Small, medium and big parrots

[Rozalka]

I'm just curious - do you guys have some criteria how to classify parrots by size?
I know, the size isn't any classification at all and everybody can take this in very different way.
As a child I created these criteria and I'm still using these but... I was a child then and I see some "errors"
Big: kakapo, cockatoos (without cockatiels), Congo & Timneh grey parrots, macaws, hawk headed parrots, amazons, Pesquet's parrots, vassa parrots, eclectus parrots, Tanygnathus and maybe shining parrots
Medium: All 20+ cm not mentioned above
Small: up to 20cm

 

[HeatherG]

Huh. I would consider my Quaker a small parrot and Meyers a medium parrot. The Quaker is a parakeet and much lighter than the Meyers even if he may be longer (counting the tail).

Do you have something built in for parakeets, to exclude the tail length? Or am I just being a pain?

I’m asking because I’ve wondered how to describe a Meyers parrot in terms of size.

 

[Rozalka]

Do you have something built in for parakeets, to exclude the tail length?

During my today morning overthinking I was thinking about new criteria which would take into account only the size and tail length. My suggestion was:
Short tailed parrots:
small: up to 20 cm
medium: 20-30 cm
big: 30+ cm
Long tailed parrots:
small: up to 25 cm
medium: 25-40cm
big: 40+ cm
but I haven't checked if it's a good idea.

In both versions Monk parakeet would be a medium parrot because they are 29 cm (I don't see anything wrong with it, for me they've always been kinda massive).
I checked that Jardine's parrot also is a medium parrot in both versions

Of course, if you consider QP's as small, it's fine because there's no official division.
It's like with cockatiels - I've seen people considering them as small parrots but somehow the first version I saw (as medium parrots) is the closest one for me... but the first version doesn't have to be the best

 

[HeatherG]

Ok. I think Quaker parakeets are kind of on border between small and medium sized, especially when most people have as pets budgies. A Quaker is bigger than a robin and to some that means “big bird”.

I haven’t measured Jasper (Meyers) but when I think “medium sized parrot” that’s the size I think of. But part of my classification of medium sized parrot seems to be a bird with a big beak that can do real damage.

Funny how we group things in our heads isn’t it?

 

[Rozalka]

I checked measure of both species and Jardine's parrots are about 28 cm, so they are very similar to QPs... but the tail is always counted.

I had even a moment when I was thinking about grouping medium parrots to "small-medium" and "big-medium" (because eg genus Psittaculla - Alex is much bigger than IRN) but I don't really use it... maybe just for species from the lower border such as green cheeked conure (it's 26 cm, so very close to my 25 border suggestion), so sometimes I call them as "small-medium" parrots

 

[zERo]

If I was gonna make something like this I would probably go off of weight rather than length but that because I've trained myself to do so with snakes and that's based on weight in grams just like birds.

 

[wrench13]

Me, I go by potential damage

Parakeets - a Boo Boo
Parrotlets, Green Cheek Conures, Cockatiels - A happy face Band-aid
Indian Ringnecks, Sun Conures, Caiques - full size Band Aid
Small Amazons, Senegals, Meyers - Steri-pad and tape
Amazons, African Greys, small Cockatoos, mini-Macs - 1 or 2 stitches
Macaws and large Cockatoos - 3-5 stitches
Black Cockatoos, Hyacinth macaws - 5+ stitches and or missing finger, ear or eye.