English          -            Red-fan Parrot

Portuguese   -            Anacã

Latin               -            Deroptyus accipitrinus

The Red-fan Parrot, also known as the hawk-headed parrot, is an unusual New World parrot hailing from the Amazon Rainforest. It is the only member of the genus Deroptyus.          

The Red-fan Parrot is known for its brilliantly coloured plumage, and is named for the blue and red feathers around their head that are raised when they become excited or when it feels threatened.
Both the male and the female have a white fore crown and a brown throat with white streaks. The base of their neck is red edged with blue. The Red-fan Parrots breast and belly are red and edged with electric blue. Their back, wings and tail are green. The underside of their tale is black. Some of the adults have a red spot under the base of their tail, and it is not related to gender.
The juveniles have brown eyes and a lighter colour beak. The adults have yellow eyes, a grey-black beak and grey legs. They can get to 35 cm in length and weigh up to 275 grams. The Red-fan Parrots can live up to 40 years. Red-fan Parrots can produce many different sounds ranging from a nasal high-pitched cry (heya, heya) which is used while courting and during normal behaviour. They can also hiss, growl and scream very persistently.

Red-fan Parrots are endemic to the Amazon Basin in South America. They are generally found in undisturbed, dense rainforest near large rivers and in mountain foothills, where they remain throughout the year. living in small groups in the treetops.

Red-fan Parrots are primarily fruit-eating birds, although they eat a fair amount of vegetable matter as well. In the wild, they prefer to eat the pulp from ripe and unripe fruits, dropping the uneaten seeds in the process. They play an important role in its habitat by helping to propagate new forest. They also eat new terminal buds and shoots from specific tree species.  

The breeding season for the Red-fan Parrots is December and January. The female lays her eggs in an abandoned nest hole or in a dead tree trunk. The female lays between one to three medium-sized white eggs per year. The male cares for the female while she incubates the eggs. The chicks hatch after being incubated for 26 days, and are blind and helpless. The chicks fledge after 10 to 12 weeks and are on their own after that.

The Red-fan Parrot is classed as a Species “of least concern” but numbers are declining in the wild. This is due to deforestation in it’s range and the threat from the wild-bird trade. Red-fan Parrots have a high mortality rate when kept as a captive bird.       

Photos of the Red-fan Parrot were taken at Parque das Aves - Foz Do Iguacu - Parana.