Category Archives: Parrots

Long-billed Corella (Cacatua tenuirostris)

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IMG_6665The Long-billed Corella (Cacatua tenuirostris), or Slender-billed Corella is a cockatoo native to Australia, which is similar in appearance to the Little Corella and Sulphur-crested Cockatoo. This species is mostly white, with a reddish-pink face and forehead, and has a long pale beak, which is used to dig for roots and seeds. It has reddish-pink feathers on the breast and belly.

IMG_6657 IMG_6670 IMG_6660While they are normally found in Victoria and New South Wales, small populations of Long-billed Corellas can be found in other areas of Australia usually public parklands in metropolitan areas. They are probably escaped pets or breeder birds.  I saw these birds in Joondalup near Perth.

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LEARN MORE ABOUT LONG-BILLED CORELLAS

Wikipedia

World Parrot Trust

Birdlife

Birds in Backyards

Traveling Australia

VIDEOS

This is the only embeddable video I could find.

This one is longer, more recent and higher quality but since it’s on Vimeo I can’t embed it.  It shows some wonderfully playful behaviour!  Click here.

Mulga Parrot (Psephotus varius)

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If Australia were to have a beauty contest for parrots, the Mulga Parrot (Psephotus varius) would be a definite contender!

IMG_5764 IMG_5762a IMG_5838aThe Mulga Parrot (Psephotus varius), also known as the Many-colored Parrot, is endemic in arid scrublands and lightly timbered grasslands in the interior of southern Australia.  In the photo just above you can see 2 brightly coloured males and one duller female.

Mulga Parrot range.
Red dot – Nallan Station, Blue dot – Bowra Station

The species ranges across the dryer interior of the Australian continent, from Western New South Wales through the northwestern tip of Victoria and across South Australia and into the dryer central regions of Western Australia west to the Wheatbelt and north to the Pilbara.  The Mulga Parrot is generally encountered in pairs in arid grassland and mulga scrubland.   I have personally seen them at Nallan Station and at Bowra Station.

LEARN MORE ABOUT MULGA PARROTS

Wikipedia

World Parrot Trust

Birdlife

Beauty of Birds

Alice Springs Desert Park

VIDEOS

Breeding pair

 Live action from a webcam.

Meet The Parrots – Nallan Station, Western Australia

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There are so many avian delights at Nallan Station, I will need to break them up into several posts.  Let’s start off with my favourites – the parrots!

BOURKES PARROTS

Seen mostly by Judas Well.  I have a profile on them here.

IMG_5756a IMG_5799a IMG_5980a IMG_5742aMULGA PARROTS

Also seen at Judas Well and in surrounding trees.  Note the brightly coloured male vs the duller female.

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Found flocking with these Mulga Parrots.

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Seen near the shearing shed.  They weren’t the least bit afraid of the workers who were using some pretty noise machinery!

IMG_5852 IMG_5862a IMG_5866 IMG_5874 IMG_5879a IMG_5883a IMG_5886a IMG_5897 IMG_5903 IMG_5912See my post on Cue for more information on how to get here and Western Australia to learn how I organized this trip.

 

 

 

Bourke’s Parrot (Neopsephotus bourkii)

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IMG_5980aThe Bourke’s Parrot (Neopsephotus bourkii, formerly known as Neophema bourkii), also known as the Bourke’s Parakeet, Bourke or “Bourkie”, is a small parrot originating in Australia and the only species in its genus Neopsephotus.  It is a grass parrot approximately 19 cm long and weighing around 45 grams.  It is named after General Sir Richard Bourke, Governor of New South Wales from 1831 to 1837.

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Use your miles to get to Australia as these little beauties are Aussie endemics.  Bourke’s Parrot is widespread across arid and semi-arid areas of the inland, from north-western New South Wales and south-western Queensland to the mid-coast of Western Australia, and from the Devil’s Marbles in Northern Territory south to Port Augusta, South Australia.  I found them easily at Nallan Station in WA and Bowra Station in Queensland.

LEARN MORE ABOUT BOURKE’S PARROTS

Wikipedia

World Parrot Trust

Birdlife

Birds in Backyards

VIDEOS

Sorry, I couldn’t find much on this gorgeous little bird in the wild, plenty of captive bird videos.  Here’s one bird in the wild followed by a captive bird so you can hear what they sound like.

Purple-crowned Lorikeet (Glossopsitta porphyrocephala)

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The Purple-crowned Lorikeet, (Glossopsitta porphyrocephala) is a very small lorikeet, approx. 16 cm in length, with a purple crown, orange forehead and ear-coverts, green upper parts are bright green and a pale blue belly. There is a small patch of bright blue at the bend of wing, with underwing coverts bright red, and obvious in flight.  They are easier to hear than see, often calling in flight. The call is a high-pitched  ‘tzeet, tzeet’.

IMG_5438a IMG_5429a IMG_5388aThe Purple-crowned Lorikeet is found in southwest Western Australia, and in southern South Australia, east from the southern Eyre Peninsula, through the Gawler Range and southern Flinders Ranges and across Victoria to East Gippsland. It is also found on Kangaroo Island.  I was lucky enough to come across a flock at Jerramungup while enroute to Ravensthorpe.

Approximate location of Jerramungup within the Purple-crowned Lorikeet range.

LEARN MORE ABOUT PURPLE-CROWNED LORIKEETS

Wikipedia

World Parrot Trust

Birdlife

NSW Environment & Heritage

Birds in Backyards

VIDEO

Getting ready for his close-up!

Elegant Parrot (Neophema elegans)

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IMG_5100The Elegant Parrot was originally named by the renowned ornithologist and artist John Gould in 1837, its specific name Latin for “elegant”. It is one of six species of grass parrot in the genus Neophema, and within it a member of the subgenus Neonanodes. Its common name is Elegant Parrot, but has also been called Elegant Parakeet, Elegant Grass Parakeet, and Grass Parrot in the past.

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It can be difficult to tell the Neophema species apart in areas where they overlap.  Elegant Parrots overlap with Rock Parrots in Western Australia.  In South Australia and Victoria, they overlap with Blue-winged Parrots and Orange-bellied Parrots.  To see the physical characteristics of each, see this leaflet.

Here’s some more photos I took in Stirling Range National Park which is one of the easiest places to see Elegant Parrots.

IMG_5024a IMG_5027a IMG_5069 IMG_5077 IMG_5078 IMG_5105 IMG_5270 IMG_5280LEARN MORE ABOUT ELEGANT PARROTS

Wikipedia

World Parrot Trust

Birdlife

Birds in Backyards

VIDEO

Regent Parrot (Polytelis anthopeplus)

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The Regent Parrot is one of three species in the genus Polytelis. The parrot is also known variously as the Rock Pebbler, Rock Peplar, Black-tailed Parakeet, Murray Smoker’, Marlock Parakeet and sometimes Regent Parakeet.

IMG_4975 IMG_4863Two subspecies are recognised. While the western subspecies (Polytelis anthopeplus anthopeplus) is listed as “lower risk” or “least concern”, the eastern subspecies (Polytelis anthopeplus monarchoides) is listed as endangered.

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Regent Parrots are easily seen in Dryandra Woodland & Stirling Range National Park, both of which are an easy drive from Perth, Australia.  It was pure magic to watch them bathing in the bird bath at Stirling Range Retreat!

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Range:
P.a. anthopeplus: Inland SE Australia, near middle of Murray and lower Darling Rivers and corresponding tributaries in far SE New South Wales and NW Victoria to nearby E South Australia.
P.a. westralis: SW Australia, north to Lake Moore district and east to eastern Goldfields, Balladonia district, and Israelite Bay.

LEARN MORE ABOUT REGENT PARROTS

Wikipedia

World Parrot Trust

Birdlife

Birds in Backyards

Regent Parrot.org

Environment South Australia

Biodiversity Australia

VIDEO

Beautiful close ups from YouTube!

Red-capped Parrot (Purpureicephalus spurius)

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The Red-capped Parrot (Purpureicephalus spurius), also called the Pileated Parakeet is an Australian species of broad-tailed parrot.  I took the first 3 shots at Foxes Lair.  The middle one is a juvenile.

IMG_4692a IMG_4623a IMG_4633aThe species occurs from the Moore River southwards in southwestern Australia. Its natural habitat is Marri (Corymbia calophylla), but has adpated to farmland, orchards and suburban landscapes in Perth.  Sadly some farmers consider them a pest and will shoot them.

Bird watchers have the best chances of seeing them at Foxes Lair, Dryandra Woodland, Stirling Range and a few lucky people in the Perth area see them in their backyards!  Use your miles to get to Australia, then any of these destinations is a few hours drive from Perth.

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This charming bi-lingual book is about an Aboriginal legend of the Red-capped Parrot which is called “Kaawar” in their language.  I bought a copy at the gift shop at Yanchep National Park but it can also be ordered online.

Kaawar book

 

LEARN MORE ABOUT RED-CAPPED PARROTS

Wikipedia

World Parrot Trust

Birdlife

Birds in Backyards

VIDEOS

Foraging in the grass at Bremer Bay, WA

Short but a good close up of a wild bird.  Most videos were of captive parrots so I took the best I could find!

Western Rosella (Platycercus icterotis)

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The Western Rosella (Platycercus icterotis) less commonly known as the Stanley Rosella, Earl of Derby’s parakeet or Yellow-cheeked parakeet, is the smallest species of rosella and is found in the South West of Australia in Eucalypt forests and timbered areas.  I took the first 2 photos at Dryandra Woodland and the last one at Stirling Range Retreat.

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And here’s a close up from Wikipedia as my shots don’t do this beautiful bird justice!

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Although Western Rosellas can theoretically be found anywhere in South Western Australia, they are sadly becoming harder to find.  I was really happy to have 2 sightings during my trip in Feb 2014 – Dryandra Woodland & Stirling Range Retreat.

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LEARN MORE ABOUT WESTERN ROSELLAS

Wikipedia

World Parrot Trust

Birdlife

Birds in Backyards

VIDEOS

Everyone loves a picnic!

 This is on my other post but it’s worth watching again, especially if you really care about these beautiful birds.

Baudin’s Black Cockatoo (Calyptorhynchus baudinii)

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Baudin’s Black Cockatoo (Calyptorhynchus baudinii), also known as Baudin’s Cockatoo or Long-billed Black Cockatoo,is a large black cockatoo found in Australia. The binomial commemorates the French explorer Nicolas Baudin.

I was lucky enough to see them early in the morning out by Wungong Gorge near Armadale, which is 45 minutes from Perth but unfortunately they had the sun behind them so all I got was a silhouette.  In the future, I would advise going here in the afternoon when the sun would be on the opposite side of the trees where the cockatoos are found.

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At least Wikipedia has a nice close up of this beautiful cockatoo.

BaudinThe Baudin’s Black Cockatoo is one of two species of white-tailed black cockatoo endemic to south-western Australia which were only separated taxonomically in 1948. It is closely associated with moist, heavily forested areas dominated by Marri and is threatened by habitat destruction.

Sites identified by BirdLife International as being important for Baudin’s Black Cockatoo conservation are Araluen-Wungong, Gidgegannup, Jalbarragup, Mundaring-Kalamunda, North Dandalup, the Stirling Range and The Lakes. Local birders also see them around  Margaret River.   In the map below, I have marked out a few of these places that are popular for birders.  Wungong Gorge is purple, Margaret River is green and Stirling Range is blue.

LEARN MORE ABOUT THIS PARROT

Wikipedia

World Parrot Trust

Birdlife

Biodiversity Australia

Murdoch University

VIDEO

Spectacular up close footage of some Baudin’s Black Cockatoos near Perth.