WoPaD: a worldwide dataset of wild parrot diet

Detailed knowledge of the diet composition of parrots (Aves, Psittaciformes) is essential to understand their responses to environmental challenges such as habitat reduction, climate change and ecosystem function disruption. We present WoPaD, a global dataset of dietary information for 266 parrot species obtained via an extensive survey of the available literature. The dataset contains 9960 dietary observations collected between 1920 and 2025 in 66 countries and 599 locations worldwide. In addition to the scientific names, classification and parts of the food items consumed, WoPaD provides information on the habitat types and period of the year when food items were consumed. WoPaD represents the most comprehensive dataset on parrots’ diet up to date, providing a valuable resource for research on behavioral and foraging ecology of parrots worldwide and a baseline for planning conservation and management measures for this threatened avian group. The xlsx file includes 3 spreadsheets. The first spreadsheet “Raw_data” includes 9960 diet composition entries for 266 out of the 391 extant species of parrots26, including the original reference. The second spreadsheet “Metadata” includes a description of the associated metadata on its geographic (country, habitat, coordinates, spatial resolution), logistic (type of observation and data collected) and temporal (study duration, year and months of data collection) parameters and descriptive information about the items consumed, such as: scientific name and classification, status (native, naturalized), number of food consumption observations, consumed part (seed, pulp, fruit, flower, leaves, others, animals). We defined habitat as the environment where a specific parrot species lives and thrives, providing essential elements necessary for survival: food, water, shelter, and space. The third spreadsheet “References” includes the full citation in APA format of the 518 references used to populate the dataset.