Meek's pygmy parrot facts for kids
Quick facts for kids Meek's pygmy parrot |
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| Conservation status | |
Scientific classification  |
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| Kingdom: | Animalia |
| Phylum: | Chordata |
| Class: | Aves |
| Order: | Psittaciformes |
| Family: | Psittaculidae |
| Genus: | Micropsitta |
| Species: |
M. meeki
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| Binomial name | |
| Micropsitta meeki Rothschild & Hartert, 1914
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The Meek's pygmy parrot (Micropsitta meeki) is a super tiny parrot! It's also sometimes called the yellow-breasted pigmy parrot. This little bird is part of the parrot family and lives only in Papua New Guinea.
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What's in a Name? The Meek's Pygmy Parrot
This special parrot is named after a famous English explorer and naturalist named Albert Stewart Meek. He was really good at finding new kinds of birds and insects in places like Australia and Papua New Guinea. Many of the amazing creatures he found are now kept safe at the Natural History Museum in London.
There are two slightly different types, or subspecies, of Meek's pygmy parrot. They are called M. m. meeki and M. m. proxima.
How to Spot a Meek's Pygmy Parrot
Pygmy parrots are the smallest members of the whole true parrot family. Imagine a bird that's emerald-green and moves super fast!
Meek's pygmy parrots have a mid-brown color on their head, forehead, and the back of their neck. Their throat and belly are bright yellow.
Differences Between Subspecies
- In the M. m. meeki type, the yellow color goes up to their ears.
- In the M. m. proxima type, the yellow also forms a thin line above their eyes. This type also has a lighter brown face and neck.
The rest of their body is green. It's a bit darker on their back and wings, and lighter on their belly. Their beak and big feet are brown.
Where Do These Tiny Parrots Live?
The Meek's pygmy parrot lives only in the Admiralty Islands. This is a group of eighteen islands in the Bismarck Archipelago, which is north of Papua New Guinea.
They are quite common on the islands of Lou and Manus. Their numbers seem to be steady. Because of this, experts say they are of "Least Concern" on the IUCN Red List of Threatened Species. This means they are not currently in danger of disappearing.
Life and Habits of the Pygmy Parrot
Scientists haven't studied Meek's pygmy parrots very much. But we do know they spend their days climbing around in tree leaves. They use their strong beaks, large feet, and stiff tail feathers to help them hold on.
What Do They Eat?
It's believed their diet includes insects, fungi, lichens (which are like mossy growths), and mosses.
Keeping Them as Pets
It's been very hard to keep pygmy parrots alive when people try to keep them as pets. This might be because they get stressed easily. Or maybe we don't fully understand what they need to eat to stay healthy.
 | Delilah Pierce |
 | Gordon Parks |
 | Augusta Savage |
 | Charles Ethan Porter |
