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Eastern Ground Parrot
(Pezoporus wallicus)
: "Swamp Parrot",
"Button-grass Parrot"
Aboriginal name(s): "goolinang"
Size: 28-32 cm
Weight: ca. 60-83 g
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Similar species |
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Physical description |
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Click here for a physical description
Eastern Ground Parrots are relatively small, long-tailed
parrots with highly
cryptic plumage.
The back (upperparts) is green with dark-grey scalloping. The
front (underparts) is also green, with prominent dark-grey barring.
The flight feathers are dark-grey with light
edge-lining. The sides of the head are green without
scalloping. The eyes, which have pale irises, are surrounded by
grey eye-rings. The cere is dark-grey, with a red frontal band
above it.
The bill is grey; legs and feet, which have very long toes, are
the colour of skin.
Females
have more prominent black shafts on the feathers on their cheeks than
males.
Juveniles
are more brownish than
adults.
Their eyes are still dark and they do not have a frontal band.
Their bill is horn-coloured.
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Twitcher's tip |
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Compared to Night
Parrots, Eastern Ground Parrots have a more greenish
appearance and a much longer tail.
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Taxonomy, classification |
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See Eastern
Ground Parrot at Wikipedia .
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Range, habitat, finding this species |
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Click here for information on habitat
and range
The overall distribution of this species can be assessed based
on sighting reports submitted by birdwatchers to
ebird.org
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The global distribution of the Eastern Ground Parrot is available
HERE
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Eastern Ground Parrots are endemic to Australia.
Their range extends along the Australian East coast, from the
Great Sandy NP, near Gympie, QLD, in the North, across the Bass
Strait, to the southern tip of Tasmania in the South. On the
continent their distribution is increasingly patchy, being
restricted to only a small number of suitable habitats.
They are found as far westward as just beyond Wilson's
Promontory in South Gippsland, VIC.
Eastern Ground Parrots are also present on some of the smaller
islands along Bass Strait, such as Kangaroo Island.
Eastern Ground Parrots live in marshy coastal plain without trees,
in reed beds with low shrubs, in particular in areas with button
grass.
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Sightings |
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Click here for sighting information
M. Eaton reports finding Eastern Ground Parrots at Cooloola NP,
QLD, in January 2019.
All sighting and photographic information presented on this page
has been kindly contributed by M. Eaton.
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Photos |
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ADULT |
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MALE |
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Near-dorsal view of a male(?) Eastern Ground Parrot - note the
pale iris and the faint indication of a red frontal band; the
bluish sheen is probably produced by a reflection of early
morning light
(photo courtesy of M. Eaton)
[Cooloola NP, QLD, January 2019]
Dorsal view of a male(?) Eastern Ground Parrot
(photo courtesy of M. Eaton)
[Cooloola NP, QLD, January 2019]
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FEMALE |
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Lateral view of a female(?) Eastern Ground Parrot;
note the prominent black shafts on the cheek feathers
(photo courtesy of M. Eaton)
[Cooloola NP, QLD, January 2019]
Partly obscured lateral view of a female(?) Eastern Ground Parrot;
note the prominent black shafts on the cheeks
(photo courtesy of M. Eaton)
[Cooloola NP, QLD, January 2019]
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IMMATURE/JUVENILE |
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Near-dorsal view of a juvenile Eastern Ground Parrot;
note the brownish iris and the horn-coloured bill
(photo courtesy of M. Eaton)
[Cooloola NP, QLD, January 2019]
Dorsal view of a juvenile Eastern Ground Parrot
(photo courtesy of M. Eaton)
[Cooloola NP, QLD, January 2019]
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.