The grey-breasted conure (Pyrrhura griseipectus) gets its name because of the brownish wine color of its face. It is an endemic bird from the Brazilian northeast, but nowadays, due to the deforestation of the mountain forests and the illegal trafficking of wild animals, it can only be found in three locations in the state of Ceará (Serra de Baturité, Guaramiranga, and Serra de Aratanha).
The individuals of this species are very sociable and can live in flocks of 4 to 15 birds, measuring about 22 centimeters and weighing, on average, 58 grams. They are animals with diurnal habits that feed on fruits, seeds and flowers; during the night, they have the habit of hiding from predators in hollow trees. Their reproduction occurs only once a year between the months of February and June, and each female lays an average of 6 eggs. The nests are made in tree hollows, usually reused from holes made by sympatric woodpeckers, and parental care is divided between the parents.
There are records of the species in paintings from 16th century Dutch Brazil that show its long-standing presence in our territory.
And after so long being part of the northeastern fauna, unfortunately, in 2003, the Brazilian government recognized the species as critically endangered. Then, since 2007, the NGO Aquasis (Association for Research and Preservation of Aquatic Ecosystems) started a project in the state of Ceará to try to remedy these actions and save the species.
The trademark of this project is the expansion of breeding grounds by installing artificial nests. The use of this technique presents positive and significant impacts to increase actions for the conservation of the species, because the availability of nests is essential for the reproductive process to occur normally, since they cannot dig their own holes in the trees.
This project developed by Aquasis has generated positive results, for example, in 2020 about 388 chicks flew out of the nests, and it is believed that this number will increase in the coming years.
Today, free-living specimens can still be found in Serra de Baturité, Guaramiranga and Serra de Aratanha - places where these animals are also released when they come from reintroduction programs.
They were previously classified as Critically Endangered (CR), and are currently classified as Endangered (EN). This risk classification is according to the IUCN Red List.
References:
Cara-suja: Projeto cara-suja. Quem é o cara-suja?, 2021. Avaliable on: https://www.aquasis.org/periquitocarasuja. Acess on: 09 may 2023.
Refúgio de vida silvestre do cara-suja: Cara-suja. Periquito cara-suja?, 2022. Avaliable on: https://www.sema.ce.gov.br/gestao-de-ucs/unidades-de-conservacao-de-protecao-integral/refugio-de-vida-silvestre/refugio-de-vida-silvestre-do-periquito-cara-suja/. Acess on: 09 may 2023.
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