Justification This species is listed as Vulnerable because its population is small and declining rapidly owing to ongoing deforestation. Ithas been found to be more resilient to forest fragmentation than first thought, and it may be under-recorded rather than genuinely scarce, especially in the southern part of its range.

Family/Sub-family Psittacidae

Species name author (Kuhl, 1820)

Taxonomic source(s) SACC (2005 + updates), Sibley and Monroe (1990, 1993), Stotz et al. (1996)

Synonyms Touit surda Stotz et al. (1996), Touit surda Sibley and Monroe (1990, 1993), Touit surda BirdLife International (2004), Touit surda BirdLife International (2000), Touit surda Collar et al. (1994), Touit surda Collar and Andrew (1988)

Taxonomic note Gender agreement of species name follows David and Gosselin (2002b).

Identification 16 cm. Green forest parrotlet. Bright grass-green, brighter on undersides. Yellowish area in forefront, around face and cheeks. Scaled appearance on crown and neck. Brownish scapulars forming two bands on back. Dark primaries and primary coverts with green patch at base of primaries. Short, square tail, golden-yellow tipped black, with green central rectrices. Female similar with yellowish-green sides of tail. Similar spp. Brown-backed Parrotlet T. melanonota has a dark brown back and bright red sides of tail. Pileated Parrot Pionopsitta pileata is large and male has red on forehead. Voice High-pitched, strident rattles

Population estimate

Population trend

Range estimate (breeding/resident)

Country endemic?

2,500-9,999

decreasing

32,200 km²

Yes

Range & population Touit surdus occurs in north-east Brazil (Ceará, Paraíba, Pernambuco, Alagoas and Sergipe), and in the south-east from Bahia south to São Paulo. Recent surveys have found it to be the commonest parrot in the Atlantic Forest of Alagoas (which has been reduced to <2% of its former extent), being present in 5 out 15 sites surveyed¹⁰ and also in Murici Ecological Station¹¹. It was also recently found nesting in arboreal termitaria in forest fragments in Pernambuco¹². The species was found in 16 out of 31 surveyed areas in southern Bahia, including the private reserves Ecoparque de Una and Estação Veracruz (formerly CVRD Porto Seguro reserve), Una Biological Reserve, and Descobrimento, Pau Brasil and Monte Pascoal National Parks¹³. It has also been recorded at Intervales State Park, an area within the largest, and best protected, remnant of Atlantic forest in southeastern Brazil¹⁴.

Important Bird Areas Click here to view map showing IBAs where species is recorded and triggers any of the IBA criteria.

Ecology: It inhabits lowland evergreen forest and adjacent lower montane slopes, mostly below 500 m, but up to 700 m in Alagoas and 1,000 m in Espírito Santo, Rio de Janeiro and São Paulo^6,9. Flocks have been observed moving between distant forest fragments⁸. Reported foods are fruit of Spondias lutea and Rapanea schwackeana. Breeding is unrecorded. At least in Rio de Janeiro, it may undertake seasonal movements. Recent observations suggest that this species is resilient to habitat alteration.

Threats Extensive deforestation throughout its range is regarded as the principal cause of its rarity, and the north-east population is most threatened because sugarcane plantations have replaced virtually all lowland forest in Alagoas, leaving just 2% of original forest cover¹ in severely fragmented blocks, averaging 1.5 km² or less³. Further south, the situation is little more encouraging: in Bahia, less than 10% of forest is intact, and in the rest of its range suitable habitat has been reduced to less than 20% of its original extent³. Lowland forests were historically threatened by agricultural conversion and deforestation for mining and plantations⁵. Current key threats arise from urbanisation, agricultural expansion, colonisation and associated road-building⁴.

Conservation measures underway CITES Appendix II and protected under Brazilian law. It has been recorded in numerous protected areas: Pedra Talhada Biological Reserve (Alagoas), Monte Pascoal National Park and Una Biological Reserve (Bahia), Córrego Grande, Sooretama and Augusto Ruschi Biological Reserves (Espírito Santo), Desengano State Park and Itatiaia National Park (Rio de Janeiro), Boracéia Biological Station, and Intervales, Ilha Bela, Jacupiranga and Ilha do Cardoso State Parks (São Paulo)^2,7.

Conservation measures proposed Survey historical localities and suitable habitat to clarify distribution. Research ecology and seasonal movements. Designate Murici in Alagoas as a biological reserve and ensure its de facto protection. Consolidate protected areas in which it occurs.

References Collar et al. (1992). 1. Brown and Brown (1992). 2. D. Buzzetti and J. Mazar Barnett in litt. (2000). 3. Conservation International et al. (1995). 4. Dinerstein et al. (1995). 5. Fearnside (1996). 6. Juniper and Parr (1998). 7. Wege and Long (1995). 8. A Whittaker in litt. (1999). 9. E. O. Willis and Y. Oniki in litt. (1999). 10. Silveira et al. (in prep.). 11. J. M. Barnett in litt. (2002). 12. Telino et al. (2000). 13. Cordeiro (2002). 14. Guix et al. (2002).

Further web sources of information

Fully detailed species account from the Threatened birds of the Americas: the BirdLife International Red Data Book (BirdLife International 1992). Please note, taxonomic treatment and IUCN Red List category may have changed since publication.

Recuento detallado de la especie tomado del libro Aves Amenazadas de las Americas, Libro Rojo de BirdLife International (BirdLife International 1992). Nota: la taxonomoía y la categoría de la Lista Roja de la UICN pudo haber cambiado desde esta publicación.

Text account compilers Phil Benstead (BirdLife International), David Capper (BirdLife International), Rob P Clay (Guyra Paraguay), Andy Symes (BirdLife International)

Contributors J.M Barnett, Juan Mazar Barnett (Museo Argentino de Ciencias Naturales), Y. Oniki, A Whittaker, E. O. Willis

IUCN Red List evaluators Stuart Butchart (BirdLife International), Andy Symes (BirdLife International)

Recommended citation BirdLife International (2009) Species factsheet: Touit surdus. Downloaded from http://www.birdlife.org on 10/2/2010

This information is based upon, and updates, the information published in BirdLife International (2000) Threatened birds of the world. Barcelona and Cambridge, UK: Lynx Edicions and BirdLife International, BirdLife International (2004) Threatened birds of the world 2004 CD-ROM and BirdLife International (2008) Threatened birds of the world 2008 CD-ROM. These sources provide the information for species accounts for the birds on the IUCN Red List.

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