The two living species have a similar overall appearance, the principal differences lying in their relative sizes and brightness of coloration. Both are mainly green, with red or maroon markings on the forehead, forecrown, broad superciliary stripe, and feathers on the bend of the wing, the carpal edge and the thighs. Their eye-rings are yellow, with the feet and beak dark gray to black. Juveniles have a pale beak fading to gray at the base, whitish eye-rings, and a red brow, but lack the dark red stripes over the eye-rings. The maroon-fronted parrot is generally dark green with maroon-brown head markings and is between 40 cm and 45 cm in length while the thick-billed parrot is about 38 cm long with brighter colors.
Taxonomy
The genus was described by French naturalist Charles Lucien Bonaparte; the name is derived from the Ancient Greek terms rhynchos "beak", and psitta "parrot". The two extant taxa were considered subspecies of a single species, before being split.
Rhynchopsitta phillipsi, a larger prehistoric relative, was described from Late Pleistocene fossils found in Nuevo León, Mexico. It was not an ancestor to the living species, as bones of them were also found at San Josecito Cave when R. phillipsi remains were recovered. The prehistoric species had a distinct bill shape and may have occurred sympatrically with the maroon-fronted parrot in the northern Sierra Madre Oriental. Possibly its bill was adapted to feeding on a species of pine which disappeared due to climate change at the end of the last ice age, driving it to extinction.
Ecology
Both extant species are found at heights of between 1500 and 3000 masl in Mexico in isolated island-like forest habitats in the Sierra Madre, and are sometimes called snow parrots because of their high-altitude habitat. They show seasonal migration patterns, generally breeding in the northern parts of their range and overwintering in the southern. The thick-billed parrot nests in tree cavities, while the maroon-fronted parrot is a cliff cavity breeder. The parrots roost at night in large flocks, while they forage during the day in smaller flocks over a large area. They feed primarily on pine seeds, which they extract by systematically stripping the cones from the base to the top. They also eat other seeds such as acorns, as well as softer foods such as fruits, bark, nectar, other vegetable matter, and insects.
Status
Both the thick-billed and the maroon-fronted parrot are classified as endangered by the International Union for Conservation of Nature. They are listed on CITES Appendix I, trade forbidden except for legitimate conservation, scientific or educational purposes. They are also protected under Mexican General Wildlife Law, import and export prohibited. The populations of both species have declined primarily due to habitat degradation, and now both are restricted to a few small areas in the mountains of northern Mexico. The range of the thick-billed parrot formerly extended into Arizona and New Mexico, and attempts are being made to breed the species in captivity for release into the wild in their former range their. An earlier attempt in the 1980s and 1990s to reintroduce thick-billed parrots to Arizona failed because the captive-bred birds had not learned to avoid their natural and human predators, but new plans for the reintroduction of this species include the use of wild-caught individuals.
