BirdLife South Africa has announced the Bird of the Year for 2023. This special bird is endemic to South Africa, so it occurs nowhere else in the world.
This beautiful bird inhabits isolated patches of forest in the Eastern Cape, KwaZulu-Natal and Limpopo provinces. It is classified as Endangered, and is estimated to have a remaining population of fewer than 1800 individuals.
Bird experts might know it as Poicephalus robustus, for the general public is is known as the Cape Parrot! (isikhwenene, upholi, Hokwe, Dikgwapa, Woudpapegaai)
The Cape Parrot is a medium-sized bird (~30 cm high) with a striking green body and golden head and neck. Adults have small orange patches on the shoulders and leg feathers, with females having a red patch above their beak, which is generally missing in males. They are usually seen as singletons, pairs, family groups or larger flocks. They are most often seen flying, or at roosting and feeding sites, especially at dawn or near dusk.
The Cape Parrot is typically found in the inland Afromontane forests, much of which have been heavily affected by the logging of large hardwood trees (like Yellowwoods), causing a shortage of natural nesting sites and food availability for the species. Cape Parrots are also susceptible to the highly contagious and sometimes fatal Psittacine Beak and Feather Disease.
Several conservation organisations and individuals are working together to protect South Africa’s Endangered Cape Parrot population. BirdLife South Africa is pleased to partner with BirdLife Species Guardians, the Cape Parrot Working Group and the Wild Bird Trust’s Cape Parrot Project to raise awareness about this species through our Bird of the Year 2023 campaign.
As Bird of the Year 2023, the Cape Parrot will bring much-needed awareness to the importance of this ecosystem in providing ecological services to communities and supporting a host of other unique forest biodiversity.
Throughout 2023, BirdLife South Africa, together with our Bird of the Year partners, will create awareness about the Cape Parrot through the production of educational materials, such as posters, infographics, and learning resources for schools, that will be free to download on our Bird of the Year 2023 webpage; articles in African Birdlife magazine; social media posts; and presentations to interested groups. Cape Parrot merchandise, such as t-shirts, pin badges, and fluffy toys, will also be on sale through BirdLife South Africa’s Shop for the Birds! from January 2023.
