- Neophema chrysogaster
Identification
On the brink of extinction the orange-bellied parrot has been ranked as one of the world's rarest and most endangered species
The Orange-bellied Parrot is a small 'grass parrot' of coastal south-eastern Australia. The orange-bellied parrot is approximately 20 cm long, a little larger than a budgerigar. Its plumage is bright grass-green above and mostly yellow below with a bright orange patch in the centre of the lower belly. It has a bright azure blue patch on the outer wing and a blue bar across the forehead above the nostrils.
Distribution
The species' current breeding range is a narrow coastal strip of south-west Tasmania. Most adults depart the breeding range in February, leaving juveniles to follow in March and April. Adults first reach Victoria in late March and disperse east as far as coastal South Gippsland, and as far west as Lake Alexandrina in South Australia, by April.
Taxonomy
It is one of six species of the genus Neophema.
Habitat
Behaviour
It nests in hollows in eucalypt trees which grow adjacent to its feeding plains. It feeds on the seeds of several sedges and heath plants, including buttongrass. Its main food preferences are found in sedgelands which have not been burned for between 3-15 years. Also included in the diet are seeds of three Boronia species and the everlasting daisy Helichrysum pumilum. After breeding, migrating birds move gradually northwards up the west coast, through the Hunter Group and King Island in Bass Strait and on to the mainland. On the journey the birds usually feed on beach-front vegetation including salt tolerant species such as sea rocket Cakile maritima. They also eat various coastal native and introduced grasses.
