Pionites melanocephalus melanocephalus

Black-headed Caiques are found north of the Amazon River in Brazil, Columbia, Peru, Venezuela, French Guiana, Guyana and Surinam. They inhabit the both the high forest, forest edges as well as flat Savannah woodlands. These noisy parrots are frequently seen in family groups or flocks of up to thirty outside breeding season, and inhabit the forest canopy where they spend their days feeding on fruits, berries and seeds. When disturbed, they fly off, screeching loudly.

Of the Black-headed Caiques, Pionites melanocephala melanocephala is the sub-species we are all familiar with in North America The Black-headed Caique has a fluffy white breast and abdomen, with a black forehead, crown and nape. Cheeks and throat are yellow with a green streak just to the front and below the eye. Neck is orange, wings, back and tail are green, thighs orange and feet grey to black. Beak black, iris is red in adult birds.

In the wild they are said to not be well known as good fliers. The species distribution map shows the suggested origin of wild black headed caiques.

The Black Headed Caique has one known sub species known as the pallid caique. More about Pallids on the next page.

According to John McMichael of thecaiquesite.com, other names the Black Headed Caique is known by include:

Black-headed caique

Black-headed parrot

Black-capped caique

Black-capped parrot

Tischih parrot

Seven-colored parrot

Q: I just saw a picture of a pallid caique and it looks an awful lot like my bird. Could mine be a pallid ?

A: If you are in North America, you have a black headed caique. The main telling difference between a pallid caique and nominate species black head is the pallids lack the mottled coloring on the thighs. Pallids are also said to be a duller coloration overall. Outside of North America there are few cases of pallid caiques as pets, moreso in areas where the pallid was imported before strict importation guidelines were set in place.

Breeding Season
Because the two caique species differ in territory, their breeding seasons differ slightly. The Black-Headed caique’s natural season is March to October, and eggs are incubated for 13-14 weeks.

The White Belly Caique’s season is February to October, also with an incubation period of 13-14 weeks.