There are 36 species of Amazon parrots.
34 are alive today, and 2 are extinct.
Want to know how many species of Amazon parrot there are?
Let’s define what an Amazon parrot is first.
The genus Amazona is where all the parrots we call Amazons are placed in taxanomic terms. This means all the Amazon parrots are closely related.
To determine how many types of Amazon parrot species there are, we can refer to the authoritative Handbook of the Birds of the World and BirdLife Taxonomic Checklist Version 6, which is the most current version of this list.
Currently this list contains 36 species of Amazon parrot.
That means there are 36 currently recognized types of Amazon Parrots, or birds in the genus Amazona.
Only 34 are living species, while 2 are extinct.
Because of the ongoing debate about whether some Amazon parrot species are full and distinct species in their own right, or if they are subspecies, the exact number of birds in the Amazona genus can change over time.
Sometimes birds are even moved right out of the genus, if scientists decide (for example through DNA study) that a parrot doesn’t actually belong in the Amazona genus after all.
Put simply, some taxonomists will have one opinion, and others will decide something else. But referring to the Birdlife checklist gives us the most up to date accepted list of Amazon parrots as it stands today.
The 34 Amazon Parrot Species
Some Amazon parrots are listed as Critically Endangered by Birdlife International, while some are listed as Endangered.
Others are listed as “least concern” which means their population is somewhat stable.
Many are somewhere in between, being listed as Vulnerable or Near Threatened.
The 34 Amazon Parrots that exist today are:
Northern Festive Amazon Amazona bodini
Southern Festive Amazon Amazona festiva
Vinaceous-breasted Amazon Amazona vinacea
Tucuman Amazon Amazona tucumana
Red-spectacled Amazon Amazona pretrei
Black-billed Amazon Amazona agilis
White-fronted Amazon Amazona albifrons
Yellow-billed Amazon Amazona collaria
Cuban Amazon Amazona leucocephala
Hispaniolan Amazon Amazona ventralis
Puerto Rican Amazon Amazona vittata
Lilac-crowned Amazon Amazona finschi
Red-lored Amazon Amazona autumnalis
Lilacine Amazon Amazona lilacina
Diademed Amazon Amazona diadema
Red-crowned Amazon Amazona viridigenalis
Yellow-lored Amazon Amazona xantholora
Blue-cheeked Amazon Amazona dufresniana
Red-browed Amazon Amazona rhodocorytha
Red-necked Amazon Amazona arausiaca
St Lucia Amazon Amazona versicolor
Yellow-headed Amazon Amazona oratrix
Yellow-naped Amazon Amazona auropalliata
Yellow-crowned Amazon Amazona ochrocephala
Yellow-shouldered Amazon Amazona barbadensis
Turquoise-fronted Amazon Amazona aestiva
Scaly-naped Amazon Amazona mercenarius
Northern Mealy Amazon Amazona guatemalae
Southern Mealy Amazon Amazona farinosa
White-faced Amazon Amazona kawalli
Imperial Amazon Amazona imperialis
Red-tailed Amazon Amazona brasiliensis
Orange-winged Amazon Amazona amazonica
St Vincent Amazon Amazona guildingii
One additional species Yellow-faced Amazon (Alipiopsitta xanthops) – has been placed in its own genus Alipiopsitta – but keeps its common name of Amazon.
Two Extinct Amazon Parrot Species
Of the 36 recognized Amazon parrots, two are declared extinct.
The extinct Amazon parrots are the Martinique Amazon and Guadeloupe Amazon.
Many of the 34 Amazon species still with us today are coming closer and closer to extinction due to habitat loss and poaching.
More must be done to save these magnificant birds and their habitats, so they can continue living wild and free where they belong.
How many species of Amazon Parrot are there?
The most recent Handbook of the Birds of the World and BirdLife Taxonomic Checklist specifies 36 species of Amazon parrots in the genus Amazona. 34 are alive, 2 are extinct.
What is the rarest Amazon parrot?
The rarest Amazon parrots are those that are listed as Critically Endangered and Endangered in the wild. Urgent conservation is needed to save these rare Amazon Parrots in their native habitat where they belong. The rarest endangered Amazon parrots are the Imperial Amazon, Vinaceous-breasted Amazon, Black-billed Amazon, Puerto Rican Amazon, Lilac-crowned Amazon, Lilacine Amazon, Red-crowned Amazon, Yellow-headed Amazon, and Yellow-naped Amazon.
How smart are Amazon parrots?
All parrots are exceptionally intelligent, including all Amazon parrots. Just watching any Amazon parrot in the wild will reveal how incredibly smart they are. Parrots have evolved to problem solve in the wild, find food, and survive in harsh conditions. Amazon Parrots, and all parrots, are recognized as among the most intelligent of all life forms, along with primates, elephants, corvids (crows) and cetaceans.
