated areas and orchards. Their preferred food includes fruit, grain and blossoms. They nest in the hollows of trees, laying 4-6 eggs. Both parents share the feeding of the young. The often roost in large, noisy communal flocks.

Further reading:

• Princess Parrot
• Large flock of Galahs
• Articles about the birds at Adelaide Zoo
  

Plum-headed Parakeet, walk through aviary at Adelaide Zoo