Pionus maximiliani
Silhouette: Sheatherius · PhyloPic
In 3 days ~10% in a week ~30%
The scaly-headed parrot (Pionus maximiliani) is a species of bird in subfamily Arinae of the family Psittacidae, the African and New World parrots. It is also called scaly-headed pionus, Maximilian pionus, Maximilian parrot, Maximilian's pionus, or Maximilian's parrot. It is found in Brazil, Bolivia, Argentina, and Paraguay.
The scaly-headed parrot and the red-billed parrot (P. sordidus) are sister species. The species' specific epithet is a reference to Prince Maximilian of Wied-Neuwied, a nobleman and naturalist who explored the hinterlands of southeastern Brazil in the early 19th century.
In Brazil, the scaly-headed parrot is called cocotas or maritacas (from mbaé'taka, tupi for "noisy bird"). The scaly-headed parrot is 25 to 29 cm (9.8 to 11 in) long and weighs 233 to 293 g (8.2 to 10 oz). Adults of the nominate subspecies P. m. maximiliani have a blackish brown forehead and mid-crown. Their rest of their head, their nape, and their upper back are dark greenish... Wikipedia →
| # | Park | Country | Daily sighting probability |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Serra dos Órgãos National Park | 🇧🇷 Brazil | |
| 2 | Iguaçu National Park | 🇧🇷 Brazil | |
| 3 | Iguazú National Park | 🇦🇷 Argentina | |
| 4 | Itatiaia National Park | 🇧🇷 Brazil | |
| 5 | Serra da Canastra National Park | 🇧🇷 Brazil | |
| 6 | Tijuca National Park | 🇧🇷 Brazil | |
| 7 | Amboró National Park | 🇧🇴 Bolivia | |
| 8 | Parque Estadual Encontro das Águas | 🇧🇷 Brazil | |
| 9 | Chapada Diamantina National Park | 🇧🇷 Brazil |
| # | City | Country | Daily sighting probability |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Santos | 🇧🇷 Brazil | |
| 2 | Santa Cruz de la Sierra | 🇧🇴 Bolivia | |
| 3 | Belo Horizonte | 🇧🇷 Brazil | |
| 4 | São Paulo | 🇧🇷 Brazil | |
| 5 | Rio de Janeiro | 🇧🇷 Brazil | |
| 6 | Campinas | 🇧🇷 Brazil | |
| 7 | Curitiba | 🇧🇷 Brazil | |
| 8 | Asuncion | 🇵🇾 Paraguay | |
| 9 | Buenos Aires | 🇦🇷 Argentina |
| # | Zoo / Centre | Country | |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Parque das Aves | 🇧🇷 Brazil | |
| 2 | Zoobotanic Park of Brusque | 🇧🇷 Brazil | |
| 3 | São Paulo Zoo | 🇧🇷 Brazil | |
| 4 | Zoo das Aves | 🇧🇷 Brazil | |
| 5 | Parque Ecológico de São Carlos | 🇧🇷 Brazil | |
| 6 | Parque Zoológico Bosque Guarani | 🇧🇷 Brazil | |
| 7 | Avifauna | 🇪🇸 Spain | |
| 8 | Agroflori Parque de las Aves | 🇧🇴 Bolivia | |
| 9 | Zoológico do Município de São Bernardo do Campo | 🇧🇷 Brazil | |
| 10 | Exotic Animal World | 🇿🇦 South Africa |
Rare
Under 5% of wildlife watchers report a Scaly-headed Parrot sighting in Amboró National Park on a given day, based on 22 verified sightings from GBIF citizen-science data from 2019 to 2026. It is the 130th most-seen of the 273 birds we can rate there. Over three days the chance rises to about 10%, and over a week to about 30%, if each day is a fresh chance.
May
In that month about 20% of wildlife watchers report a Scaly-headed Parrot in Amboró National Park on a given day, against under 5% in July and October–March, the lowest months. June has too few records to rate.
Between 7 and 10 am
Across all the parks we cover, that three-hour window holds the most Scaly-headed Parrot sightings with a recorded time, and about 9 in 10 of them come between 6 am and 6 pm: it is a daytime animal.
7th of 9
Of the 9 parks where we can rate Scaly-headed Parrot sightings, Amboró National Park ranks 7th at under 5%. The best odds are in Serra dos Órgãos National Park (Brazil, about 60%), Iguaçu National Park (Brazil, about 50%) and Iguazú National Park (Argentina, about 40%). All parks ranked.
Same genus: Pionus
The closest relatives of the Scaly-headed Parrot that you can see in Amboró National Park (genus Pionus, Pionus Parrots) are Blue-headed Parrot (about 40%) and Red-billed Parrot (about 10%), with each one's daily chance of a sighting.
GBIF citizen-science records
It is estimated from how often the Scaly-headed Parrot is recorded against all the birds logged in Amboró National Park (22 verified sightings from 2019 to 2026), calibrated against known sighting rates. Figures are rounded to the nearest 10% because citizen-science data supports honest approximations, not decimals, and months with records from fewer than five people show "—". How it works.
