Editing Parakeet (section)

== Summary ==
[[File: Melopsittacus undulatus -Atlanta Zoo, Georgia, USA-8a-2c.jpg|thumb|The Australian [[budgerigar]], or shell parakeet, is a popular pet and the most common parakeet]]
Parakeets comprise about 115 species of birds that are seed-eating parrots of small size, slender build, and long, tapering tails.{{fact|date=March 2023}} The [[Australia]]n [[Parakeet|budgerigar]], also known as "budgie", ''Melopsittacus undulatus'', is probably the most common parakeet. It was first described by zoologists in 1891. It is the most popular species of parakeet kept as a pet in North America and Europe. 

[[File:Rose-ringed Parakeet RWD.jpg|thumb|A rose-ringed parakeet (''[[Psittacula krameri]]'').]]
The term "grass parakeet" (or ''grasskeet'') refers to many small Australian parakeets native to grasslands such as the genus ''[[Neophema]]'' and the [[princess parrot]]. The Australian [[rosella]]s are also parakeets. Many of the smaller, long-tailed species of [[Lory|lories]] may be referred to as "lorikeets". The vernacular name [[ring-necked parakeet]] (not to be confused with the [[Australian ringneck]]) refers to a species of the genus ''[[Psittacula]]'' native to Africa and Asia that is popular as a pet and has become [[feral]] in many cities outside its natural range.

In [[aviculture]], the term "[[conure]]" is used for small to medium-sized parakeets of the genera ''[[Aratinga]]'', ''[[Pyrrhura]]'', and a few other genera of the [[Tribe (zoology)|tribe]] [[Arini (tribe)|Arini]], which are mainly endemic to South America.  As they are not all from one genus, taxonomists tend to avoid the term.  Other South American species commonly called parakeets include the genus ''[[Brotogeris]]'' parakeets, the [[monk parakeet]], and [[lineolated parakeet]]s, although lineolateds have short tails.

A larger species may be referred to as "parrot" or "parakeet" interchangeably.  For example, "Alexandrine parrot" and "Alexandrine parakeet" are two common names for the same species, [[Alexandrine parakeet|''Psittacula eupatria'']], which is one of the largest species normally referred to as a parakeet.

Many different species of parakeets are bred and sold commercially as pets, the [[budgerigar]] being the third most popular pet in the world,<ref>{{cite book|title=The New Encyclopedia of Birds|edition=1|editor1-first=Christopher|editor1-last=Perrins|year=2003|location=Oxford|publisher=[[Oxford University Press]]|chapter=Parrots, Lories, and Cockatoos|isbn=9780198525066}}</ref> after cats and dogs.