Abstract
T he term "Conure" is not agreed upon by all concerned. It derives from the former genus Conurus, which was later replaced by Aratinga. The name conure is used today as a general term for South and Central American small and medium-sized parrots with long tails and comprises of seven groups.
The largest are the Aratinga.
These are mainly medium-sized with a bare periophthalmic ring, a powerful bill, and a long, pointed tail. Taxonomists are inclined today to subdivide this genus. For example, the Queen of Bavaria or Golden Conure has been put into a genus of its own - Guaroba.
The Pyrrbura form another grouping of conures with many species and subspecies. They are generally small birds with a fairly wide bill and a bare periophthalmic ring. It is probably the oldest representative of the long-tailed parrot in South America.
Another group related to Pyrrhura with just two species is the Enicognathus. Both species are medium-sized parrots with a small bill, which in the case of E. leptorhynchus is very elongated. The cere is feathered.
Four further single-species genera are also regarded as conures, Nandayus with a bill that is longer than it is deep, Leptosittaca with elongated lore feathers, Cyanoliseus with a fairly small bill, covered partly by the cheek feathers, and Ognorhynchus where the bill is deeper than it is long. Biochemical investigation of the latter has shown that it actually belongs to the Aras.
Distribution of Conures
The distribution area of the various conures stretches from Sonora in Mexico, where Brewster's Green Conure Aratinga holochlora brew-
steri is to be found, south through the whole of Central and South America to Tierra de Fuego where the Austral Conure Enicognathus ferrugineus occurs. Various habitats are occupied in this huge area. They range from rain forest to open savannah and very arid areas to humid tropical climate. The individual species prefer certain types of habitat, but there are always exceptions at least in the two groups with the most species.
Aratinga and Nandayus occupy generally savannah and open woodland, the White-eyed Conure Aratinga leucophthalmus and the Dusky-headed Conure Aratinga weddellii are mainly to be found in the Amazon forests.
Representatives of the Pyrrbura group mostly prefer open and denser forest with the exception of the Greencheeked Conure Pyrrhura molinae which is found in the drier savannah areas of southern South America.
Leptosittaca and Ognorhynchus occupy the montane forest of the Andes and Enicognathus the forests of the temperate zone in Argentina and Chile, while Cyanoliseus prefers the hare open country of Argentina, often without any trees.
Most of the conures live in lowland areas, although a few such as the Brown-breasted Conure Pyrrhura calliptera, the Yelloweared Conure Ognorhynchus icterotis, the Golden-plumed Conure Leptosittaca branickii or Chapman's Mitred Conure Aratinga mitrata alticola are found in the montane and cloud forest of the Andes of Peru, Ecuador or Colombia up to 3,400 metres (11,200 ft).
The success of the conures lies in their extraordinary adaptability. A few species have however specialised in certain habitats. The Yellow-eared Conure Ognorhynchus
icterotis relies on areas with wax palms which grow between 2,000 and 3,400 metres (6,600 and 11,200 feet) in the Andes. The Slender-billed Conure Enicognathus leptorhynchus lives in the Notbofagus and Araucaria forests of its homeland, the Patagonian Conure ( Cyanoliseus sp.) the dry areas of Argentina, and the Margarita Conure Aratinga acuticaudata neoxena lives in the few square kilometres of mangroves of the island of Margarita.
Other species are only found at certain altitudes such as the Roseheaded Conure Pyrrhura rhodocephala, which lives in the forest areas of the Venezuelan Andean foothills between 800 and 3,050 m (2,600 and 10,000 feet).
If two or more species occur in the same area they almost always occupy different niches. Four conures are to be found in the southern part of the Amazon area. The two Pyrrhura species are to he found in the interior of the forest with trees up to 25 m (82 feet) in height, with the Pearly Conure P perlata mainly in secondary vegetation and the Painted Conure P picta more often in the denser forest. The two Aratinga species in the area have also divided the forest up. The Dusky-headed Conure A. weddellii prefers trees 30 metres (100 ft) in height, whereas the White-eyed Conure A. leucophthalmus prefers trees 35 m (115 feet) high.
Another example is the Peachfronted Conure A. aurea and the Cactus Conure A. cactorum in eastern Brazil. The former inhabits the evergreen valley areas while on the other hand the latter prefers dry hillsides. As in the first example, direct competition is avoided.