Parrotlets

Male Pacific parrotlets are olive green with a greyish wash over their backs and chests. They have a striking deep cobalt blue rump, blue eyestreaks that curve back and down from their eyes, and deep blue primary and secondary wing feathers. The hens may have some blue on them, similar to the males except for the wings, but their colouring won't be as deep and pronounced. Or they may be entirely green. Both have pink legs and beaks. They have a stocky, almost pear-shaped build, and weigh from 28-32g. Many colour mutations of Pacifics are now available. The most common ones here in the US are blue, yellow, fallow and lutino, along with the double mutations of white, blue fallow and albino. Many more colors have been developed in Europe and are slowly making their way into U.S. aviculture.

The green-rumped parrotlets, as their name implies, have green rumps, except for one subspecies in which the male does sport a blue rump. As in the Pacifics, their beaks and legs are pink. The males have turquoise blue on their wings, while the females do not. Their green is a slightly brighter, more emerald hue than the olive green of the Pacific, and they do not have the greyish wash. The hens have a touch of yellow just above their cere. Green-rumped parrotlets are just a bit smaller, weighing from 20-26g, and have a more slender build than the Pacific.

Male spectacled parrotlets are a deep forest green, and sport a brilliant blue eye ring, as well as blue rumps and wing feathers. The hens are a lighter shade of green, and do not have the blue colouring, although the ring around the eye is still visible as a different hue of green in natural lighting. They are similar in size and shape to the green-rumped, and have pink beaks and legs.

Blue-winged parrotlets are a bit larger than Pacifics, weighing in at 35 or more grams. Males have blue-violet rumps and wings, while hens have a yellowish tint to their faces. Their beaks and legs are grey.

Mexican parrotlets are also larger, weighing 36-40g. They are a brighter green than the Pacific, and the blue on the males' rumps and wings is a stunning electric turquoise that fairly glows under natural lighting. The feet and legs are grey, with the beaks turning to a greyish colour when they are mature.

Yellow-faced parrotlets are the largest of the Forpus family, weighing around 50g and measuring closer to 6 inches in length. Both males and females have blue on their rumps, wings and eyestreaks, but much more pronounced in the male. As their name implies, their faces are yellow, and their green colouring is more yellowish and greyish than the Pacific. They have a pronounced vertical dark streak on their upper mandibles.

Parrot's family.