About the Pionus
A slightly more mellow cousin to the Amazon Parrot, the Pionus is roughly the same size, but a bit less demanding on their owners time and attentions, generally being content to play in their cages by themselves for longer periods of time. Pionus love water, and enjoy getting a daily shower.  Pionus are intelligent and make good talkers, although they have a bit less vocal clarity than other parrots. There are several different species of Pionus, all of them share the bright-red undertail coverts.

Maximilian's Pionus (Pionus Maximiliani)
This beautiful, 11-inch-long bird ranges from olive to forest green, with head feathers edged in black. This gives this Pionus a scalloped effect. The chest is bluish purple, sometimes with a bit of pink. The wings have an iridescent olive-bronze tint.

White Cap Pionus (Pionus Senilis)
Affectionate and freindly, The White Cap Pionus Pionus makes up for it's lack of talking ability with it's charming personality - a cuddly, lovable bird that makes a great pet. At 9½ inches, the White Cap Pionus is mostly pale to medium green with a white cap atop its head, sometimes with a spot of peach. There is also some pink or peach on the white upper chest. A rich blue covers the primary and some secondary wing coverts.

Blue Head Pionus (Pionus Menstruus)
There are three subspecies of the Blue-Headed Pionus, each with subtle varying shades of blue on the head and green body. The body is olive to dark green, and the beak is unusual with spots of mauve on the sides of the upper mandible. This is one of the better talkers of Pionus.

Photo courtesy of:
Sassy