Patagonian Conures are the largest members of the Conure family. They measure about 18 - 20 inches long. These beautiful birds make excellent pets though they can be quite noisy at times. Patagonians are good mimics and good talkers. Like most Conures, Patagonians love to chew and need a nice supply of safe tree limbs, twigs and toys to satisfy their need to chew on wood. Patagonians are generally sweet, intelligent and playful birds that bond quite nicely to their owners. Patagonian Conures are ideal pets for those who like excitement. They are rarely still; they dance, bob, climb, tumble and play for most of the day.

The Patagonian Conure is the only member of its genus. It is the largest member of the conure family with a sub-species being 53 cm (20 in) from forehead to tip of tail. There are three types of Patagonians: the Lesser, Greater, and Andean. The difference between them is size, and extent of yellow and red on their abdomen, and the extent of white on the upper breast.

The general colours of the Patagonian are different shades of dark olive-green with yellow highlights on the head and side of the wings. The breast is a dark greyish shade with some dark bluish highlights. The upper breast has a white streak starting at the shoulders reaching towards the centre like a necklace. The Greater Patagonian has the most complete necklace; the Andean has only a small amount near the shoulders. The centre of the abdomen and the inner thighs are orange-red and surrounding this red patch is bright yellow. The Andean type has little or no yellow and the red is very dull. The primary flights and coverts are dark blue. The beak is black and the irises nearly white in the adult bird. Young birds have a grey iris and white upper beak. There is a bare white area surrounding the eye. The Patagonian is the only Conure that has feathers covering their nostrils.

While these parrots can be endearing companions they do require a lot of one on one time in order to remain tame. Many who share their lives with Patagonian Conures say that they resemble Macaws more than Conures, due to their shaped eye patches, and personalities.