Ecology and conservation of the Red-tailed Amazon Amazona brasiliensis in south-eastern Brazil

Abstract

The Red-tailed Amazon Amazona brasiliensis was found to be restricted to a complex mosaic of forests growing on the narrow coastal plain of eastern Brazil. The species depends on habitat heterogeneity for both food and breeding. In Sào Paulo state the 1,550 individuals are divided into 16 populations. The global total of the species may be around 3,600 birds. They feed mainly on fruits, flowers and nectar, also occasionally insects. Most nests are found in permanently flooded forest, apparently because of greater cavity availability. Poaching has had a great impact and is the most immediate threat to the species. © 1995, Birdlife International. All rights reserved.