Lories

Lories and lorikeets are small to medium-sized arboreal parrots characterized by their specialized brush-tipped tongues for feeding on nectar and soft fruits. The species form a monophyletic group within the parrot family Psittacidae. Traditionally, they were considered one of the two subfamilies in that family (Loriinae), the other being the subfamily Psittacinae, but new insights show that it is placed in the middle of various other groups. To date, this issue has not been resolved scientifically. They are widely distributed throughout the Australasian region, including south-eastern Asia, Polynesia, Papua New Guinea and Australia, and the majority have very brightly colored plumage.