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Yellow-naped Amazon

Golden Yellow-naped Amazon Family: Psittacidae

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Amazona auropalliata Photo © Animal-World: Courtesy: Lisa

   The Yellow-naped Amazon has just about the best reputation a bird can have as a pet and a wonderful companion.

The Yellow-naped Amazon, also known as the Golden Yellow-naped Amazon has been kept as a pet for over 100 years! They were described as early as 1842 as being kept by the Central American Indians because of their pleasing personalities. They are the ultimate in affection, clever and obedient, and gentle. They actually think of themselves as "little people"!

   As is true with all Amazons, they are very social and enjoy the company of people as well as other birds. They will form very strong bonds with their owner, becoming fast friends and exhibit total confidence. Miss Evan shown below, is enjoying her special person - 'Jack'.

   This bird is considered to be an excellent all around bird. The Yellow-naped Amazon is very popular as a great pet and can be one of the better talkers. Besides being quite intelligent which makes them easy to tame and train, they are very fun and affectionate. They are also a hardy robust bird and can do well in either a cage or an aviary.

For more information about the care of Amazon parrots see:
Guide to a Happy, Healthy Amazon Parrot.

Scientific Name: Amazona auropalliata
(Previously: Amazona ochrocephala auropalliata)

Subspecies:

• Amazona auropalliata
• Amazona auropalliata parvipes

Distribution:
   These birds are found in the Honduras, Guatamala, El Salvador, and Mexico. They inhabit open woodlands, forests, and the tropical zones.

Description:
    The Yellow-naped Amazon or Golden Yellow-naped Amazon is green from head to tail, with the underparts a bit lighter green, and the tip of the tail being a light yellowish-green. They get their name from having a bright yellow patch about the size of a quarter on the nape of their neck, though this doesn't actually begin to develop until they are about a year old. Some will also have a small yellow spot on their forehead. There are some black hairs in the cere and the beak is mixture of black and horn color. The eye is orange and the feet are gray with black nails.
   Juveniles lack the yellow marking on the nape of the neck.

Size - Weight:
  Mature birds are a fairly large , about 14 inches (35 cm) long from the head to the tip of the tail.

Care and feeding:
    A roomy cage is required unless the bird is to be let out for extended periods. Many birds can spend a good deal of their time on a play pen or parrot perch.
    In the wild these birds eat fruits, seeds, nuts, berries, blossoms and leaf buds, as well as foraging in corn fields. The Amazon's main diet should primarily be seeds, nuts, fruits, and green vegetables. A commercially prepared parrot mix or pelleted diet can also be beneficial.

   See About Amazon Parrots: Housing and About Amazon Parrots: Care and Feeding for more information.

Social Behaviors:
   Amazons enjoy human interaction as well as interaction with other birds. In the wild they are very social birds living in groups. They are seen either in pairs or flocks, from small groups to groups of several hundred birds. They also form permanent pairs when they are sexually mature.

   See About Amazon Parrots: Social Behaviors for information on developing a well rounded Amazon.

Activities:
    Loves to climb and play. Provide lots of toys. Also needs room to stretch its wings although climbing seems to be its favorite activity.

Breeding/Reproduction:
   These amazons are commonly bred in captivity. At the onset of warm weather (April to early May) courtship will begin. The hen will then lay three to four eggs which incubate for about 26 - 28 days. The young will leave the nest at 8-12 weeks. As with many parrots, the male will eat for both himself and the female while she incubates the eggs and feeds the young. The male regurgitates the food for the female to eat. He gets a lot less picky about what he eats at these times!

   See About Amazon Parrots: Breeding/Reproduction for more information on breeding.

Potential Problems:
  These birds are hardy and healthy if provided with a good environment and a good diet. Amazons can be noisy first thing in the morning, and just before the sun sets. This is easy to control, they can often be quieted by just covering their cage for a short period of time.

   See About Amazon Parrots: Potential Problems for information on health.

Availability: Readily available.

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Latest Comments
Update on Ginger, our bird of 32 years. He didn't make it. He passed away this morning. We had a very good Vet and if he could be saved I'm sure this vet would have done it. The Vet just moved to Columbus, Ohio from Westminster, CA and also teaches at Ohio State. It's difficult to find doctor's just for birds so if you have a wonderful pet bird make sure you get one lined up just in case. Lot's of vets treat birds but not all can really handle extreme emergencies. Gina Donnelly 2008-09-26
We have had our yellow nape for 32 years. Ginger was a girl until about 6 years ago and we had her DNA'd. The Vet left a message on our phone. "Congratulations, Ginger is a boy". We still call him Ginger. He has a huge vocabulary. When the phone rings he calls "Teri, it's for you". Sometimes he uses one of our other 4 children, but Teri was the phone kid. He still calls every dog and cat we've had for the last 32 years. He has always been sweet but became irritable when our children all left home. They are all in their 40's now. He became a terrible feather plucker and required lots of attention & noise - like kids give! We are in the process of moving permanently across country. Therefore, Ginger is living in our office. Today was a sad day for sure. A customer brought her dog in and Ginger pecked the dog on the nose (which he has always done to our dogs). The dog attacked him and he is now at the Vet's on oxygen. Ginger stays on his cage but he goes to the bottom outside to greet. He is like a member of our family. The Vet gives him a good chance but he also was diagnosed with liver disease which they say is common with the yellow nape. Gina Donnelly 2008-09-24
I have had my YNA since he was 16 weeks old, visiting him weekly with the breeder. He is now 15 years old. I followed my breeder's instructions intoducing him to many people. He knows many of the neighbors in my condominium building, I don't allow him to be handled by my neighbors, but he is great around them when we are in the laundry room. I also have introduced him to friends, and he will go quite readily to them. YNA are quite loud, but that is typical of larger parrots in general. A YNA should be owned by people who enjoy being home, and are true animal lovers. They take time. think of them as perpetual two year-olds. I have never regretted my decision in purchasing Clyde. I think of him as my child. Tim Calahan 2008-01-31
I have a yellow nape. I rescued him from a very very bad home, and when i got him home he had molted terribly. He was very nippy and wouldn't allow anyone to touch him, and he squaked in fear. I spent hours and hours a day sitting outside his extra large cage just talking to him and reassuring him i wouldnt hurt him in any way. Over a period of weeks he began to trust me and allowed me to rub his head and feet, but he was still kind of nippy. Not giving up on buddy, i began to get his trust and he was letting me hand feed and rub him under his wings. He was also beginning to talk to me. Seeing that buddy was banded i guessed he was born in captivity and his wings had never been clipped. I would let him out of his cage and he could fly for short distances. Now after a month i could let buddy out of his cage, go sit down, and he would hop across the floor until he found me. He would crawl up my pant leg, roost on my shoulder, and mumble in my ear. I have had buddy for 5 years now and he is the most wonderful bird with a vocabulary of about 70 words. What i have noticed is that i am the only one buddy allows to handle him the way i do. I guess he bonded greatly with me. I have also noticed when i am not in the room for buddy to see me, he squawks until he gets my attention. I also have a giant alaskan malamute named cody, he weighs 170 pounds, and a female siberian huskey named josie. Buddy has learned to call cody and josie and it is the funnyest thing to see my two dogs coming to see who's calling them, and its buddy. I would highly recommend a yellow nape to anyone willing to spend the time to teach and get to know the personilty of their bird, because they are wonderful birds. phil gillespie 2007-12-11
Hello, my name is DeEtte. We purchased our Yellow Nape Amazon Rocky 10 years ago. He was only 8 weeks old and we had the opportunity to hand feed him until he was 12 weeks old. He has the vocabulary of over 400 words and often uses them in sentences in conversational content. We are currently searching for another Nape for family members as they have fell in love with Rocky, kidnapped, and demanded a location of a baby for his return, at any cost. Rocky laughs, crys, calls the dogs and tells them to hurry before they get cold, demands food (we eat a healthy diet and our vet approved our diet to share with Rocky). He is on a primary diet of Sunseed Parrot Pellets and refuses to eat any other brands of Pellets. He has never ate "seeds" but is allowed pre-cracked nuts. De Ette Wood 2007-05-15
Some of the coolest comments:
This goes back to the days of sailing ships... In 1919 my grandfather got a yellow-naped from a Boston friend who in turn got it in South America. He saw them himself when he was in SA himself. They have no idea how old he was, but he was a talker even then. He had his likes and dislikes. He kept in good health, until he died at the same time my grandmother passed away in 1974. I know that this was a long time ago, but I thought it might be of some interest... GEORGE READ 2007-08-28
Despite how wonderful this site is, not all of the YNA's traits have been discussed. The biggest thing is that while there are YNAs that enjoy the whole family, it is also extremely common for them to bond to ONE person, which causes friction in a household if there are other people there. For instance, my YNA has bonded to my boyfriend, and so now I can't go near the bird at all, or else I'll get bitten. The bird was originally my sister's (she now has a kid and so I'm taking care of the bird), and it was the same when she got married and her husband moved in. The parrot bonded to her husband, and would get nippy with my sister. I would be wary of this species if you have kids or if you're a new owner. Their bites can be extremely painful and can cause serious damage. Also, since they're some of the best talkers of the parrots, their natural tendancy is to be loud. There may be those who only scream at night or in the morning, but there are also a lot that scream whenever they're not getting what they want (which is usually attention). And it's not like a little squeak, it's extrenely obnoxious and can really hurt your ears. So yeah--there are some things about YNAs that are wonderful, and they are very entertaining and talented, but before getting one just remember that it's not going to be unicorns and rainbows all the time. Allison 2007-08-18
Comments Dr Jungle REALLY Likes to Hear!
I'm from Saudi Arabia, and I decide to buy a yellow napped next week after I read your encyclopedia article. hattem mansour 2007-02-12

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Author: Clarice Brough, CAS.