Abstract
Yes, the Panama parrot does exist.
Frankly, I had almost come to the conclusion that there was no such bird. After all, no two authors seem to agree on the appearance of the bird and photographs often label distinctly different parrots as being the Panama.
My search for the truth has included field trips to Central America, the study of about 30 books and conversations with several importers, collectors and aviculturists. The lead that finally "broke the case" came as a result of correspondence with an aviculturist in south-central Texas. This lady claimed to own several Panamas. She had bought them from individuals who had acquired them while living in Panama and imported them when moving to the United States.
Not willing to let a 500 mile round trip cheat me out of seeing these birds, I paid a visit to the "Panama lady." It didn't take long to convince me that these were the "real things.'' One of the few consistencies in textbook descriptions of the Panama is size. Most authors list the Panama as being the smallest of the nine sub-species of Amazon ochrocephala, with the average length being about 12 inches. All of this lady's Panamas were about a foot long and while resembling other members of the A. ochrocephla clan, showed consistent differences.
Before going further, it seems logical to discuss the sub-species of Amazona ochrocephla. Several of the most popular and familiar Amazon parrots are members of this sub-species, including the double yellow head and yellow nape. Taxonomists are scientists
who classify animals. Those responsible for classifying birds have determined that nine parrots are related closely enough to be called the same species but are different enough to be distinguished as separate sub-species. A sub-species is, more or less, the same as a race. Subspecies are capable of natural interbreeding but are usually geographically separated. Whether or not taxonomists are correct in their classification of Amazona ochrocephla is debatable. For the present, we are stuck with it.
The nine sub-species of A. ocbrocepbla are: 1) A. o. ocbrocepbala, the yellow-crowned Amazon; 2) A. o. oratrix, the double yellow head; 3) A. o. belizensis, the Belize yellow head; 4) A. o. tresmariae, the Tres Marias Amazon; 5) A. o. auropalliata, the common or large yellow naped Amazon; 6) A. o. paruipes, the small or parvipes yellow napedAmazon; 7) A. o. xantholaema, an obscure, if real, subspecies; 8) A. o. nattereri, Natterer's Amazon and 9) A. o. panamensis, the Panama parrot.
The Panama parrot is said to inhabit portions of northern Columbia and western Panama. The limited distribution along with Panama's ban on commercial exportation of birds help to explain the relative rarity of these birds in American aviculture.
The reputation of the Panama parrot as a talking pet is unblemished. It seems that all who have written about these birds consider them to be among the top two or three talkers. I can't find fault with their conclusions, only with their method of arriving at them. My chief gripe with the parrot literature is the common practice of coming to conclusions with insufficient data. This is particularly true regarding the Panama parrot, since few have had significant experience with this sub-species. Also, there has been considerable confusion with other sub-species. Twenty to thirty and more years ago it was common to tag yellow napes with the Panama name. Later, yellow napes became much more common in American parrot collections and earned their own fine reputation. As strange as it may seem, there is still some confusion between these two birds. Both Miami's Parrot]ungle and Tampa's Bush Gardens have performing yellow napes that they insist on calling Panama parrots. In recent years there has been a tendency to confuse yellow crowned Amazons (A. o. ocbrocepbla) with the Panama. Some of the reasons for this are the diversity of physical descriptions assigned to the Panama, the mislabeling
of many photographs and the rarity of the Panama versus the yellow crown's abundance.
PHYSICAL CHARACTERISTICS OF THE PANAMA PARROT
Admittedly, it is presumptuous of me to try to do what so many before me have not been able to do. Some have used museum specimens, some have observed captive specimens said to be Panamas, and some have merely copied the descriptions of others before them. My conclusions are based on careful personal observations of living specimens with the history of having been purchased in Panama. Later, I added four of these birds to my personal collection and have continued to make observations.
The Panama parrot is the smallest of the nine sub-species of A. o. ocbrocepbla, averaging 12 inches (30 centimeters) in total length. This one characteristic will often allow one to determine that a particular bird is not a Panama parrot.
The general coloration of the Panama is similar to other members of the species. The wing and tail feathers do not differ enough from other '' ocbrocepbalas" to be useful in identification.
The physical characteristics that I have found most useful in separating the Panama from its close relatives are:
I) Pattern of yellow on the head, 2) Color of beak, and 3) Color of the toenails.
HEAD COLOR
The yellow on the head begins just above the cere, with no green intermixing. The yellow patch is more or less triangular with the apex at the midcrown. Some yellow napes, especially those of the paruipes sub-species, have a very similar forehead and forecrown pattern. In some Panamas, there are orange-red bases to some of the yellow forecrown feathers, especially the first few rows. This characteristic is well seen on three of my Panamas and just detectable on the fourth.