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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.

Additional file 1. Bird species recorded in the study area during wet and dry seasons.

A study on foraging ecology and habitat association of blackwinged lovebird was carried out in Entoto Natural Park (ENP) and in Bole Sub-City, Addis Ababa from October 2008 to February 2009. In Entoto Natural Park area, 58.3% of the lovebirds were observed in shrubland habitat while in Bole Sub-City, 69.6% used farmland habitat. Lovebirds used fourteen different plant species in Bole Sub-City and five in Entoto Natural Park. 26.4% of the lovebirds in Bole Sub-City were observed foraging on Zea mays and 16.5 % on Ricinus communis while in Entoto Natural Park, 50% of these lovebirds used the berries of Juniperus procera. Among the identified foraging plant parts, fruit had 60% in Bole Sub-City and 66.6% in Entoto Natural Park. The threat for the habitat quality and food availability in Entoto Natural Park might be the fragmentation of natural habitats and domination of Eucalyptus globulus tree in the area.Keywords/phrases: Abyssinian lovebird; Distribution; FeedingEthiop. J. Biol. Sci., 8(2): 123-133, 2009