The Wilson .fourna!

of Ornithology 120(1 ):176-180, 20()8

USE OF CLAY LICKS BY MAROON-FRONTED PARROTS

{RHYNCHOPSITTA TERRISI) IN NORTHERN MEXICO
RENE A. VALDS-PEA.' ' SONIA GABRIELA ORTIZ-MACIEL,'
SIMON O. VALDEZ JUAREZ,' ERNESTO C. ENKERLIN HOEFLICH,' AND
NOEL E R. SNYDER'
ABSTRACT.^Geophagy has been documented in many species of bird.s, including many parrots, and its
proposed functions include detoxification o!" dietary poisons, mineral supplementalion, and acid buffering. Mo.st
geophagy reports involve tropical South American species; we present the first published report of clay-lick use
by the Maroon-fron ted Parrot (Rhynchop.sirta lerrixi), a species inhabiting high elevation temperate pine-oak
{Pinus spp.~Quercus spp.) forest of the Sierra Madre Oriental, Thirty-six observation sessions were made at the
four dispersed licks known from the restricted breeding range of this species. AM known licks were near valley
bottoms far below most nesting cliffs. Parrot visitations to ingest clay were characteristically in groups and the
average number of" parrots per group was nine individuals. Group visits averaged 18.3 min in duration and
peaked between 0900 and I 100 hrs. The total number of parrots visiting licks during any day represented only
a fraction of the known population of the species, suggesting that unless additional licks have yet to be discovered, visits of individuals to licks are relatively infrequent. Received 18 September 2006. Accepted 22 May 2007.

Geophagy Is known primarily in herbivorous vertebrates including many ungulates,

primates, elephants, reptiles, and a great diversity of birds (Emmons and Stark 1979,
Jones and Hanson 1985, Izawa 1993). In
birds, the trait has been described in cracids,
corvids, pigeons, grouse., cassowaries, and
hombills (Prendergast and Boag 1970, Emmons and Stark 1979, Diamond et al. 1999),
but is perhaps best known in parrots., where
colorful aggregations of many species assemble at some of the earthen cliffs overlooking
tributaries of the Amazon River. For example,
hundreds of individuals of more than 20 parrot
species are known to use licks overlooking the
Tambopata River in the Tambopata-Candamo
Reserve in Peru (Munn 1994, Brigbtsmith and
Arambuni 2004). Other well known licks are
in Manu National Park and along the Madre
de Dios River of Peru (Gitardi et al. 1999); in
Bolivia, > 1,000 individuals of at least six species have been observed at a lick In the Valle
de la Luna (Mee et al. 2005), while other licks
occur in Amazonian regions of Colombia, Ecuador, and Brazil (Izawa 1993. Kyle 2001).
Geophagy is also known for Grey Parrots
{Psittacus erithacus) in the Congo Basin forest (May 2001) and a variety of Asian species

' Centro de Calidad Ambiental. ITESM. CEDES

5piso, Avenida, Eugenio Garza Sada 2501 sur CP
64849. Monterrey, N.L. Mxico.
- Corresponding author; e-mail; ravp@itesm.mx

in Papua, New Guinea (Diamond et al. 1999).

Other observations of parrots eating soil have
involved Lear's Macaws {Anodorhynchus
leari) on their nest cliffs in eastem Brazil,
Red-fronted Macaws {Ara ruhrogenys) on
their nest cliffs in Bolivia, and cockatoos ingesting soil in a city park in Australia (J. D.
Guard i, pers. comm.).
A variety of functions has been suggested
for clay ingestion including gaining of mineral
supplements, binding of toxic materials in diets, and regulation of pH in gut contents (Diamond et al. 1999, Gilardi et al. 1999). Studies by Gilardi et al. (1999) and Brightsmith
and AramburtJ (2004) in Petu suggest that
both mineral supplementation and cytoprotection from secondary poisons in plant foods
may be especially important functions.
Clay ingestion has not been well documented for parrots in Mexico. There have
been observations suggesting ingestion of soil
by Military Macaws {Ara militaris) in northeastern and southwestern Mexico (Juan Vargas and Carlos Bonilla, pers. comm.), and
Thick-billed Parrots {Rhynchopsitta pachyrhyncha) and Lilac-crowned Parrots {Amazona finschi) in northwestern Mexico (Juan Vargas, pers. comm.). The trait was first clearly
recognized in the Maroon-fronted Parrot
{Rhynchopsitia lerrisi) in 1995 at two mudcliff sites still in use by the species today
(NFRS). The objective of our study was to
document basic features of clay-lick use by

176

Vatds-Pea et al MAROON-FRONTED PARROTS

the Maroon-fronted Parrot during the breeding

season, quantifying such features as group
size, daily peaks in activity, and associated behaviors during clay ingestion.
METHODS
We observed four clay licks from June to
September 2005 used by Maroon-fron ted Parrots in 12, 3-day visits. All licks were in the
Sierra Madre Oriental west and southwest of
Monterrey, Nuevo Leon and were well distributed in the breeding range of the species
in Nuevo Leon and Coahuila (Macias-Caballero 1998). Nesting of Maroon-fronted ParTots
is mainly colonial and is only known to occur
in natural cavities in vertical limestone cliffs.
The parrots occur in this area only during the
summer breeding season and migrate south in
the Sierra Madre Oriental for the remainder of
the year. We do not know if other licks occur
in breeding and wintering areas of the species;
however, coverage of the breeding area has
been sufficiently intensive, especially through
interviews of local residents, that we believe
mosl licks in this region have been located.
Two of the licks (Santa Cruz and Santa Rosa)
are in Nuevo Leon. The other two (El Temporal and Ultimagua) are in Coahuila. Topographically, all four licks are close to valley
bottoms in mud cliffs overlooking seasonal
streams. None of the four licks is higher than
40 m above stream level and all are between
1,600 and L800 m above sea level. The most
important nest cliffs of the species are at higher elevations (2,500-3,000 m above sea level).
The climate of the study area in the northern Sierra Madre Oriental corresponds to temperate subhumid forest with summer rains
predominant. The annual temperature average
is 14 C, with a range of 0 to 34 C. The average annual precipitation is 600 mm of which
370 mm occurs between June and September.
The vegetation is predominantly pine-oak {Piniis Hpp.-Quercus spp.) forest. The Maroonfronted Parrot primarily subsists on pine seeds
of several species (mainly Pinus cembioides)
with some use of acorns and agave seeds (Macias-Caballero et al. 1996). Much of this diet
is considered to be chemically well defended
with tannins (Wong 2007).
Clay licks were observed with binoculars
and/or telescopes between 0700 (sunrise) and
1700 hrs (before sunset) from 50 to 100 m.

177

depending on topography and availability of

suitable viewing sites. We recorded the number of parrots arriving at the clay lick.s, time
of arrival, time spent eating clay per flock,
weather, and notes about their behavior and/
or predator activity. We estimated the average
number of parrots per flock that consumed
clay and the average time these flocks were at
clay licks.
RESULTS
Behavior.Parrots usually arrived at clay
licks in small groups (1-5 birds) giving typical flight vocalizations. The birds perched in
nearby trees prior to landing at the clay cliffs,
possibly assessing their surroundings for natural enemies. The first bird to land at the cliff
was generally nervous in demeanor and normally did not begin feeding until joined closely by other parrots (within the next 2 min).
During feeding, parrots flew to and from the
lick regularly to change location on the cliff
or to increase spacing with other parrots. We
noted some parrots remained alert while others fed. The alert posture switched from one
individual to another over time and, occasionally, the entire group on the cliff took flight
simultaneously when one individual uttered a
sharp alarm call. Feeding on soil typically occurred just below the top of the low cliffs,
allowing the birds to quickly gain speed in
leaving the cliffs by losing altitude. Sites used
by parrots for ingesting clay showed the typical bird-created horizontal grooves, ledges,
and hollows known for parrot clay licks in
other regions and following particular soil horizons, which can be an indicator of preferred
soils.
Periods of Clay Consumption.Use of
licks occurred throughout the day with the exception of the last 2 hrs in late afternoon
(1500-1700 hrs). Use was greatest during
morning and declined during the afternoon
(Fig. 1). Peak use occurred in late morning
(0900-1100 hrs), although at one lick the
largest number of birds was observed between
0700 and 0900 hrs. The number of birds at
another lick was equal between 0700-0900
and 0900-1100 hrs (Table 1).
Group Size and Number of Parrots at
Licks.Thirty-six groups of parrots were recorded in 12 days of observation with an average of three group visits per day for each of

178

THE WILSON JOURNAL OF ORNITHOLOGY Vol. 120, Nu. . March 2008

0700-0900

0900- 1100

1100-1300

1300-1500

1500-1700

Time (hrs) of activity

FIG. I. Time of feeding (all observations) by Maroon fronted Parrots at clay licks. Sierra Madre Oriental,
Mexico (approx. sunrise at 0700 hrs and sunset at 1800 hrs).

the four clay licks {Table I). The maximum

simultaneous count of parrots at a lick was 28
and the maximum daily total for any lick was
63 individuals (in 5 groups). We recorded 326
birds eating clay and the average daily total
was nine parrots per lick. These totals comprised only a small fraction of the estimated
total parrot population (based on roost counts
to be 3,500 individuals at the time of the
study).
Duration of Time at Licks.Groups of parrots stayed on the cliffs from I to 52 min (Table 2) with an average of 18.3 min per group
visitation. The averages are for groups and not
for individuals, many of which spent significant amounts of time during feeding sessions
in alert postures.
DISCUSSION
The Maroon-fronted Parrot exhibited a
strong preference for use of clay licks in late
morning (0900-1100 hrs) in contrast to the
temporal use of licks by parrots in tropical
America. The main use period at tropical
American licks is during the first hour after
dawn (Brightsmith 2004; Mee et al. 2005; J.
D. Gilardi. pers. conun.). Large macaws and

TABLE I.

some parakeets have their main activity in late

morning and afternoons (Brightsmith 2004).
Maroon-fronted Parrots also visit licks in early morning, but the emphasis on late morning
visitations suggests clay ingestion followed
first feedings.
We are unsure if additional clay licks exist
in the Maroon-fronted Parrot range. However,
interviews of local residents and knowledge
that all known licks were in low-elevation
sites of relatively easy access, suggest the four
known licks could represent all lick-s in use by
the parrot population or at least those they
most used and frequented. This possibility is
also suggested by the dispersed distribution of
the licks relative to known nesting colonies of
the species. Twenty-one nesting colonies are
presently known for the species (MaciasCaballero 1998) and the greatest distance
from known colonies to the nearest lick is
17.5 km. This distance compares with distances of 16 km estimated for parrots flying
to and from licks in Peru (Brightsmith 2004).
Ortiz-Maciel (20(K)) estimated individual Maroon-fronted Parrots flew as far as 23 km from
breeding colonies and the known distribution

Numbers of Maroon-fron led Parrots at clay licks in the Sierra Madre Oriental, Mexico.
Numbers iif pacTdls

'I'iine (hrs)

Sla, Cruz

Sta. Rosa

Temporal

Ulli magua

Tolnls

0700-0900
0900-1100
1100-1300
1300-150
1500-1700
Totals

6
42
21
4
0
73

44
34
22
10
0
110

8
70
0
3
0
81

25
25
12
0
0
62

83
171
55
17
0
326

Range

2-16
2-28

8.3

11.4

SD

Croups In)

4.4
7.8
5.8
1.2

10
15
7
4
0
36

1-8
3-6
0

7.8
4.2

1-28

6.4

Valds-Pea et al. * MAROON-FRONTED PARROTS

179

tain a more accurate average and the extent of

individual variation in visitation rates.
Maroon-fron ted Parrots have a diet of pine
Time at clay lifks Imini
seeds and acorns which is rich in protein, carClay lick
Gmups ("]
Range
.SD
bohydrates, and fiber (Fonseca 2003). Wong
Sta. Cruz
(2007) found that pinion seeds (mainly Pinus
8
1-49
21.1
15.89
Sta. Rosa
15
1-52
15.6
12.05 cembroides) eaten by Maroon-fronted Parrots
Temporal
7
9-31
19.1
8.15
had low levels of Na. Ca. Mn. and S; these
Ultimagua
6
5-48
2.3
17.85
minerals occurred in high levels in consumed
Totals
36
18.3
1-52
13.27
clay. Wong (2007) also found that clay had
minerals such as kaolin, smectite, and micas
that can absorb secondary compounds sucb as
of clay licks could serve all known breeding polyphenols and alkaloids suggesting the
clays could also buffer acids. These findings
colonies without need for additional licks.
The two largest known Maroon-fronted suggest that parrots consume clay to help in
Parrot colonies, comprising about 83% of the absorption of dietary toxins, mineral supplebreeding population (in 2005). are 15.5 and ments, and acid buffering capacity as also
9.25 km from the nearest licks, and separated demonstrated by Gilardi et ai. (1999).
from the licks by 1,200 m elevation. The cost
We recommend that areas used for geophof flying to and from licks may cause parrots agy be included as important sites for conserto delay visits to licks until late morning after vation of Maroon-fronted Parrots and that futheir first feedings. Ortiz-Maciel (2000) indi- ture studies of their ecology continue to doccated that peak morning movements of Ma- ument geophagy activity by including more
roon-fronted Parrots occurred between 0600 visits to the clay licks. Future activities should
and 0900 hrs.
involve local people to implement ecotourism
The relatively low numbers of parrots vis- in these areas.
iting licks on any day strongly suggests that
ACKNOWLEDGMENTS
individual parrots may visit licks infrequently.
Visits of the species to favored water sites for
We thank the team work of the Centro de Calidad
drinking, at times attracts up to 1,000 individ- Ambiental at ITESM Campus Monterrey, without
uals per day (NFRS). Observations of the them Ihis work could not have happened. Their friendclosely-related Thick-billed Parrot (Snyder et ship and desire to work for conservation of psitacids
al. 1999) suggest daily drinking periods for contributed to our success. We also thank Jamie Giindividuals^a dramatic contrast to the appar- lardi, Eduardo Iigo, and Donald Brightsmith for comments and revision of ihis paper, and CONACYT. and
ent low frequency of clay ingestion in Ma- the National Commission of Natural Protected Areas
roon-fronted Parrots.
of Mexico (CONANP) for financial support. We also
Maroon-fronted Parrot groups at licks av- thank all the volunteers that collaborated in field work
eraged nine individuals and spent an average and the local people whose hospitality made our field
of 18.3 min at the licks. In South America, stays especially pleasant.
where many parrot species use the same licks
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generally similar to that described for other
Peru. Biotropica 36:534-543.
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DIAMOND, J.. K. D. BISHOP, AND J. D. GLARDI. 1999.
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193.
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at clay licks, Sierra Madre Oriental, Mexico.

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THE WILSON JOURNAL OF ORNITHOLOGY Vol. 120. No. 1. March 2008

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