What is "parrot"

Parrot \Par"rot\ (p[a^]r"r[u^]t), n. [Prob. fr. F. Pierrot, dim. of Pierre Peter. F. pierrot is also the name of the sparrow. Cf. Paroquet, Petrel, Petrify.]

1. (Zo["o]l.) In a general sense, any bird of the order Psittaci.

2. (Zo["o]l.) Any species of Psittacus, Chrysotis, Pionus, and other genera of the family Psittacid[ae], as distinguished from the parrakeets, macaws, and lories. They have a short rounded or even tail, and often a naked space on the cheeks. The gray parrot, or jako ( Psittacus erithacus) of Africa (see Jako), and the species of Amazon, or green, parrots ( Chrysotis) of America, are examples. Many species, as cage birds, readily learn to imitate sounds, and to repeat words and phrases.

   Carolina parrot (Zo["o]l.), the Carolina parrakeet. See Parrakeet.

   Night parrot, or Owl parrot. (Zo["o]l.) See Kakapo.

   Parrot coal, cannel coal; -- so called from the crackling and chattering sound it makes in burning. [Eng. & Scot.]

   Parrot green. (Chem.) See Scheele's green, under Green, n.

   Parrot weed (Bot.), a suffrutescent plant ( Bocconia frutescens) of the Poppy family, native of the warmer parts of America. It has very large, sinuate, pinnatifid leaves, and small, panicled, apetalous flowers.

   Parrot wrasse, Parrot fish (Zo["o]l.), any fish of the genus Scarus. One species ( Scarus Cretensis), found in the Mediterranean, is esteemed by epicures, and was highly prized by the ancient Greeks and Romans.

Parrot \Par"rot\, v. t. To repeat by rote, without understanding, as a parrot.

Parrot \Par"rot\, v. i. To chatter like a parrot.

1520s, of uncertain origin, perhaps from dialectal Middle French perrot, from a variant of Pierre "Peter;" or perhaps a dialectal form of perroquet (see parakeet). Replaced earlier popinjay. The German naturalist Alexander von Humboldt in South America in 1800 encountered a very old parrot that was the sole speaker of a dead Indian language, the original tribe having gone extinct.

"repeat without understanding," 1590s, from parrot (n.). Related: Parroted; parroting.

n. 1 A kind of bird, many species of which are colourful and able to mimic human speech, of the order Psittaciformes or (narrowly) of the family Psittacidae. 2 A parroter; a person who repeats what was just said. 3 (context archaic English) A puffin. 4 (context geology obsolete English) channel coal. vb. (context transitive English) To repeat (exactly what has just been said) without necessarily showing understanding, in the manner of a parrot.

v. repeat mindlessly; "The students parroted the teacher's words"

1. n. usually brightly colored zygodactyl tropical birds with short hooked beaks and the ability to mimic sounds

2. a copycat who does not understand the words or acts being imitated

Parrot can refer to:

Biology

• Parrots, any of about 353 species of birds belonging to the biological order Psittaciformes, which includes:
  • True parrots
  • Cockatoos
  • New Zealand parrots
• Psittacosis (parrot disease or parrot fever), an infectious disease of parrots
• Parrot crossbill, a small passerine bird in the finch family Fringillidae
• Parrot waxcap, a fungus
• Parrot feather, Myriophyllum aquaticum, a flowering plant, also called water milfoils

Company:

• Parrot (company), a French company which produces wireless products
• Parrot Corporation, a British floppy disk manufacturer
• Parrot Records, American record label, a division of London Records
• Parrot Records (blues label), American Chicago-based record label

Computer programming:

• Parrot virtual machine, an interpreter currently being developed for Perl 6 and other dynamic programming languages
• Parrot assembly language, an assembly language used to program the virtual machine

Surname:

• Georg Friedrich Parrot (1767–1852), Estonian scientist
• Johann Jacob Friedrich Wilhelm Parrot (1792–1841), Estonian naturalist
• Philippe Parrot (1831–1894), French painter
• William Parrot, birth name of the English music hall performer best known under the stage name Talbot O'Farrell (18781952)

Other:

• Parrot (crater), a lunar impact crater

Aircraft

• CZAW Parrot, a Czech light-sport aircraft

Parrot is the remains of a lunar crater that has been almost completely worn away. It is attached to the southern rim of the crater Albategnius, and is located among the rugged highlands among the south-central part of the visible Moon. To the east is the small crater Vogel, and in the southeast is Arzachel.

Little remains of the southwestern rim of Parrot, and the other sections of the wall have been worn and smoothed by impact erosion. The remains of a pair of overlapping craters occupy much of the northern floor of the crater, and the remainder is irregular but relatively flat. No central peak remains.

A groove structure intersects the southeast and part of the northern rim, following an intermittent line from the south-southeast to the north-northwest.

Parrots, also known as psittacines , are birds of the roughly 393 species in 92 genera that make up the order Psittaciformes, found in most tropical and subtropical regions. The order is subdivided into three superfamilies: the Psittacoidea ("true" parrots), the Cacatuoidea (cockatoos), and the Strigopoidea (New Zealand parrots). Parrots have a generally pantropical distribution with several species inhabiting temperate regions in the Southern Hemisphere, as well. The greatest diversity of parrots is in South America and Australasia.

Characteristic features of parrots include a strong, curved bill, an upright stance, strong legs, and clawed zygodactyl feet. Many parrots are vividly coloured, and some are multi-coloured. Most parrots exhibit little or no sexual dimorphism. They form the most variably sized bird order in terms of length.

The most important components of most parrots' diets are seeds, nuts, fruit, buds, and other plant material. A few species sometimes eat animals and carrion, while the lories and lorikeets are specialised for feeding on floral nectar and soft fruits. Almost all parrots nest in tree hollows (or nest boxes in captivity), and lay white eggs from which hatch altricial (helpless) young.

Parrots, along with ravens, crows, jays, and magpies, are among the most intelligent birds, and the ability of some species to imitate human voices enhances their popularity as pets. Some parrots are intelligent and talk at the level of a four-to-five year old human. Trapping wild parrots for the pet trade, as well as hunting, habitat loss, and competition from invasive species, has diminished wild populations, with parrots being subjected to more exploitation than any other group of birds. Measures taken to conserve the habitats of some high-profile charismatic species have also protected many of the less charismatic species living in the same ecosystems.