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Lovebirds (genus Agapornis of family Psittaculidae) are a group of small, colourful parrot species endemic to sub-Saharan Africa and Madagascar, two-thirds of which are considered to have declining populations. Effective conservation efforts are hampered by a lack of information, particularly for species occurring in regions that have received little research attention. We combined expert knowledge with a review of the primary and grey literature to identify key knowledge gaps and priority conservation actions for this group of birds. Published studies were found to be largely concentrated on lovebird populations in southern Africa and, to a lesser extent in East Africa, and therefore mostly concern members of the ‘white eye-ring’ clade. Some species, such as the Black-collared Lovebird Agapornis swindernianus, remain very poorly studied, with a lack of even basic information such as georeferenced occurrence records. Several lovebird species were historically taken from the wild in large numbers for the international pet trade, leading to population declines. Although trade in wild lovebirds has been much reduced compared with historical levels, considerable numbers are still captured for local and international trade without any monitoring of the wild populations. Habitat change continues to drive declines in the population and range of some species, particularly those considered habitat specialists, such as the Nyasa Lovebird A. lilianae and the Black-cheeked Lovebird A. nigrigenis. However, changing habitat has also driven range expansions and, in combination with trade, has created numerous novel contact zones between formerly allopatric species, such as between Fischer’s Lovebird A. fischeri and Yellow-collared Lovebird A. personatus. Hybridisation has been widely reported, particularly in East Africa, and studies on the implications of this for conservation, building on recent advances in genetic tools, are urgently needed. We call for more targeted research on lovebirds to inform assessments of their population trends, to understand the drivers of these trends, and to highlight opportunities to leverage existing data and new research tools to advance knowledge to support conservation in this group of birds. Les inséparables (genre Agapornis de la famille des Psittaculidae) sont un groupe de petits perroquets aux couleurs vives, endémiques de l’Afrique subsaharienne et de Madagascar, dont les deux tiers sont considérés comme ayant des populations en déclin. Des efforts de conservation efficaces sont entravés par un manque ’informations, en particulier pour les espèces présentes dans des régions qui reçoivent peu d’attention de la part de la recherche. Nous avons combiné les connaissances d’un panneau d’experts avec un examen de la littérature primaire et grise afin d’identifier simultanément les principales lacunes en matière de connaissances et les actions de conservation prioritaires pour ce groupe d’oiseaux. Les études publiées sont largement concentrées sur les populations d’inséparables d’Afrique australe et, dans une moindre mesure, d’Afrique de l’Est, et concernent donc principalement les membres du groupe «lunettes blanches». Certaines espèces, comme l’inséparable à collier noir Agapornis swindernianus, restent très peu étudiées, avec un manque d’informations de base, telles que des relevés d’occurrence géo-référencés. Plusieurs espèces d’inséparables ont été historiquement prélevées en très grand nombre dans la nature pour le commerce international des animaux de compagnie, ce qui a entraîné un déclin des populations. Bien que le commerce des inséparables sauvages ait été considérablement réduit par rapport aux niveaux historiques, un nombre considérable d’oiseaux sont encore capturés pour le commerce local et international sans qu’aucun suivi des populations sauvages ne soit effectué. Les altérations des habitats continuent à entraîner le déclin des populations et de l’aire de répartition de certaines espèces, en particulier celles qui sont considérées comme des spécialistes, telles que l’inséparable de Lilian A. lilianae et l’inséparable à joues noires A. nigrigenis. Cependant, certaines modifications des habitats ont également permis dans certains cas l’expansion de l’aire de répartition et, en combinaison avec le commerce, ont créé de nombreuses nouvelles zones de contact entre des espèces autrefois allopatriques, telles que les inséparables de Fischer A. fischeri et les inséparables masqués A. personatus. L’hybridation a été largement signalée, en particulier en Afrique de l’Est, et des études sur les implications de ce phénomène pour la conservation, s’appuyant sur les progrès récents des outils génétiques, sont urgents. Nous appelons à une recherche plus ciblée sur les inséparables afin d’obtenir des informations solides pour les évaluations des tendances des populations, de comprendre les causes derrière ces tendances et, finalement, de mettre en évidence les opportunités d’exploiter les données existantes et les nouveaux outils de recherche afin de faire progresser efficacement les connaissances pour soutenir la conservation de ce groupe d’oiseaux.

Lovebirds (genus Agapornis of family Psittaculidae) are a group of small, colourful parrot species endemic to sub-Saharan Africa and Madagascar, two-thirds of which are considered to have declining populations. Effective conservation efforts are hampered by a lack of information, particularly for species occurring in regions that have received little research attention. We combined expert knowledge with a review of the primary and grey literature to identify key knowledge gaps and priority conservation actions for this group of birds. Published studies were found to be largely concentrated on lovebird populations in southern Africa and, to a lesser extent in East Africa, and therefore mostly concern members of the ‘white eye-ring’ clade. Some species, such as the Black-collared Lovebird Agapornis swindernianus, remain very poorly studied, with a lack of even basic information such as georeferenced occurrence records. Several lovebird species were historically taken from the wild in large numbers for the international pet trade, leading to population declines. Although trade in wild lovebirds has been much reduced compared with historical levels, considerable numbers are still captured for local and international trade without any monitoring of the wild populations. Habitat change continues to drive declines in the population and range of some species, particularly those considered habitat specialists, such as the Nyasa Lovebird A. lilianae and the Black-cheeked Lovebird A. nigrigenis. However, changing habitat has also driven range expansions and, in combination with trade, has created numerous novel contact zones between formerly allopatric species, such as between Fischer’s Lovebird A. fischeri and Yellow-collared Lovebird A. personatus. Hybridisation has been widely reported, particularly in East Africa, and studies on the implications of this for conservation, building on recent advances in genetic tools, are urgently needed. We call for more targeted research on lovebirds to inform assessments of their population trends, to understand the drivers of these trends, and to highlight opportunities to leverage existing data and new research tools to advance knowledge to support conservation in this group of birds.

Lilian’s Lovebird Agapornis lilianae is a non-excavating cavity user of mopane Colophospermum mopane woodlands. We investigated roost characteristics of Lilian’s Lovebirds in Liwonde National Park, Malawi. We quantified tree and roost site variables for roost and non-roost trees. Sixty-six roosts were found. Roosts were in large tall mopane trees with a mean diameter at breast height (dbh) of 57.4 ± 1.64 cm, a mean height of 16.5 ± 0.42 m, and with a mean cavity entrance height of 10.0 ± 0.05 m. Non-roost areas had significantly smaller trees (mean dbh = 39.4 ± 1.72 cm). Human disturbance was low in both areas, but browsing of African elephant Loxodonta africana was evident by large areas of stunted mopane woodland recorded in non-roost areas. We recommend that the current Liwonde National Park vegetation map be updated to highlight areas of stunted mopane woodland unsuitable for Lilian’s Lovebird roosts. The impact of elephant browsing on large mopane trees should be assessed to understand its impact on the availability of suitable cavities for lovebirds and other tree cavity reliant vertebrate species.Keywords: Agapornis lilianae, cavity, conservation, lovebird, mopane, parrot, roosting

Lilian’s Lovebird Agapornis lilianae is regarded as a mopane Colophospermum mopane woodland specialist. Its global population is sparse and is spread along the Zambezi valley with little known about its current distribution and status. We explored the current distribution of Lilian’s Lovebird in Malawi, and in particular focused on the distribution and habitat associations of the largest resident population in Liwonde National Park (LNP). Local birders and tourist guides provided distribution information from across Malawi. Transect walks were conducted to collect data in LNP. Five new atlas records are reported; three were within 40–56 km of the LNP population and two were over 150 km south and north of LNP, respectively. One of the sites is about 66 km from the Lilian’s Lovebird population in Luangwa Valley, Zambia. New national records were evidence of the importance of seasonal movements to the species. Lilian’s Lovebirds occurred throughout LNP with the highest abundance in the central section. Seasonal movements to areas outside the park were also recorded. A variety of vegetation types were used by the lovebirds, but the strongest habitat associations were with seasonally wet grasslands and not mopane woodlands as would be expected. Thus, conservation efforts should also include these other habitats.Keywords Agapornis lilianae, distribution, habitat association, Lilian’s Lovebird, mopane woodlandOSTRICH 2014, 85(3): 267–272