Swift parrot
Common name: Swift parrot
Scientific name: Lathamus discolor
Conservation status: The swift parrot is 'Endangered' in Queensland (Nature Conservation Act 1992) and 'Endangered' nationally (Environment Protection and Biodiversity Conservation Act 1999).
Description: The swift parrot has a slender-tail and is lorikeet-like. Adult average 236mm in length. It is bright green with red on the throat, chin and forehead. The forehead is bordered by yellow. It has red on the shoulder and under the wings, and blue on the crown, cheeks and wings.
Habitat and distribution: They inhabit dry open, box-ironbark forests and woodlands. The swift parrot breeds in Tasmania and migrates to mainland Australia in autumn. During winter they are semi-nomadic foraging in flowering eucalypts predominately in Victoria and New South Wales. Small numbers are regularly recorded in the Australian Capital Territory. Birds have been recorded in South Australia and southern Queensland in some years.
Behaviour and life history: The swift parrot is a small fast-flying parrot. It has a distinctive alarm call of kik-kik-kik, usually given while flying. It breeds in Tasmania. The female occupies a nest chamber just prior to laying and will not leave till chicks hatched. The clutch size is normally four to five eggs and the male feeds the female every three to five hours. The young fledge after about six weeks and the chicks remain in the nest area and gather together in flocks before dispersing.
Threatening processes: The loss of foraging habitats within the breeding range has affected the swift parrot. It is estimated that 50 percent of suitable forest habitat for this species has been cleared. Collision with man made objects, for example windows, wire mesh fences and vehicles also threaten the species.
Recovery actions:
- Much work on this species is being undertaken in Tasmania, where the population breeds. Surveys of the population and their habitat in Tasmania and on the mainland have been undertaken and are continuing.
- A public information and education program has been conducted to inform and involve community in the recovery process.
- The frequency of collisions with fences and other structures is also being reduced.
Further information:
Swift Parrot Recovery Team 2001. Swift Parrot Recovery Plan (PDF)*. Department of Primary Industries, Water and Environment, Hobart.
* Requires Acrobat Reader
Last updated: 31 August 2006