We call the black-headed variety the "black-headed caique." This common name includes two sub-species of the bird. Their scientific names are Pionites melanocephala. melanocephala (Linné) and Pionites melanocephala pallida (Berlepsch). The one most commonly seen in North America is P. m. melanocephala. The other sub-species is commonly called the "pallid caique" or "pallid black-headed caique." You can tell the difference between these two forms by the color of the feathers on their thighs. The pallid has yellow thighs while the nominate species, P. m. melanocephala has orange thighs. The pallid form is rarely seen in North American aviculture leading some to question if this form even exists. I can assure you it does. I was delighted to see a pet pallid during my visit to the La Selva Jungle Lodge in Ecuador in January 2000. (Pictures of the types of black-headed caiques may be found in the Lexicon of Parrots pages at the Arndt Verlag Website.)

There is another species of caique commonly called the "white-bellied caique" or P. leucogaster. This species is divided into three subspecies. They are the green-thighed white-bellied, P. l. leucogaster (Kuhl); the yellow-thighed white-bellied, P. l. xanthomeria (Sclater) and the yellow-tailed white-bellied, P. l. xanthurus (Todd). The white-bellied are less common in North American aviculture because most originate in Brazil south of the Amazon River. Brazil has not allowed export of parrots for many years. Of these the yellow-thighed are the most common in captivity. The green-thighed, the nominate species, is very rare in captivity. The yellow-tailed is even rarer and not available outside Brazil. The yellow tailed is so rare it is difficult to even find pictures of them. I know of only two and one of the best, along with pictures of the other two subspecies is in the Lexicon of Parrots at the Arndt Verlag website. 

Despite all these differences, most experts agree that all the different forms of caiques are really just one species. They consider the different variants to be what they call con-specific. One proof of this is they are capable of interbreeding. In fact, one of the first recorded breeding of caiques was reported between a black-headed and a white-bellied by Lady Poltimore in England in 1936.

When discussing the different forms, it is best to identify them by their scientific names. This is because even within the same country they are often given different common names. Thus, the black-headed caique is also called the "black-headed parrot" or "black-capped caique." Some even give affectionate names such as "little breeches" or "dirty-faces." Some natives in South America call it the "seven colored parrot." I have compiled a list of common names I have encountered for the different subspecies of caiques in several languages. Some of these are given in Common Names page.