The Red-Winged parrot (Aprosmictus erythropterus), is a parrot native to Australia and Papua New Guinea. It is found in grasslands, savannah, farmland, and woodland.
They have quite a large range throughout Queensland, Australia and even a small bit of Papua New Guinea. I found it quite easy to see them at Lake Coolmunda, especially near the caravan park and near the shearer’s quarters at Bowra Station (blue dots).
The Little Corella (Cacatua sanguinea), also known as the bare-eyed cockatoo, blood-stained cockatoo, short-billed corella, little cockatoo and blue-eyed cockatoo, is a white cockatoo native to Australia and southern New Guinea. It was known as Birdirra among the Yindjibarndi people of the central and western Pilbara.
Little Corellas are seen just about everywhere, often flocking together with Galahs. They frequent the park near my house, I can hear them flying overhead most mornings. They have a huge range in Australia and are found in all capital cities so whichever gateway city you use, you are bound to see them even before you hit the bush!
The eastern Bluebonnet (Northiella haematogaster) is an Australian parrot, one of two species in the genus Northiella.The Bluebonnet is a medium sized inland parrot commonly found in the interior of southeastern and central-southern Australia. It is adapted to life in semi-arid regions but can also flourish in regions of medium rainfall towards the eastern and southern extremities of its range. Since my photos are too blurry (see below) to do justice to the subtle beauty of this bird, I have to reply on Wikipedia’s photo.
I only saw them at a distance.
They do have a large range over most of inland eastern Australia. I have personally seen them at Bowra Station & Mosquito Creek Road near Lake Coolmunda (blue dots) in SE Queensland. Both times the birds were flying at lightning speed but at least the Coolmunda birds made a nice semi-circle through the trees giving me more time to try to get a photo!
It wasn’t easy to find a video of these birds in the wild though there are some captive bird on Youtube. I found this clip on Vimeo but you have to click through to Vimeo to see it.
The Little Lorikeet (Glossopsitta pusilla) is a species of parrot in the Psittaculidae family. It is endemic to Australia. It is a small parrot, predominantly green in plumage with a red face. Its natural habitats are subtropical or tropical dry forests and subtropical or tropical moist lowland forests.
They can be very hard to photograph as they tend to stay high up in trees and blend in well with the foliage but I finally got a decent shot in Durikai National Forest, near Karara.
They have a large range on the eastern side of Australia. I have seen them at Woodlands near MEL, several reserves in the Brisbane area and at Durikai National Forest.
One of the birds you are most likely to see in Australia is also one of the most beautiful. The galahEolophus roseicapilla, also known as the rose-breasted cockatoo, galah cockatoo, roseate cockatoo or pink and grey, is one of the most common and widespread cockatoos, and it can be found in open country in almost all parts of mainland Australia.
Notice how this first Galah’s crest (Nallan Station) is pinker than the other ones?
Galahs are known for their silly, playful nature. If an Aussie calls you a “galah”, they usually don’t mean it as a compliment!
You won’t have to try to hard to find them as they are pretty much all over Australia. I’ve seen them around Perth, Nallan Station, Stirling Range, Tasmania, Melbourne, Brisbane, Bowra Station, Coolmunda, Karara, Girraween just to name a few. They frequent the park a couple blocks from my house and I can usually hear them as they fly overhead in the morning to forage for breakfast.
The Cockatiel (Nymphicus hollandicus), also known as the quarrion and the weiro, is a member of the cockatoo family endemic to Australia. Cockatiels have a special place in my heart as they were the first bird I had as a pet and it was my love for them that led me to learn more about them and ultimately led to me being a conservationist. It will always be a magical experience for me to see them in the wild!
They have a large range covering most of Australia but seeing them is harder than you may think as they prefer remote grassy bushlands and they blend in well if they are on the ground foraging. Mosquito Creek Road and Bowra Station (blue dots) are 2 easy places to find them. I recommend searching on eBird since they are so widespread and there is bound to be a place within a reasonable drive from most cities in Australia.
Any search through Youtube will find 1000’s of pet cockatiel videos so I had to search for the wild cockatiel clips. I found some good ones showing wild cockatiels going about their daily life in the bush.
I wish I could see this many all at once!
Mini doco with good basic info but be advised that some photos are pet mutation cockatiels, not the wild ones though they also have wild cockatiel pics.
The Red-rumped Parrot (Psephotus haematonotus), also known as the red-backed parrot or grass parrot, is a common bird of south-eastern Australia, particularly in the Murray-Darling Basin. The red-rumped parrot was described by John Gould in 1838 and is the type species for the genus Psephotus. It was long presumed to be closely related to the mulga parrot, however analysis of multiple genetic material shows it to be an early offshoot of a group containing the genera Platycercus and Barnardius.
At Lake Coolmunda, male Red-rumps were out foraging in all their glory but I struggled to get a good shot of a female. I found this nesting pair near Karara but the lighting was bad.
They have quite a large range in south-eastern Australia. I have personally seen them at Woodlands Park, Melbourne, Bowra Station, Lake Coolmunda, Karara and around SEQ in general.
This clip has excellent close ups of both male and female and you can really see the difference. You can also hear their call and watch them forage in the grass.
The Rainbow Lorikeet (Trichoglossus moluccanus) is a species of parrot found in Australia. It is common along the eastern seaboard, from northern Queensland to South Australia and Tasmania. Its habitat is rainforest, coastal bush and woodland areas. Several taxa traditionally listed as subspecies of the rainbow lorikeet are now treated as separate species (see Taxonomy) or this more detailed explanation of taxonomy.
Rainbow Lorikeets are readily found in towns along the eastern Australian seaboard. You don’t have to go birding to see them in Brisbane, they are everywhere! They visit my back yard and front yard most days of the year and roost noisily in the trees outside the Chermside Shopping Centre in the 1000’s. A smaller population has been introduced to parks near Perth, WA.
Here you see Rainbow Lorikeets in the bush and also some which frequent a wildlife park – Currumbin Sanctuary. All the birds are wild, they just like a free feed like anyone else!
They’ve been called the “Holy Grail” of Australian birders and I have to agree! I am dying to see a Night Parrot in the wild but this may be a far distant dream for now. The elusive bird has only been seen 3 times by expert researchers in the last 2 years and the exact location is top secret to protect the birds while researchers hunt for more. From the interview aired by ABC TV:
Ecologist Dr Steve Murphy is researching the night parrot population and said if more are found, the public would then have the opportunity to visit them.
“But without finding those other populations the risks are still really too great,” he said.
The newly designated Bush Reserve is somewhere west of Longreach. To put it into perspective, I have done a Google map showing the route from my home town of Brisbane to Longreach and circled the area which is “west of Longreach” so that’s a lot of area!
For now, we all have to be content with this footage (click on links below) of the diminutive Night Parrot. I can’t get over how small and fragile he looks! I am really glad they have those baits for feral cats as they could easily wipe out what’s left of the population. You can be sure that if birders are ever allowed to see the bird, I will be jumping in my car within minutes to take the drive out there!
The Eastern Rosella was named by George Shaw in 1792 and in my opinion is one of Australia’s most beautiful birds.
Three subspecies of Eastern Rosella are recognised:
P. e. eximius, Victoria and southern New South Wales. Black feathers on the back have green margins. Rump is pale green.
P. e. elecica, northeast New South Wales and southeast Queensland. In the male the black feathers on the back have golden-yellow margins, and greenish-yellow in the female. The rump is bluish-green. This subspecies is also called the Golden-mantled Rosella.
P. e. diemenensis, eastern Tasmania. White cheek patches are larger and the red on the head is darker.
My photos above are the Tasmanian subspecies. We saw them easily around Hobart in the Botanical Gardens and near the Travelodge Airport Hotel. I have also seen the 2nd subspecies around the Girraween area in South-east Queensland.
They have quite a large range throughout Queensland, Australia and even a small bit of Papua New Guinea. I found it quite easy to see them at Lake Coolmunda, especially near the caravan park and near the shearer’s quarters at Bowra Station (blue dots).
LEARN MORE ABOUT RED-WINGED PARROTS
