The specialist dietary and breeding requirements of the Cape parrots means that their range is restricted to the mosaic of remaining Mistbelt forests in Eastern Cape and KwaZulu Natal, with a small population in the forests of Magoebaskloof in Limpopo. They have also been observed foraging in coastal forests and opportunistically feed on crop species like pecan nuts, which naturally puts them at risk of conflict with farmers. When other fruit resources are scarce, they have been known to feed on exotic species such as the seringa, jacaranda, and the black wattle, and will feed on protea flowerheads at certain times of the year. The fruiting of yellowwoods and other tree species varies and, as a result, Cape parrots are “food nomads”, sometimes flying up to 90km per day to find food. They are pre-dispersal seed predators, and their powerful beaks crack open unripe kernels at a stage when their avian and mammal competition would find these unpalatable and inedible. Today yellowwoods are officially protected, but the wood is prized for its quality and colour, making it one of the country’s highest-valued timber trees.Ĭape parrots have the most specialized diet of any of their family members and show a distinct preference for yellowwood fruit kernels, though they will also feed on the kernels of other fruiting trees in the forests. These characteristics meant that yellowwoods played a significant role in South Africa’s version of the industrial revolution, with millions of trees historically harvested for railway sleepers, mining, floors, wagons, and furniture. Yellowwoods are large evergreen trees which may reach over 30m in height and, while lightweight, the wood is hard and durable. While they occasionally do frequent other habitats, the lives of Cape parrots centre around the Mistbelt forests which are dominated by yellowwood trees and, as a result, the future of these parrots is intricately linked with that of South Africa’s national tree. A flock of Cape parrots in flight The parrot and the yellowwoods The juveniles and females have a bright orange patch of their foreheads, which the males typically lose upon reaching adulthood. They are occasionally mistaken for the more common and widely distributed grey-headed parrot (more on that later) due to the brownish feathers around the head and neck, though this colour can vary from olive-yellow to a golden brown. While they are predominantly green in colour, the outer edges of their wings and shoulders are highlighted in vivid orange. Similar in size to the African grey parrot (but with a larger beak), they measure between 251-349mm in length and weigh between 260-329g. Like all members of the Psittaciformes (the parrot family), Cape parrots are charismatic little characters brightly coloured and intelligent. It is South Africa’s only endemic parrot species, and there are believed to be fewer than 2,000 left. Small though they may be, these forests are biodiversity hotspots in South Africa, home to some of the country’s most unique and unusual plant and animal life. They are small and fragmented, increasingly divided by the steady and persistent advance of human progress. South Africa’s remaining Mistbelt forests make up less than 0.15% of the country’s total land area, and less than 5% of these forests are under formal protection.
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