Lesser vasa parrot
Coracopsis nigra (Linnaeus, 1758)
The lesser vasa parrot (Coracopsis nigra) is a species in the family Psittaculidae, order Psittaciformes. Recorded adults weigh 186.2 g to 193.5 g and live up to 34.1 years. Its IUCN Red List status is Vulnerable.
Quick facts about the lesser vasa parrot
- Weight
- 186.2 g – 193.5 gsrc for Weight
- Length
- Not recorded
- Lifespan
- 34.1 yearssrc for Lifespan
- Diet
- Frugivoresrc for Diet
- Main food
- Not recorded
- Habitat
- forestsrc for Habitat
- Young per litter or clutch
- 2.4 – 2.7src for Young per litter or clutch
- Lifestyle
- Perchingsrc for Lifestyle
- Migration
- Sedentarysrc for Migration
- Conservation status
- Vulnerable (IUCN)src for Conservation status
- Countries on record
- Not recorded
Where does the lesser vasa parrot live?
Not recorded
Where has it been introduced?
The Global Register of Introduced and Invasive Species lists the lesser vasa parrot as introduced in 1 country.
Also listed for parts of: France (Reunion).
Introduced means brought by people and now present; invasive means the country's checklist records an impact. A species can be native to one part of a country and introduced in another. Source: Global Register of Introduced and Invasive Species (CC BY 4.0).
What is the lesser vasa parrot?
The lesser vasa parrot or black parrot (Coracopsis nigra) is a black coloured parrot endemic to most of Madagascar. It is one of four species of vasa parrots, the others being the greater vasa parrot (C. vasa), the Seychelles black parrot (C. barklyi), and the Comoros black parrot (C. sibilans). The latter two were formerly considered conspecific with the lesser vasa parrot.
Lesser vasa parrots inhabit the mangrove swamps and evergreen forests of Madagascar. They eat seeds, blossoms and fruit - especially berries and mangos.
They build their nests in tree hollows and go through courtship in February. During this time, the female may shed the feathers on her head giving it a yellowish tone. The male's beak may also turn white during this time.
From the Wikipedia article “Lesser vasa parrot” (en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=Lesser_vasa_parrot&oldid=1360702477), by Wikipedia contributors, licensed under CC BY-SA 4.0 (creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/4.0). This block is kept separate from our own text.
Is the lesser vasa parrot endangered?
The lesser vasa parrot is listed as Vulnerable on the IUCN Red List: it faces a high risk of extinction in the wild.
- LCLeast Concern
- NTNear Threatened
- VUVulnerable
- ENEndangered
- CRCritically Endangered
- EWExtinct in the Wild
- EXExtinct
Category via Wikidata (CC0). Find the full assessment on the IUCN Red List. See all Vulnerable species. What the categories mean.
How is the lesser vasa parrot classified?
- kingdomAnimalia
- phylumChordata
- classAves
- orderPsittaciformes
- familyPsittaculidae
- genusCoracopsis
- SpeciesCoracopsis nigra (Linnaeus, 1758)
Synonyms Psittacus niger
Other names and names in other languages (50)
- Black parrotEnglish
- Black parrotEnglish
- Lesser vasa-parrotEnglish
- LVPAEnglish
- Madagascar black parrotEnglish
- Peroked duBreton
- lloro negre petitCatalan
- vaza malýCzech
- parot duWelsh
- Lille VasapapegøjeDanish
- RabenpapageiGerman
- Kleiner VasapapageiGerman
- eta vaza-papagoEsperanto
- Loro negroSpanish
- mustpapagoiEstonian
- pikkumustakaijaFinnish
- Vasa noirFrench
- Perroquet noirFrench
- Vaza noirFrench
- crna papigaCroatian
- kis vázapapagájHungarian
- kis hollópapagájHungarian
- Vasa minoreItalian
- Pappagallo neroItalian
- コクロインコJapanese
- juodoji vazaLithuanian
- SihotsyMalagasy
- Boeza kelyMalagasy
- BolokikelyMalagasy
- KoerakelyMalagasy
- Изи ваза попугайWestern Mari
- Mágí Bitseeʼ Noodǫ́zí Bikéyahdę́ę́ʼ tsídii yáłtiʼí łizhinígííNavajo
- Kleine VasapapegaaiDutch
- svartpapegøyeNorwegian
- papuzica małaPolish
- Papagaio-negroPortuguese
- papagaio-pretoPortuguese
- papagaio-preto-de-madagascarPortuguese
- papagaio-preto-de-madagáscarPortuguese
- Малый вазаRussian
- Чёрный попугайRussian
- Малый попугай-вазаRussian
- krkavčík menšíSlovak
- Mali vaza papagajSerbian
- mindre vasapapegojaSwedish
- Küçük Kara PapağanTurkish
- папуга-ваза малийUkrainian
- папужець-ваза малийUkrainian
- 小瓦薩鸚鵡Chinese
- 马岛小鹦鹉Chinese
Relatives of the lesser vasa parrot
Other species in the same genus Coracopsis.
Greater vasa parrot
Coracopsis vasa
Seychelles black parrot
Coracopsis barklyi
Comoro black parrot
Coracopsis sibilans
CompareLesser vasa parrot vs Greater vasa parrotLesser vasa parrot vs Seychelles black parrotLesser vasa parrot vs Comoro black parrotLesser vasa parrot vs Coracopsis mascarin
Common questions
Answered only where our data holds the answer.
How big is the lesser vasa parrot?
An adult lesser vasa parrot weighs 186.2 g – 193.5 g, according to values recorded on Wikidata.
Is the lesser vasa parrot endangered?
The lesser vasa parrot is listed as Vulnerable on the IUCN Red List, meaning it faces a high risk of extinction in the wild.
How long does the lesser vasa parrot live?
The lesser vasa parrot has a recorded lifespan of 34.1 years.
Is the lesser vasa parrot an invasive species?
The Global Register of Introduced and Invasive Species lists the lesser vasa parrot as introduced in 1 country: Mauritius, but does not flag it as invasive in any of them.
What kind of animal is the lesser vasa parrot?
The lesser vasa parrot (Coracopsis nigra) belongs to the family Psittaculidae in the order Psittaciformes.
Sources and how to cite this page
Data as of 2026-11-14. How this page is put together.
- An amniote life-history database to perform comparative analyses with birds, mammals, and reptiles · CC0 1.0 · E096-269
Myhrvold, N.P., Baldridge, E., Chan, B., Sivam, D., Freeman, D.L. & Ernest, S.K.M. (2015) An amniote life-history database to perform comparative analyses with birds, mammals, and reptiles. Ecology 96: 3109. https://doi.org/10.1890/15-0846R.1. Data: https://doi.org/10.6084/m9.figshare.3563457.v1 - AVONET: morphological, ecological and geographical data for all birds · CC BY 4.0 · v7
Tobias, J.A. et al. (2022) AVONET: morphological, ecological and geographical data for all birds. Ecology Letters 25: 581–597. https://doi.org/10.1111/ele.13898. Data: https://doi.org/10.6084/m9.figshare.16586228.v7 - Catalogue of Life eXtended Release · CC BY 4.0 · 2026-10-16 XR
Catalogue of Life (2026). Catalogue of Life eXtended Release, version 2026-10-16 XR. Catalogue of Life Foundation, Amsterdam, Netherlands. https://doi.org/10.48580/dgzlf - Wikimedia Commons · per file (CC0 / public domain / CC BY green, CC BY-SA amber, anything else not displayed) · 2026-11-11
Wikimedia Commons contributors. Wikimedia Commons. https://commons.wikimedia.org (each file credited to its author under its own licence). - Global Register of Introduced and Invasive Species (GRIIS) · CC BY 4.0 · 2026-11-13
Pagad, S., Genovesi, P., Carnevali, L., Schigel, D. & McGeoch, M.A. (2018) Introducing the Global Register of Introduced and Invasive Species. Scientific Data 5: 170202. https://doi.org/10.1038/sdata.2017.202. Country checklists published through GBIF by the IUCN SSC Invasive Species Specialist Group. - Wikidata · CC0 1.0 · 2026-11-11
Wikidata contributors. Wikidata. https://www.wikidata.org (data retrieved via the Wikidata Query Service). - Wikipedia (English) · CC BY-SA 4.0 · 2026-11-11
Wikipedia contributors. Wikipedia, The Free Encyclopedia. https://en.wikipedia.org (text under CC BY-SA 4.0; each block names its article and revision).
Embed a card for this animal on your own site
Copy this code. The card shows the photo with its credit, key facts and a link back to this page.
CreatureData. (2026). Lesser vasa parrot (Coracopsis nigra). Retrieved from https://creaturedata.com/animals/lesser-vasa-parrot
“Lesser vasa parrot (Coracopsis nigra).” CreatureData, 2026, https://creaturedata.com/animals/lesser-vasa-parrot.
@misc{lesser_vasa_parrot_2026,
title = {Lesser vasa parrot (Coracopsis nigra)},
author = {{CreatureData}},
year = {2026},
url = {https://creaturedata.com/animals/lesser-vasa-parrot},
note = {Data as of 2026-11-14}
}