Orange-winged Amazon

The Orange-winged Amazon is a medium-sized, adaptable parrot widely distributed across the Amazon Basin and parts of northern South America, including Trinidad. It is named for the bright orange patch on its secondary flight feathers, most visible when the bird is in flight.

Appearance

• Body: green overall with darker feather edging
• Face: blue around the eyes with yellow on the cheeks and forehead area, giving a multicolored facial pattern
• Wing: orange speculum patch on the secondary flight feathers, plus a small red patch at the bend of the wing
• Crown: often shows a patch of blue
• Bill: pale horn to grayish
• Eyes: orange-red iris with a whitish bare eye-ring

Sexes look alike, and this is one of the smaller and slimmer-bodied Amazon parrots.

Key field marks

• Blue-and-yellow facial pattern around the eyes and cheeks
• Bright orange patch in the wing, most obvious in flight
• Smaller, slimmer build compared to other Amazon parrots
• Common and vocal, often seen in large flocks including near towns and cities

Similar species

• Yellow-crowned Amazon and Blue-fronted Amazon both have a red (not orange) wing patch and different head coloring, with the Blue-fronted showing a blue forehead rather than a blue crown/face wash.
• Mealy Amazon is larger and paler green overall, lacking the blue-and-yellow face pattern.

The orange (rather than red) wing patch combined with the blue-yellow face is the most reliable way to identify this species in flight or at rest.

Range

The Orange-winged Amazon has an extensive range across northern and central South America, including the Amazon Basin, the Guianas, Venezuela, Colombia, and the island of Trinidad.

Habitat

It is highly adaptable, occurring in lowland tropical forest, forest edge, savanna, mangroves, and disturbed or semi-urban areas, including parks and gardens in some cities within its range.

Movements

The species is generally non-migratory but forms large communal roosts, with birds commuting daily between roosting and feeding sites, sometimes covering considerable distances.

Social behavior

Orange-winged Amazons are often seen in pairs or small groups during the day, converging into large, noisy communal roosts of hundreds of birds at dusk, particularly in cities such as Manaus and Georgetown.

Voice

Calls include loud shrieks and squawks, especially around dawn and dusk as flocks move to and from roosts; the species can also mimic sounds.

Feeding

It feeds on fruits, seeds, nuts, blossoms, and palm fruits, foraging both in forest canopy and in more open or disturbed habitats, which contributes to its adaptability and wide distribution.

Nesting and breeding

Pairs nest in tree cavities, often high in large trees, laying a typical clutch of three to four eggs. This species is considered one of the more common and resilient Amazon parrots due to its tolerance of varied and altered habitats.