Diopsittaca nobilis

Rodríguez, Oscar, Castillo, Leandro, Smith, Paul & Castillo, Hugo del, 2019, Status and distribution of Paraguayan macaws (Aves: Psittacidae) with a new country record, Papéis Avulsos de Zoologia 59, pp. 1-10 : 6-7

Red-shouldered Macaw Diopsittaca nobilis

Figs. 3 , 9

At approximately 06:00 on 01 May 2017 two individuals of this species were photographed by OR north of the headquarters of Estancia Laguna Ciervo (S 22°17 ′ 43.64 ″, W 56°09 ′ 51.55 ″), Amambay department. The estancia is located some 40 km southeast of the town of Bella Vista Norte, and the northern and northeastern limits of the estancia are formed by the Brazilian border, delimited by the Arroyo Estrella.The habitat is an area of transition between Cerrado and Atlantic Forest and the estancia is dedicated to cattle ranching. The same afternoon three individuals were encountered nearby at (S 22°19 ′ 00.65 ″, W 056°11 ′ 13.16 ″) and were again photographed ( Fig. 4) (and seen by LC). A video of vocalising birds was taken and is available online https://www.youtube.com/ watch?v=8-5LnedDRrw.

The individuals are tentatively referred to the subspecies Diopsittaca nobilis longipennis Neumann, 1931, which inhabits south-central Brazil ( Collar, 1997). The closest previous reports to Paraguay that we are aware of are from Puerto Murtiño and west of Jardim, both in Mato Grosso do Sul state (data from eBird.org and Wikiaves.com.br). The Paraguayan records represent a range increase of 165 km southeast of these points.

Insufficient data is available to confirm the status of this species of Paraguay, but this area of the country has been largely neglected by fieldworkers. Confirming whether the presence of the species in Paraguay is seasonal, transitory or permanent will require further fieldwork. We note the close similarity of this species to Sánchez Labrador’s Paracau mediano septima especie ( Castex, 1968), perhaps an early overlooked reference to the species.

Figures

Figure 3. Red-shouldered Macaw Diopsittaca nobilis Estancia Laguna Ciervo, Amambay department,01 May 2017.(Photo O.Rodríguez).

Figure 9. Distribution of Red-shouldered Macaw Diopsittaca nobilis in Paraguay. Black dots: recent visual record, Red dots: historical bibliographic record,Green dots:specimen record.