Current view: Data table and detailed info
Taxonomic note
Himalayapsitta roseata (Handbook of the Birds of the World and BirdLife International 2020) was previously listed as Psittacula roseata (del Hoyo et al. 2014). Braun et al. (2019) report the situation where the parrot genera Psittinus, Tanygnathus and Mascarinus nest genetically within Psittacula, meaning that either Psittacula replaces these latter three genera or it breaks down into monophyletic genera of their own. The latter course is preferred, building on Braun et al. (2016), where several genera were established, including Himalayapsitta for P. finschii, P. himalayana, P. roseata and P. cyanocephala.
Taxonomic source(s)
Handbook of the Birds of the World and BirdLife International. 2020. Handbook of the Birds of the World and BirdLife International digital checklist of the birds of the world. Version 5. Available at: https://datazone.birdlife.org/userfiles/file/Species/Taxonomy/HBW-BirdLife_Checklist_v5_Dec20.zip.
IUCN Red List criteria met and history
Red List criteria met
Red List history
| Migratory status |
not a migrant |
Forest dependency |
medium |
| Land-mass type |
|
Average mass |
- |
Population justification: The global population size has not been quantified, but the overall abundance appears to be much reduced across its range in recent decades (Collar and Kirwan 2017). In Lao PDR and Viet Nam, now very scarce (Timmins et al. in press., eBird 2023), but in India, Myanmar, Thailand and Cambodia it remains locally common (Goes 2013, Thin Thin Khaing and Khin Myint Mar 2019, eBird 2023).
Trend justification: Declining globally due to unsustainable levels of exploitation for the pet trade and, to a lesser extent, habitat modifications. Combined these have driven range contractions (especially in Indochina) and a general reduction in local abundance (almost everywhere). Trends are discussed briefly for each range state, broadly from west to east.
In India, Nepal and Bangladesh, probably more secure than in other range states (with a large percentage of birds now in protected areas), although some localised trapping does occur, including in protected areas (e.g. Gubbi and Linkie 2012), and it is possible that even here numbers are declining. In Myanmar, almost certainly declining. Birds are widely captured for the pet trade (e.g., between December 2018 and April 2019, 1,744 individuals were reported for sale from a single site in Magway: Thin Thin Khaing [2019]) and at some sites numbers are probably (perhaps greatly) depleted, although at others it remains common (Thin Thin Khaing and Khin Myint Mar 2019, eBird 2023). In Thailand, remains common at numerous localities (eBird 2023) and numbers here are likely stable or perhaps declining only very slowly in response to trapping, which even here is considered a localised threat (Sanguansombat 2005). However, it appears to have declined from southernmost Thailand (the southern limit of its global range), where it was formerly known (Robson 2002, eBird 2023).
In Cambodia, remains locally common and widespread (Goes 2013, eBird 2023) with little evidence of a rapid decline in the past three generations and its status providing 'little cause for concern' (Goes 2013). Nonetheless sightings have apparently declined at some sites since the 1990s (Gray et al. 2014) and it is plausibly declining slowly. In Lao PDR, occurred historically throughout plains-level dry forests, although by the 1990s it was already local and scarce (Duckworth et al. 1999) and by 2022 had apparently declined substantially and is now very rare and local, with 'few reliable records in the 2000s' (Timmins et al. in press.). Although there are no published accounts or data, a similar, contemporaneous decline is suspected from Viet Nam, from which there are now only sporadic records (eBird 2023). In both countries, rapid declines have largely been driven by capture for the pet trade (see, e.g., Banjade et al. 2020), but the species' narrower ecological niche compared to other parakeets in Indochina perhaps also make it more vulnerable to habitat alteration (Timmins et al. in press) and the widespread loss of deciduous dipterocarp forest in both countries (Global Forest Watch 2023) has likely compounded declines (or is impeding recovery), despite this species' tolerance of forest degradation.
Evaluating trends into numeric rates of decline is very difficult, since in none of its range does robust population monitoring occur. However, over the past three generations (24 years: 1999–2023) it is plausible that global declines have exceeded 20%, owing to the collapse of populations in Indochina, offset to a considerable extent by relatively stable (or slow declining) populations elsewhere. Accordingly, over the past three generations, populations are suspected to have declined by 10–29%. The same rate of decline is suspected in the window 2005–2029, thus this species approaches thresholds for listing as threatened under Criteria A2 and A4. Rates of future decline are considerably more uncertain. An increasing percentage of the population now lies outside Indochina and is protected in effective protected areas, such that any future decline is likely to be less than that of the past. Alternatively, demand for the species in the pet trade may prove great enough to shift trapping pressures to other range states, causing similar declines in the future.
Country/territory distribution
Important Bird and Biodiversity Areas (IBA)
Recommended citation
BirdLife International (2024) Species factsheet: Blossom-headed Parakeet Himalayapsitta roseata. Downloaded from
https://datazone.birdlife.org/species/factsheet/blossom-headed-parakeet-himalayapsitta-roseata on 23/11/2024.
Recommended citation for factsheets for more than one species: BirdLife International (2024) IUCN Red List for birds. Downloaded from
https://datazone.birdlife.org/species/search on 23/11/2024.
