Latest Orange-bellied Parrot Sightings, and new OBP website

A few things have been happening in the world of the Orange-bellied Parrots (OBP) over the last couple of months.

Every year, three count weekends are held where volunteers survey for OBP throughout their range, from SA’s Murray Mouth to Gippsland in Victoria, at the same time. The May count weekend recorded no sightings of OBP in any region. As OBP are quite often found with other Neophema species (such as the Blue-winged Parrot and the Elegant Parrot), these are also recorded. During the May count weekend there were ~160 Blue-winged Parrots recorded on Victoria’s Bellarine Peninsula, a large number of Elegant Parrots in SA, and some Blue-winged Parrots reported in southwestern Victoria.

In exciting news, since the May count weekend seven OBP have been reported! Six of the birds were seen in the Western Treatment Plant area of Port Philip Bay, where they can often be found. And, in late May an OBP was confirmed in SA, on the western end of their range. Leg banding tells us that this male bird was wild born in 2021, and after fledgling was reported as a juvenile about 20 km from the current sighting location. This is an important sighting as OBP often return to the same site. It’s likely that he is returning to the same area three years later. It also tells us that OBP are flying through the southwestern Victoria region, into SA, although limited sightings have occurred in this region.

The total number of migrants recorded on the mainland so far for this season is 10, including two banded males and a known un-banded female, reported in early April on the Bellarine Peninsula, Victoria. The next count weekend will be held across the weekend of July 27 & 28. If you would like to take part in looking for this iconic species, please get in touch with Jess.

In other news from the Orange-bellied Parrot Recovery Team, the Recovery Team now have their own website and logo. You can find newsletters, information about the Recovery Team, survey dates and other ways to get involved with OBP recovery. You can visit the OBP Recovery Team website here.

The OBP project is supported by the Victorian Government