Sun Parakeet

Like other members of the genus Aratinga, the sun parakeet is very social and typically occurs in large flocks of 15 to 30 individuals. They rarely leave the flock, but when they get separated from the group, they squawk and scream in a high-pitched voice which can carry for hundreds of yards, allowing individuals to communicate with their flock and return to them. Flocks are relatively quiet while feeding, but are known to be very vocal and make loud noises when in flight. They can travel many miles in a single day, and they are fast, direct flyers. Nonverbal communication is also practised, with a variety of physical displays. Birds within a flock rest, feed one another, preen, and bathe throughout the daylight hours. They move through the trees using their beaks for extra support. They also have the ability to use their feet like hands to help hold, examine, or eat items. Sun conures have been reported to nest in palm cavities. When in molt, conures are uncomfortable, so are easily irritable. Bathing, warm rainfalls, and humidity allow the sheaths of each pin feather to open more easily and lessen their discomfort. Sun conures are extremely smart and curious, so require constant mental stimulation and social interaction. Their speech and ability to learn tricks in captivity are quite moderate. Otherwise, relatively little is known about their behavior in the wild, in part due to confusion with the sulphur-breasted parakeet species. Regardless, the behavior of the two is unlikely to differ to any great extent.

Sun conures live in a relatively small region of northeastern South America: the north Brazilian state of Roraima, southern Guyana, extreme southern Suriname, and southern French Guiana. They also occur as vagrants to coastal French Guiana. Their status in Venezuela is unclear, but recent sightings from the southeast near Santa Elena de Uairén have been reported. They may occur in Amapá or far northern Pará (regions where the avifauna generally is very poorly documented), but this remains to be confirmed. Populations found along the Amazon River in Brazil are now known to belong to the sulphur-breasted parakeet. Sun conures are mostly found in tropical habitats, but their exact ecological requirements remain relatively poorly known. They are widely reported as occurring within dry savanna woodlands and coastal forests, but recent sightings suggest they mainly occur at altitudes less than 1200 m, at the edge of humid forests growing in foothills in the Guiana Shield, and cross more open savannah habitats only when traveling between patches of forest. Sun conures have been seen in shrublands along the Amazon riverbank, as well as forested valleys and coastal, seasonally flooded forests. These conures usually inhabit fruiting trees and palm groves.

Sun conures are currently endangered. Unfortunately, their population numbers are declining rapidly due to loss of habitat, hunting for plumage, and being excessively wild caught – about 800,000 each year, for the pet trade. Now, more sun conures are living in people's homes than in the wild. Since the Wild Bird Conservation Act was put in place in 1992 to ban the importation of parrots (including sun conures) into the United States, they are more frequently bred in captivity for domestication purposes. Similarly, the European Union more recently banned the importation of wild-caught birds in 2007. These legislations may help increase their population in the wild. In the past, the sun parakeet has been considered safe and listed as least concern, but recent surveys in southern Guyana (where previously considered common) and the Brazilian state Roraima have revealed that it possibly is extirpated from the former and rare in the latter. It is very rare in French Guiana, but may breed in the southern part of the country (this remains unconfirmed). Today, it is regularly bred in captivity, but the capture of wild individuals potentially remains a serious threat. This has fueled recent discussions regarding its status, leading to it being uplisted to endangered in the 2008 IUCN Red List.