Parrots Royalty-Free Stock Photo

Parrots, also known as psittacines ( ?s?t?sa?nz ),[1][2] are birds of four families that contain roughly 410 species in 101 genera. These make up the order Psittaciformes ( ?s?t?s?f??rmi?z ) and are found mostly in tropical and subtropical regions. The four families are: Psittaculidae (Old World parrots) , the Psittacidae (African and New World parrots), the Cacatuoidea (cockatoos), and the Strigopidae (New Zealand parrots). One-third of all parrot species are threatened by extinction, with higher aggregate extinction risk (IUCN Red List Index) than any other comparable bird group.[3] Parrots have a generally pantropical distribution with several species inhabiting temperate regions in the Southern Hemisphere, as well. The greatest diversity of parrots is in South America[4] and Australasia.[5]