NATURAL HISTORY · CATALOGUE RECORD
Red-collared Lorikeet
Trichoglossus rubritorquis Vigors & Horsfield, 1827
Source-backed taxonomic record
Accepted species in Catalogue of Life’s 11 September 2026 base release. This preserves the source classification and available supporting data; it is not a completed species monograph.
Open encyclopedia reference
The red-collared lorikeet (Trichoglossus rubritorquis) is a species of parrot found in wooded habitats in northern Australia (north-eastern Western Australia, northern Northern Territory and far north-western Queensland). It was previously considered a subspecies of the rainbow lorikeet, but today most major authorities consider them as separate species. No other member of the rainbow lorikeet group has an orange-red collar over the nape.
Every year at the end of the dry season in Darwin, many of them display symptoms of apparent drunkenness. What causes this condition is unclear, though it is thought to be most likely due to a seasonal virus. Intoxication with fermented nectar has been ruled out.
Wikipedia contributors, Red-collared lorikeet; see linked history · CC BY-SA 4.0 . Plain-text lead excerpt, at most 180 words; no infobox or later sections Retrieved 2026-10-05T07:50:03.522191+00:00. This reference remains separate from the taxonomic record.
Identity & source status
- Scientific name
- Trichoglossus rubritorquis Vigors & Horsfield, 1827
- Name authority
- Vigors & Horsfield, 1827
- Common name
- Red-collared Lorikeet
- Rank
- species
- Accepted status
- accepted
- Kingdom
- Animalia
- Phylum
- Chordata
- Class
- Aves
- Order
- Psittaciformes
- Family
- Psittaculidae
- Genus
- Trichoglossus
- Extinction status
- Recorded extant
Classification family tree
Nested taxonomic groups from the source. This is not a direct-ancestor chain, a dated evolutionary tree or a phylogenetic reconstruction.
- domainEukaryota (Chatton, 1925) Whittaker & Margulis, 1978
- kingdomAnimalia
- phylumChordata
- subphylumVertebrata
- infraphylumGnathostomata
- parvphylumOsteichthyes
- megaclassTetrapoda
- classAves
- orderPsittaciformes
- familyPsittaculidae
- genusTrichoglossus Stephens, 1826
- speciesTrichoglossus rubritorquis Vigors & Horsfield, 1827
Close classified relatives
These entries share the source’s genus, Trichoglossus. They are not necessarily the closest relatives established by molecular evidence.
| Species | Classification | Source status |
|---|---|---|
| Olive-headed LorikeetTrichoglossus euteles (Temminck, 1835) | PsittaculidaeChordata | Accepted speciesRecorded extant |
| Coconut LorikeetTrichoglossus haematodus (Linnaeus, 1771) | PsittaculidaeChordata | Accepted speciesRecorded extant |
| Pohnpei LorikeetTrichoglossus rubiginosus (Bonaparte, 1850) | PsittaculidaeChordata | Accepted speciesRecorded extant |
| Leaf LorikeetTrichoglossus weberi (Büttikofer, 1894) | PsittaculidaeChordata | Accepted speciesRecorded extant |
| Biak LorikeetTrichoglossus rosenbergii Schlegel, 1871 | PsittaculidaeChordata | Accepted speciesRecorded extant |
| Marigold LorikeetTrichoglossus capistratus (Bechstein, 1811) | PsittaculidaeChordata | Accepted speciesRecorded extant |
| Scaly-breasted LorikeetTrichoglossus chlorolepidotus (Kuhl, 1820) | PsittaculidaeChordata | Accepted speciesRecorded extant |
| Sunset LorikeetTrichoglossus forsteni Bonaparte, 1850 | PsittaculidaeChordata | Accepted speciesRecorded extant |
| Rainbow LorikeetTrichoglossus moluccanus (J. F. Gmelin, 1788) | PsittaculidaeChordata | Accepted speciesRecorded extant |
Documented distribution
Source distribution statements, not a complete range map. A listed locality is not necessarily a place of origin.
Southern Asia
Source literature & publication evidence
References attached to this source record, including nomenclatural citations where supplied. This is a selected bibliography; abbreviated citations remain in the source’s form.
- https://www.itis.gov/servlet/SingleRpt/SingleRpt?search_topic=TSN&search_value=554808 Source fields: Taxon.tsv dwc:namePublishedIn, Taxon.tsv dcterms:references
Origins, evidence & remaining research
Name authority and publication references document nomenclature where the source supplies it. They do not establish evolutionary origins or the earliest fossil occurrence.
Specimen-level evidence, morphology, ecological research, phylogenetic studies, a comprehensive bibliography and a located literary passage have not yet been compiled for this record. A suitable sourced image remains to be added.
Dataset citation & attribution
This exact taxon in ChecklistBank · Catalogue of Life 2026-09-11
Catalogue of Life 2026-09-11; dataset 316321; doi:10.48580/dgz5n. https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/ . Retrieved 5 October 2026.
Stable key: col:58CKD. Classification follows source parent identifiers. English common names may vary by region.