Critically Endangered Orange-bellied Parrot sightings!

Critically Endangered Orange-bellied Parrot sightings!

Hindmarsh Island was a buzz on Saturday 29 May as bird enthusiasts participated in a Parrot identification workshop. SA Orange-bellied Parrot Regional Coordinator Bob Green spotted two Orange-bellied Parrots, including one juvenile bird. “The most recent confirmed sighting of an Orange-bellied Parrot was in 2013, so this was certainly an exciting and important find” Bob said.

This project is supported by the Limestone Coast Landscape Board, through funding from the Australian Government’s National Landcare Program. “The workshops are held because there are four similar parrots that all occur in the same coastal areas so making sure that observers know how to correctly identify the birds is really important, as we need to make sure that records are 100% accurate”, Bob Green said.

Photos were taken which confirmed the bird’s leg band details, enabling the bird’s origins to be known, “I have been informed that the bird is a wild born juvenile, meaning it was only hatched in the most recent breeding season over summer in SW Tasmania and has made the migration across Bass Strait and up to the Coorong National Park”, Bob confirmed.

The workshop participants were very excited and also surprised to see the Orange-bellied Parrots, knowing how rare they are, how difficult to find, and the fact that it had been 8 years since the last confirmed record in SA.

The pleasing results are very reassuring for the Our Coorong|Our Coast project team who are mid-way through a five year project which focuses on restoration and enhancement of habitat for the threatened species. With more workshops planned over the coming months there is definitely some excitement building!

If you think you may have seen an Orange-bellied Parrot, or would like more information about upcoming identification workshops please contact Bob Green mobile: 0407 649 909 or email shriketit@bigpond.com