Editing Amazon parrot (section)

===Breeding===
The exact breeding age of wild birds is not precisely known. For captive-bred birds, the average breeding age is around four years, with some larger groups like yellow-crowned amazons requiring six years. Captive birds as old as 30 years have laid eggs.<ref>{{Cite journal|url = https://journals.tdl.org/watchbird/index.php/watchbird/article/view/902|title = Common Breeding Problems in Amazon Parrots|journal = Afa Watchbird|year = 1995|volume = 22|issue = 3|pages = 30–31|last1 = Jordan|first1 = Rick|access-date = 2021-07-16|archive-date = 2021-07-16|archive-url = https://web.archive.org/web/20210716014856/https://journals.tdl.org/watchbird/index.php/watchbird/article/view/902|url-status = live}}</ref> Amazon parrots average 5 weeks for nest initiation, with most successful nestings averaging 2.2 [[Fledgling (birds)|fledglings]].<ref>{{Cite journal|url=https://pdfs.semanticscholar.org/5bfa/cb286dd5d41fbe304804126d6edc2dff963f.pdf|s2cid=3948646|doi=10.5751/ACE-01071-120206|title=Reproductive parameters of the Turquoise-fronted Parrot (Amazona aestiva) in the dry Chaco forest|year=2017|last1=Berkunsky|first1=Igor|last2=Segura|first2=Luciano N.|last3=Ruggera|first3=Román A.|last4=Faegre|first4=Sarah I. K.|last5=Trofino-Falasco|first5=Clara|last6=López|first6=Fernando G.|last7=Velasco|first7=Melina A.|last8=Kacoliris|first8=Federico P.|last9=Aramburú|first9=Rosana M.|last10=Reboreda|first10=Juan C.|journal=Avian Conservation and Ecology|volume=12|issue=2|access-date=2021-07-16|archive-date=2021-07-16|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20210716014810/https://pdfs.semanticscholar.org/5bfa/cb286dd5d41fbe304804126d6edc2dff963f.pdf|url-status=live}}</ref> Amazon parrots mostly breed during late winter and spring, as they are [[seasonal breeder]]s.<ref name="mitchell">{{cite book|last1=Mitchell|first1=Mark|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=JMTUKwzPEvwC&pg=PA255|title=Manual of Exotic Pet Practice|last2=Tully Jr.|first2=Thomas N.|date=4 March 2008|publisher=Elsevier Health Sciences|isbn=978-1-4160-0119-5|access-date=19 July 2021|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20210720061558/https://books.google.com/books?id=JMTUKwzPEvwC&pg=PA255|archive-date=20 July 2021|url-status=live}}</ref>{{rp|255}} This may happen due to seasonal food availability or a lower chance of flooding, as the period is generally dry. West Indian amazon parrots tend to breed earlier than Mexican amazon parrots, with Mexican amazon parrots having their peak at March to April while West Indian amazon parrots peak in March.<ref name=luescher/>{{rp|16}}

Captive birds are likelier to be less fertile. A variety of hypotheses to explain the phenomenon have been proposed - Low (1995) suggests that this is because amazon parrots have shorter breeding seasons, while Hagen (1994) suggests that this is because male and female parrots may not be ready for breeding at the same times.<ref>{{Cite journal|url=http://www.parrotbreeding.com.au/8navG625r2X3gY1/wp-content/uploads/2014/01/HBD-trial-paper-22.1.14.pdf|title=Captive Amazon parrots and their diet: a study on reproductive success|year=2014|last=Gowland|first=Daniel J.|journal=Queanbeyan: Priam Psittaculture Centre Research & Breedinge|access-date=2021-07-16|archive-date=2021-03-21|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20210321102912/http://www.parrotbreeding.com.au/8navG625r2X3gY1/wp-content/uploads/2014/01/HBD-trial-paper-22.1.14.pdf|url-status=live}}</ref>{{rp|12}}