Psittaciformes - Pezoporus - Western Ground Parrot

Western Ground Parrot - Pezoporus Flaviventris - Critically Endangered

The western ground parrot (Pezoporus flaviventris) is an endangered species of parrot endemic to Western Australia and is a close relative of the eastern ground parrot (Pezoporus wallicus) and the somewhat more distantly related and mysterious night parrot (Pezoporus occidentalis). It is one of the world's rarest birds with about 150 individuals remaining.

The western ground parrot plumage is similar to the eastern ground parrot, but feathers of the abdomen and under tail-coverts are bright yellow with indistinct black barring. The fledgling western ground parrot is grey/brown around the head, wing covets and across the back, while the eastern ground parrot has bright green (adult) plumage in these areas. This plumage difference would provide better camouflage to mobile fledglings in the habitat typical of the southwest arid regions where they reside. In contrast the eastern ground parrot lives in thick vegetation with little open ground.

Molecular DNA evidence suggests the western ground parrot split from ground parrots of eastern Australia around 2 million years ago.

Description: The western ground parrot plumage is similar to the eastern ground parrot (P. wallicus), but feathers of the abdomen and under tail-coverts are bright yellow with indistinct black barring. The fledgling western ground parrot is a more neutral grey/brown in color, while the eastern ground parrot has bright green (adult) plumage in these areas.

Distribution and Habitat: Historically, this species was found all along the coast of western southwest Australia from Perth north to Geraldton and along the South Coast east to Israelite Bay. However, it appears to have vanished from the west coast of Western Australia by 1900. Nowadays, the range of this species is limited to two locations along the south coast of Western Australia, east of Albany with the largest population in Cape Arid National Park.