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Platycercus eximius

Eastern Rosella

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Image:	Adult on perch	88KB

General Information

COMMON NAMES: Eastern Rosella, Rosella; German Rosella

GLOBAL DISTRIBUTION: NATIVE ne.NSW - se.Queensland

COOK ISLANDS STATUS: Introduced - Recent, Not naturalised; Land

SIGNIFICANCE LIST: Pet, cage bird

KEY FEATURES: To 30cm. A small broad-tailed parrot with distinctive cheek patches. RED HEAD AND BREAST WITH WHITE CHEEKS; belly yellow to green; blue on the wings. One form, the Golden-mantled form, has the dark back-feathers edged yellow. CALL 'tink-tink'; 'pseet-it'; 'tock-swit-it'.

SIMILAR SPECIES: Rosellas separate into those with white cheeks, blue cheeks and yellow cheeks. Other white-cheeked rosellas: Pale-headed Rosella has pale yellow head; Northern Rosella has a black cap.

Cook Islands Distribution

View Distribution Map

Southern Group: Present Makatea: -
RR	MG	AT	MK	MT	AK	PL	TK	MN
+	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	-

Northern Group: -
TN	MH	RK	PK	NS	SW
-	-	-	-	-	-

Key to Symbols

blank	no data
-	absent	L	localised
X	extinct 'naturally'	W	widespread
XQi	quarantine intercepted	R	recent
XQe	eradicated	?	query preceding category
P	present	T?	taxonomic query
S	seasonal	nn	present, said to have no name
O	occasional	?1	present, name not investigated
++++	very common	?2	presence not verified, no name recorded
+++	common	N/A	absent, name not expected
++	uncommon
+	rare
Cook Islands islands: RR =Rarotonga, MG = Mangaia, AT =‘Ātiu, MK=Ma‘uke, MT=Miti‘āro, AK=Aitutaki, PL=Palmerston, PN=Penrhyn, MN=Manuae, TK=Takūtea, TN=Tongareva (TS=Tongaleva Spoken, TW=Tongareva Written, they say "el" but write "r"), MH=Manihiki, RK=Rakahanga, PK=Pukapuka, NS=Nassau, SW=Suwarrow. After a Polynesian name: ^=orthography query. Countries and other: FIJ=Fiji, WT=Wallis & Futuna, SAM=Samoa, TON=Tonga, NIU=Niue, CK=Cook Islands, CKM=Cook Islands Māori, FP=French Polynesia, AUS=Australs, SOC=Societies, TAH=Tahiti, TUA=Tuamotus, MQS=Marquesas, MNG=Mangareva, PIT=Pitcain group, EAS=Easter Island, HAW=Hawai‘i, NZ=New Zealand, NZM=New Zealand Māori

Scientific Taxonomy

Platycercus eximius (Shaw, 1792)
SYNONYMS: Psittacus eximius Shaw, 1792; Platycercus (Violania) adscitus eximius (Shaw, 1792) [correct name]

TAXONOMY: ANIMALIA; CHORDATA; GNATHOSTOMATA (Jawed Vertebrates); TETRAPODA; AVES; NEORNITHES; Psittaciformes; PSITTACIDAE

More Information

GENERAL NOTE: Four cage birds imported to Rarotonga c.1988 by Gerald Garnier. Unintentionally released c.1900, and all but one dead by c.1992. One survived thru May 2000 (rpt Richard Barton in Arorangi).

Vouchers & References

Vouchers:
Rarotonga: observed, ID GM.

References:
None recorded.

Data Update History (information):
zTX, zB02, zM02, zD02

Web Resources

Citation Information

McCormack, Gerald (2007) Cook Islands Biodiversity Database, Version 2007.2. Cook Islands Natural Heritage Trust, Rarotonga. Online at http://cookislands.bishopmuseum.org.
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