Ground Parrot, Pezoporus wallicus
Description
The beautifully patterned Ground Parrot is a medium-size bird (290-320mm), bright green with black and yellow markings and a
pale yellow wing bar. It has a small orange-red band on the lower forehead.
Habitat
The Ground Parrot is a secretive bird found in the west of the State, where it prefers buttongrass and open heathlands. The species is not usually seen unless it is flushed out from
cover. Although it also occurs on mainland Australia, it is now only found there in fragmented populations where pockets of habitat remain undisturbed.
The Ground Parrot is one of only three ground-dwelling parrots in the world, the others being the extremely rare night parrot and New Zealand's highly endangered kakapo. When disturbed, it flies swiftly just above the ground before dropping back into the vegetation again.
Diet
Ground Parrots usually feed on the ground, eating seeds of sedges, grasses, herbaceous plants and shrubs.
Breeding
The Ground Parrot constructs a shallow nest of fine
sticks and grass which is well-hidden under low shrubs. The
female incubates the eggs and broods the young. During this time of
incubation and brooding, the female is fed by the male, who also feeds
the young when they hatch.
Call
The presence of the bird is often only revealed by its characteristic dusk and dawn call, a clear, whistling sequence of notes that rise in pitch before fading. It is silent in flight.
Distribution
Found in suitable habitat throughout western Tasmania and Hunter Island off the northwest coast.