Photo: Dario Sanches from São Paulo, Brazil / CC BY-SA 2.0 (Wikimedia Commons)
Brown-backed Parrotlet
Touit melanonotus
Brown-backed Parrotlet (Touit melanonotus) — Parrots & Cockatoos of South America.
Found across 2 guides in our atlas — open any for the full checklist, photos and what's around right now.
The Brown-backed Parrotlet (Touit melanonotus) is a member of the Psittacidae family found in South America. Adults weigh 66.5 g. The IUCN Red List lists it as Near Threatened.
Conservation status
IUCN Red List (opens in a new tab)Close to qualifying for a threatened category in the near future.
Where it fits
- Class Aves
- Order Psittaciformes
- Family Psittacidae African & New World Parrots
- Genus Touit
- Species melanonotus
Quick facts
- Weight
- 66.5 g
- Diet
- Fruit-eaters
- Family
- Psittacidae
- Order
- Psittaciformes
- Habitat
- Woodland
How to identify
Similar birds
Least Concern
Vulnerable
Least Concern
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Biology & behaviour
Diet
The Brown-backed Parrotlet is a frugivore — it feeds mainly on fruit.
Behaviour
A bird of dense forest, it spends much of its time perched in trees and shrubs.
Migration
The Brown-backed Parrotlet is partially migratory: some populations move with the seasons while others stay resident year-round.
The Brown-backed Parrotlet (Touit melanonotus) belongs to the Psittacidae family of the order Psittaciformes. It is found across South America. Its distribution covers SA se Brazil.
It is a medium-sized bird. Adults weighs around 66.5 g, with a wing length of about 10.8 cm and a tail of around 4.2 cm.
The IUCN Red List lists it as Near Threatened. That means it is close to qualifying as threatened and is worth keeping a careful eye on.
The species has a mapped global range of roughly 14,000 km² — a relatively restricted global range.
Songs & calls
Frequently asked questions
How big is the Brown-backed Parrotlet?
The Brown-backed Parrotlet is a medium-sized bird that weighs around 66.5 g.
Where does the Brown-backed Parrotlet live?
The Brown-backed Parrotlet is found across South America with a range covering SA se Brazil, where it favours woodland, forest and well-treed country.
What family does the Brown-backed Parrotlet belong to?
The Brown-backed Parrotlet (Touit melanonotus) belongs to the Psittacidae family, in the order Psittaciformes.
What does the Brown-backed Parrotlet eat?
The Brown-backed Parrotlet is a frugivore — it feeds mainly on fruit.
Does the Brown-backed Parrotlet migrate?
The Brown-backed Parrotlet is partially migratory: some populations move with the seasons while others stay resident year-round.
Is the Brown-backed Parrotlet endangered?
The IUCN Red List lists it as Near Threatened That means it is close to qualifying as threatened and is worth keeping a careful eye on.
What sound does the Brown-backed Parrotlet make?
1 real field recording of the Brown-backed Parrotlet — including its call — can be played in the Songs & calls section on this page, credited to the recordist who captured it.
How large is the Brown-backed Parrotlet's range?
The Brown-backed Parrotlet has a mapped global range of about 14,000 km².
Conservation
Every bird benefits from bird-safe windows, native plants, and keeping cats indoors. Small changes at home add up to real protection.
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