BROWN-THROATED PARAKEET

The beautiful Brown-Throated Parakeet aratinga pertinax arubenis is one of the two endemic subspecies of birds on Aruba.  Each of the ABC Islands has a different form of Caribbean Parakeet.  This magnificent bird has the honor of being  Aruba’s National Bird and is known as a “Prikichi” in the local language of Papiamento.  Flying in small flocks, you can always hear these strikingly colorful birds before you see them.  Our subspecies on Aruba has the distinction of a pale brown breast.  On Bonaire they have a yellow to bright orange forehead, cheeks and throat with the upper breast yellow graduating to lemon further down.  Birds on Curacao have yellow heads, chins and throats.  They often make their nests in abandoned termite nests still hanging in a tree.  They may use it more than once.  These birds feed off of fruit and seeds.