Ground Parrot

Pezoporus wallicus(Kerr, 1792)

Least ConcernEndemic

Order: PSITTACIFORMES
Family: Psittaculidae
Genus: Pezoporus

Conservation: Least Concern
Commonness: Endemic
Best seen: Year-round

01 · Identification

How to tell it apart

The ground parrot is a parrot endemic to Australia. It is one of only four ground-dwelling parrots in the world, the others being the closely related night parrot, the Antipodes parakeet, and the flightless kākāpō from New Zealand.

Description · wikipedia · CC BY-SA 4.0

Field specs

Length: 30 cm
Weight: 59–101 g
Wingspan: 32 cm

Measurements · avonet · CC BY 4.0

Field tips

behaviour

Highly elusive and strictly ground-dwelling, this parrot prefers to run through dense cover rather than take to the air and is rarely seen unless accidentally flushed.

flight

When flushed, the bird flies in a swift, silent, and low arc just above the vegetation before abruptly dropping vertically back into cover.

plumage

Look for grass-green plumage heavily barred with black and yellow, featuring a red forehead band and pale yellow eyes in adults; juveniles lack the red band and have dark eyes.

size_and_shape

Note the exceptionally long, tapering tail and unusually long, flesh-pink toes which are specifically adapted for walking rather than perching.

voice

Listen at dawn and dusk for its diagnostic call, a sequence of clear, high-pitched whistles that gradually rise in pitch before fading away.

02 · Where

Where to find it

Breeding range: South-east Australia and Tasmania

03 · When

When to look

Months this species is recorded across its Australian range.

05 · Behaviour

Habits and haunts

06 · Gallery

Plumage up close

4 photos

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How to tell it apart

Where to find it

When to look

Habits and haunts

Diet & foraging

Habitats

Range notes

Plumage up close

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