Perijá Parakeet

The Perijá Parakeet (Pyrrhura picta caruleiceps) it’s an intriguing subspecies of the widespread Painted Parakeet restricted to the Perijá mountain range, right at the northern border between Colombia and Venezuela. The Painted Parakeet complex has been, as in many Pyrrhura parakeet groups, into different species, and the Perijá form one of more restricted and threatened. 

For many years, these parakeets  remained virtually unknown with very few sightings, most of them on the Colombian side of the Perijá mountains. That changed in late 2021 when a new area in the Cesar department became well known and accessible, where these beautiful Parakeets are just common. With patience, eye level views are pretty much guaranteed, when they come to the garden of a local cacao-grower family, endemic parakeets and fresh cacao cup are hard to beat. 

This area is available as an extension of our Northern Birding Trail Tour. 

Written by Ivan Lau