Some facts about the Lora
- Wild populations are only found on Bonaire with a few birds on Aruba and Curacao.
- The Lora is an amazonian parrot. It is bright green with a yellow face and crown, wings that have yellow edges, ‘shoulders’, with red and blue feathers on the lower wing and a short tail with rounded wings.
- Try as you might, you cannot tell male from female birds
- Lora can live for up to 40 years, they pair for life and lay an average of 3 eggs each year during a nesting season which lasts from May to August.
- The incubation time for eggs is 28 days. Chicks are protected by the mother and fed by the father for up to two months and young birds typically stay in family groups for several months.
- Lora eat leaves, seeds and fruit
Species Action Plan
Interested to learn about management solutions? Here is the species action plan for the lora
Conservation status
Lora are considered Vulnerable by the IUCN Red List and are on Appendix 1 of CITES (which regulates the trade in endangered species) as well as on SPAW Annex II.
Echo, a local foundation on Bonaire is dedicated to the conservation and preservation of the Lora. They are also involved in re-forestation efforts on Bonaire and have fenced a number of sites for active and passive restoration.
Threats
Habitat loss
Habitat loss caused by overgrazing, land development and land conversion. Extensive farming practices cause overgrazing which reduces ground cover, leading to erosion and limits natural regeneration to trees and plants not favoured by grazers.
Poaching
Lora chicks and adults are subject to poaching and are traded locally, chicks are smuggled off island to supply the international pet trade.
Climate change
Little is known about the impacts of climate change on the Lora. A hotter and drier climate is expected to effect food supply, reduce productivity and lower survival rates; high mortality has been observed during periods of drought.
