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Red-cheeked Parrots are medium-sized parrots. Their plumage is dimorphic, i.e. there is a slight difference between males and females. Both sexes are mostly green, the underparts being a lighter shade of green than the upperparts, in particular the flight feathers. The underwings have pale-blue coverts and mid-grey flight feathers. Males have a red face, with a mauve cap and hindneck, while female Red-cheeked Parrots have brown to brown-olive heads. The irises of both sexes are white; the female's bill is grey, while the male's has a bright-red upper mandible. Legs and feet are grey. Juveniles have a green head and an orange bill that quickly turns grey.

The overall distribution of this species can be assessed, and specific locations where birds have been spotted can be found, based on individual sighting reports submitted by birdwatchers to ebird.org .

The global distribution of the Red-cheeked Parrot is available HERE .

There are in total 17 races of Red-chekeed Parrots. Most of these are found on islands in eastern Indonesia, Timor Leste, Papua and New Guinea.

Two races of Red-cheeked Parrots are found on Australian territory. Race "aruensis" occurs on islands along Torres Strait. Race "maclennani" populates part of the eastern coastal fringe of Cape York peninsula, in far-northern QLD, between about Pascoe and Rocky River. Most sightings by far come from the area of Kutini Payamu (Iron Range) NP to Lockhart River, QLD.

Red-cheeked Parrots are found in tropical rainforest and also in mangrove.

Race "maclennani"