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12

Australian King-Parrot (Alisterus scapularis) Alternate name(s): "King Lory", "Southern King Parrot" Aboriginal name(s): Race "scapularis": "wirtuk tuRong" [tjapwurrung]; race "minor": "biimbirran" [ngadjon] Size: 42-44 cm Weight: 200-285 g

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Description     Classification     Distribution     Sightings     Photos     Breeding     Nest     Eggs     Behaviour     Food     Call/s

Physical description Click here for a physical description Australian King-Parrots are the largest Australian parrots, apart from several species of cockatoos. Their plumage is dimorphic, i.e. males and females are different. Male Australian King-Parrots have an all scarlet-red head and front (throat, chest, belly). The vent is scalloped red and black. The back (mantle and upperwings) is dark-green, the rump is dark-blue. The light-green upperwing coverts are visible only as thin stripes on the wings when the wings are folded. The uppertail is dark-grey, the undertail grey. Males have a black-and-red bill. Female Australian King-Parrots have an all-green to greyish-green head; the throat and chest are brownish-green. The back (mantle and wings) is all-green; the rump is turquoise-green. The belly is scarlet-red, the vent is scalloped red and black. Females have a greyish bill. The irises of both sexes are yellow, the legs and feet are grey. Juvenile Australian King-Parrots resemble females, but the underparts are more orange than red. The bill is pale.

Taxonomy, classification See Australian King-Parrot at Wikipedia .

Range, habitat, finding this species Click here for information on habitat and range The overall distribution of this species can be assessed, and specific locations where birds have been spotted can be found, based on individual sighting reports submitted by birdwatchers to ebird.org . The global distribution of the Australian King-Parrot is available HERE . There are two races of Australian King-Parrots, both of which are endemic to Australia. Nominate race "scapularis" has a range extending along a broad strip including the East coast and South coast of Australia and the hills of the Great Dividing Range from about Mackay, QLD, in the North to West of Melbourne, VIC, in the South. In addition, race "minor" is found in a narrow near-coastal strip from Lakefield NP to Charters Towers, QLD (in the Atherton tablelands). There are no Australian King-Parrots anywhere else on the continent or in Tasmania. Australian King-Parrots are usually found in relatively open forest with tall trees. Especially in autumn and winter, when fruit and seeds are available, they also enter parks and gardens. At least when fed, they can become so docile that they enter urban environments, coming to people's houses. One of their favourite foods is the seed of the White Cedar tree.

Sightings Click here for sighting information Where we lived until 2006, 20 km South of Narrabri, NSW, Australian King-Parrots, race "scapularis", were frequent visitors all through the cooler seasons of the year (or as long as the White Cedar fruit lasted...). During the rest of the year, they tended to stay in the northern parts of the Pilliga scrub. They are often seen by us in significant numbers, also at relatively high altitudes (above 1300 m), in Mt. Kaputar NP and along the slopes leading up to the peaks of the Nandewar Range. Australian King-Parrots, race "scapularis", can be found reliably on the western fringes of Mt. Kaputar NP, in Eulah Creek and Deriah Aboriginal Area. Also seen in the area of Maules Creek, Barraba and Manilla, NSW. We have also spotted Australian King-Parrots, race "scapularis", on trips to the East of the Great Dividing Range, e.g. in the area from Armidale to Dorrigo, NSW. Australian King-Parrots, race "scapularis", were spotted by C. Kellenberg at Depot Beach, Murramarang NP, NSW, in February 2009. A. Ross-Taylor reports seeing Australian King-Parrots, race "scapularis", regularly at Highland Park, Gold Coast, QLD. They are also found regularly in the Great Dividing Range in the Gold Coast hinterland, e.g. in Lamington NP. No Australian King-Parrots were seen by us at all westward of Narrabri on a trip to outback NSW and South Australia in March 2008. R. Plumtreereports spotting Australian King-Parrots, race "scapularis", regularly in East Gippsland, VIC. M. Mearns reports finding Australian King-Parrots, race "scapularis", at Bunya Mountains NP, QLD, in December 2015.

Photos

Not the photos you want? Or are you after even better quality? Have a look here .

Race "scapularis"

ADULT

MALE

Close-up frontal portrait of a male Australian King-Parrot (photo courtesy of R. Druce)
[Queen Mary Falls, near Killarney, QLD, October 2015]

Close-up frontal view of a male Australian King-Parrot (photo courtesy of A. Ross-Taylor)
[Highland Park, Gold Coast, QLD, September 2012]

Frontal view of a male Australian King-Parrot
[Kingaroy, QLD, March 2016]

Frontal/ventral view of a male Australian King-Parrot (photo courtesy of V. Collins)
[Mt. Kaputar NP, NSW, January 2021]

Close-up lateral view of a male Australian King-Parrot (photo courtesy of A. Ross-Taylor)
[Highland Park, Gold Coast, QLD, September 2012]

Lateral view of a male Australian King-Parrot sitting in a Kurrajong tree
[20 km South of Narrabri, NSW, February 2006]

Near-dorsal view of a male Australian King-Parrot showing the blue rump (photo courtesy of M. Eaton)
[Gold Creek Reservoir, QLD, February 2019]

Near-dorsal portrait of a male Australian King-Parrot (photo courtesy of V. Collins)
[Near Narrabri, NSW, January 2021]

FEMALE

Close-up frontal portrait of a female Australian King-Parrot (photo courtesy of A. Ross-Taylor)
[Highland Park, Gold Coast, QLD, November 2012]

Close-up near-lateral view of a female Australian King-Parrot (photo courtesy of M. Eaton)
[Queen Mary Falls, QLD, July 2019]

Close-up near-lateral view of a female Australian King-Parrot (photo courtesy of A. Ross-Taylor)
[Highland Park, Gold Coast, QLD, April 2013]

Some Australian King-Parrot acrobatics (photo courtesy of A. Ross-Taylor)
[Highland Park, Gold Coast, QLD, November 2013]

Lateral view of a female Australian King-Parrot with tattered plumage (photo courtesy of E. Scott)
[Roseberry Creek Valley, near Toonumbar NP, northern NSW, November 2016]

Lateral/ventral view of a female Australian King-Parrot
[20 km South of Narrabri, NSW, 2006]

Near-dorsal view of a female Australian King-Parrot feeding on White Cedar nuts under a tree
[20 km South of Narrabri, NSW, April 2006]

Lateral view of four Australian King-Parrots in flight
[Narrabri Lake, NSW, April 2016]

PAIR

Direct comparison of a male Australian King-Parrot, back, and a female, right (photo courtesy of M. Mearns)
[Kingaroy, QLD, December 2015]

IMMATURE/JUVENILE

Close-up frontal portrait of an immature male Australian King-Parrot moulting into adult plumage
(photo courtesy of R. Plumtree)
[October 2018]

Near-lateral view of a juvenile Australian King-Parrot
[Eulah Creek, NSW, December 2012]

Lateral portrait of a juvenile Australian King-Parrot
[Near Narrabri, NSW, January 2021]

Lateral view of a juvenile Australian King-Parrot
[Eulah Creek, NSW, December 2012]

Near-dorsal portrait of a juvenile Australian King-Parrot
[Near Narrabri, NSW, January 2021]

Breeding information

Breeding season: Oct - Dec

Eggs: 4 - 6

Incubation period: 20 days

Fledging age: 35 days

Nest

"bungobittah", "lar", "malunna", "jindi" [bundjalung] = nest [Aboriginal]

Type: Tree hollow

Material: Wood

Height above ground: >10 m

It is not entirely certain whether the opening to the tree hollow shown below is in fact the entrance to the birds' nest. We saw them around the opening, but not actually entering it. The same treetrunk had another opening on the other side.

Entrance to the nest(?) of a family of Australian King-Parrots
[Deriah Aboriginal Area, NSW, November 2008]

Female Australian King-Parrot checking out a potential nest hollow that had been pointed out by the male
[Mt. Kaputar NP, NSW, August 2015]

Eggs

"boyanga", "booyanga", "derinya", "dirandil", "koomura", "mirk", "ngampu", "nooluk", "pateena", "pum-pum" = Egg; "dirundirri" = eggs [Aboriginal]; "gawu" = eggs [gamilaraay]

Size: 33 x 27 mm

Colour: White

Shape: Tapered oval

Behaviour

Social behaviour: Communal

Mobility: Sedentary/dispersive

Elementary unit: Pair/small flock

bonding ritual between a pair of Australian King-Parrots; the female will beg for food to test the male's suitability as a partner, knowing that she will have to rely on him while incubating and brooding the young (photo courtesy of A. Ross-Taylor)
[Highland Park, Gold Coast, QLD, August 2012]

The photo below shows that Australian King Parrots can be quite curious.

Australian King Parrot looking into a house clinging to the flyscreen on a window
[20 km South of Narrabri, NSW, 2006]

Food, Diet

Adults: Seeds, fruit

Dependents: Regurgitated seeds

Water intake: Daily

Australian King-Parrots eat both fruit and seeds. They love apricots and figs (just before they turn ripe) and the fruit of the White Cedar tree. The latter they will eat either sitting in the tree or later from the ground, once they have fallen.

We were surprised to find Australian King-Parrots feeding on (unripe) mistletoe fruit. Photos are available here.

Male Australian King-Parrot feeding on what looks like the fruit of native Lilypily (photo courtesy of M. Eaton)
[Gold Creek Reservoir, QLD, February 2019]

Close-up view of a male Australian King-Parrot chewing some kind of fruit (photo courtesy of M. Eaton)
[Anstead, QLD, August 2017]

Male Australian King-Parrot chewing on a White Cedar nut
[20 km South of Narrabri, NSW, April 2006]

Close-up portrait of a female Australian King-Parrot chewing on a White Cedar nut
[20 km South of Narrabri, NSW, April 2006]

Pair of Australian King-Parrots taking White Cedar nuts from the ground
[20 km South of Narrabri, NSW, April 2006]

When food is in such abundance, Australian King-Parrots can occasionally be seen in considerable numbers, although usually they come in pairs or small family units
[20 km South of Narrabri, NSW, April 2006]

Young male Australian King-Parrot feasting on the seeds of a shrub
[Deriah Aboriginal Area, NSW, November 2008]

Here a closer look at the seeds
[Deriah Aboriginal Area, NSW, November 2008]

Close-up lateral view of a male Australian King-Parrot feasting on lychees (photo courtesy of M. Eaton)
[Moggill, QLD, January 2023]

Near-lateral view of a female Australian King-Parrot feasting on lychees (photo courtesy of M. Eaton)
[Moggill, QLD, January 2023]

Near-dorsal view of a female Australian King-Parrot feasting on lychees (photo courtesy of M. Eaton)
[Moggill, QLD, January 2023]

Some species of parrots, in this case Australian King-Parrots, know how to find reliable water supplies in tree hollows
(photo courtesy of R. Plumtree)
[Cape Conran Wildlife Caravan Park, East Gippsland, VIC, September 2007]

Australian King-Parrots checking whether it is safe to approach a bird bath
[Eulah Creek, NSW, July 2018]

Australian King-Parrots drinking from a bird bath
[Eulah Creek, NSW, July 2018]

Male Australian King-Parrot feeding on sunflower kernels
[Kingaroy, QLD, March 2016]

Female Australian King-Parrot feeding on sunflower kernels
[Kingaroy, QLD, March 2016]

Immature male Australian King-Parrot feasting on lychees (photo courtesy of M. Eaton)
[Anstead, QLD, December 2020]

Immature male Australian King-Parrot feasting on lychees (photo courtesy of M. Eaton)
[Anstead, QLD, December 2020]

Call(s)/Song

For this species we have recorded the following call(s)/song. The interpretation of their meaning is our own; comments and suggestions for improvement are welcome.

kingpar_20140125_2.mp3	scapularis (NW NSW)	Contact call	© MD
kingpar_20140110_3.mp3	scapularis (NW NSW)	Contact calls	© MD
kingpar_20191203_2.m4a	scapularis (NW NSW)	Contact calls	© MD
kingpar_art_20131107.m4a	scapularis (SE QLD)	Calling mate	© ART
kingpar_20200919.m4a	scapularis (NW NSW)	Q&A (arrival)	© MD
kingpar_20140704.mp3	scapularis (NW NSW)	Alarm call	© MD
kingpar_20180131_2.m4a	scapularis (NW NSW)	Warning/departure	© MD
kingpar_20191203.m4a	scapularis (NW NSW)	Warning/departure (family of 4)	© MD
kingpar_20160406.mp3	scapularis (NW NSW)	Disturbed/suspicious; alarm/departure	© MD
kingpar_20140502_2.mp3	scapularis (NW NSW)	Alarm calls (in-flight)	© MD
kingpar_20140127.mp3	scapularis (NW NSW)	Alarm call (Brown Goshawk)	© MD
kingpar_20140319.mp3	scapularis (NW NSW)	Alarm call (Brown Goshawk)	© MD
kingpar_art_20131125.m4a	scapularis (NW NSW)	Feeding call	© ART
kingpar_20151016.m4a	scapularis (NW NSW)	Male wooing female (short)	© MD
kingpar_20151016_2.m4a	scapularis (NW NSW)	Male wooing female (long)	© MD
kingpar_20180131.m4a	scapularis (NW NSW)	Various	© MD
kingpar_20191014.m4a	scapularis (NW NSW)	? (family approaching water hole)	© MD
kingpar_20191014_2.m4a	scapularis (NW NSW)	? (family approaching water hole)	© MD
kingpar_20191014_3.m4a	scapularis (NW NSW)	? (family approaching water hole)	© MD
kingpar_20191014_4.m4a	scapularis (NW NSW)	? (family approaching water hole)	© MD

More Australian King-Parrot sound recordings are available at xeno-canto.org .

These pages are largely based on our own observations and those of our contributors. The structure of these bird pages is explained HERE. For more salient facts on any bird species please refer to a field guide.

Would you like to contribute photos or sound recordings to this site? If interested, please CLICK HERE. Credits to contributors are given HERE.

Disclaimer: Comments are always welcome. We give no guarantee that the information presented on these pages is always correct or up-to-date. External links are marked as such and we take no responsibility for the contents of external pages. All images on this site are protected by copyright & used by permission of the respective owners. If you wish to reproduce them or any of the material presented on this web site, please contact us: We hereby acknowledge the original custodians of the land which is described on these pages, including the Gomeroi/Gamilaraay people of the North-west Slopes and Plains of NSW, and the traditional owners of other lands and nations within this country. We acknowledge elders past, present and emerging. Sovereignty was never ceded.          Last updated: Mon, 30 January 2023, 7:11 +00:00