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Red-rumped Parrot (Psephotus haematonotus) Alternate name(s): "Grass Parrot", "Red-backed Parrot"; Misnomer: "Ground Parrot" Aboriginal name(s): "nginungu" [tjapwurrung]; "linden" Size: 27-30 cm; wing span: 38-45 cm Body mass: 45-85 g Wing loading [g/cm2]: 0.13-0.23

Australia: Family Group 12 Family Group 12 Table Palm Cockatoo Red-tailed Black-Cockatoo Glossy Black-Cockatoo Yellow-tailed Black-Cockatoo Short-billed Black-Cockatoo Long-billed Black-Cockatoo Gang-gang Cockatoo Long-billed Corella Western Corella Little Corella Cockatiel Sulphur-crested Cockatoo Pink Cockatoo Galah Rainbow Lorikeet Red-collared Lorikeet Scaly-breasted Lorikeet Purple-crowned Lorikeet Varied Lorikeet Musk Lorikeet Little Lorikeet Eclectus Parrot Red-cheeked Parrot Double-eyed Fig-Parrot Australian King-Parrot Red-winged Parrot Princess Parrot Superb Parrot Regent Parrot Green Rosella Crimson Rosella Western Rosella Eastern Rosella Pale-headed Rosella Northern Rosella Red-capped Parrot Australian Ringneck Red-rumped Parrot Mulga Parrot Golden-shouldered Parrot Hooded Parrot Blue Bonnet Bourke's Parrot Budgerigar Swift Parrot Eastern Ground Parrot Night Parrot Blue-winged Parrot Scarlet-chested Parrot Rock Parrot Turquoise Parrot Elegant Parrot Family group table Index of bird names Habitat pages Key plants Thumbnails page Birds home page

Similar species

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

Physical description Click here for a physical description Red-rumped Parrots are small parrots. Their plumage is dimorphic, i.e. males and females are different. Male Red-rumped Parrots have a blue-green head, greenish yellow chest and sides, yellow belly and white vent. The back is all-green, except the name-giving red rump. The upperwings are turquoise-greyish, except for a yellow shoulder patch and some blue lining on the leading edges. When perched, the red rump is often hidden under the folded wings. Female Red-rumped Parrots are much more inconspicuous, with a greyish-green head and chest and a greyish belly and vent. The back and wings are also pale-green with turquoise shoulder patches. The tail is turquoise and grey. The bill of males is black, while females have a grey bill. The irises of both sexes are grey and the legs and feet are also grey. Juveniles have duller colours than females and their bills are horn-coloured, with some grey on the tip of the upper mandible.

Taxonomy, classification See Red-rumped 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 Red-rumped Parrot is available HERE . Red-rumped Parrots are endemic to Australia. Nominate race "haematonotus" is found in the south-eastern quarter of the Australian continent, basically from the south-eastern corner of SA through VIC and all of NSW and southern QLD (with the exception of a narrow coastal strip, mostly along the South coast and the East coast North of about Sydney, NSW). Race "caeruleus" is present only in the Lake Eyre Basin, in the border area of SA and QLD (e.g. Innamincka NP). Mostly this race, but also race "haematonotus"'s range overlap with the range of the Mulga Parrot. Red-rumped Parrots are usually found in open woodland and open grassland, including paddocks, wherever there are grass seeds to be found. In the breeding season they are often found near River Red Gums or other tall eucalypts with suitable nesting hollows, often in dead trees. Where to look? How to find this species? Red-rumped Parrots are usually most easily found when feeding on grass seeds, e.g. in farmland with scattered trees. Although ground-feeding, they are not particularly shy. They will come close to human habitation for water, food or to roost.

Sightings Click here for sighting information Race "haematonotus" Red-rumped Parrots, race "haematonotus", are one of the most common parrot species in inland NSW and can be seen in the Narrabri area regularly and in large numbers. Numerous around our place at Eulah Creek, 20 km East of Narrabri, in autumn, when seen in flocks of up to 50 birds, but almost absent in winter, when there are few or no seeds on the paddocks. Also found on the western slopes of the Nandewar Range. While such flocks are common during the autumn/winter period, we first saw such numbers of non-breeders in the spring of 2013, which was so exceptionally dry that many bird species skipped the breeding season. Although apparently so colourful, their camouflage while foraging for seeds in grassland is excellent. While on the ground, the males' red rump is invisible, hidden between the wings, as can be seen in some of the photos below. In trees Red-rumped Parrots can also be hard to spot. J. Greaves reports spotting Red-rumped Parrots, race "haematonotus", in Carrikalinga, SA, in March 2016.

Photos

Race "haematonotus"

ADULT

PAIR

Close-up near-frontal view of a pair of Red-rumped Parrots having a drink and a bath; male on the left, female on the right
[Eulah Creek, NSW, August 2009]

Lateral view of a male Red-rumped Parrot in its colourful plumage, right, and the well-camouflaged female
[Eulah Creek, NSW, July 2011]

Pair of Red-rumped Parrots foraging on the ground (photo courtesy of M. Eaton)
[Bowra Wildlife Sanctuary, near Cunnamulla, QLD, September 2017]

3 pairs of Red-rumped Parrots taking a bath
[Eulah Creek, NSW, April 2011]

MALE

Frontal view of an adult male Red-rumped Parrot
[Bowra Wildlife Sanctuary, near Cunnamulla, QLD, June 2019]

Frontal view of an adult male Red-rumped Parrot (left; dark bill), together with a dorsal view of a juvenile male (right, light bill)
[Eulah Creek, NSW, February 2008]

Slightly different frontal view of a male Red-rumped Parrot - here one can see more clearly the blue frontal edge of both wings (photo courtesy of R. Druce)

Near-frontal view of a male Red-rumped Parrot (photo courtesy of V. Collins)
[Near Eulah Creek, NSW, October 2020]

Near-lateral view of a male Red-rumped Parrot looking towards the observer
[Eulah Creek, NSW, May 2013]

Close-up near-lateral view of a male Red-rumped Parrot foraging in grass
[Eulah Creek, NSW, April 2011]

Close-up lateral view of a male Red-rumped Parrot foraging in grass
[Narrabri Lake, NSW, September 2024]

Lateral view of a male Red-rumped Parrot (photo courtesy of V. Collins)
[Near Eulah Creek, NSW, October 2020]

Lateral view of a male Red-rumped Parrot foraging in grass
[Eulah Creek, NSW, April 2011]

Lateral view of a male Red-rumped Parrot foraging in grass
[Eulah Creek, NSW, November 2012]

Close-up lateral/ventral view of a male Red-rumped Parrot looking backwards
[Eulah Creek, NSW, October 2015]

Near-dorsal view of a male Red-rumped Parrot, showing most clearly the red patch on its rump
[Eulah Creek, NSW, October 2020]

Close-up near-dorsal view of a male Red-rumped Parrot
[Eulah Creek, NSW, January 2020]

Near-dorsal/ventral view of a male Red-rumped Parrot hiding in a Grevillea robusta
[Eulah Creek, NSW, April 2013]

Dorsal view of a male Red-rumped Parrot
[Eulah Creek, NSW, February 2008]

This male Red-rumped Parrot in flight also displays conspicuously its red rump (photo courtesy of R. Druce)

FEMALE

Frontal view of a female Red-rumped Parrot looking sideways
[Eulah Creek, NSW, August 2013]

Close-up near-frontal portrait of a female Red-rumped Parrot foraging in grass
[Eulah Creek, NSW, April 2011]

Near-lateral view of a female Red-rumped Parrot
[Eulah Creek, NSW, August 2009]

Lateral view of a female Red-rumped Parrot (photo courtesy of M. Eaton)
[Goondiwindi, QLD, March 2018]

Lateral view of a female Red-rumped Parrot feeding on the ground
[Eulah Creek, NSW, May 2013]

Female Red-rumped Parrot with unusual blue hues

An adult female Red-rumped Parrot was found by us at Tiger Bay Wetlands, Warren, NSW, in April 2017, that showed some unusual colours. The scalloped pattern in its plumage suggests that the bird was freshly moulted. Two photos were taken on the occasion:

Close-up lateral view of a female Red-rumped Parrot
[Tiger Bay, Warren, NSW, April 2017]

Close-up dorsal view of a female Red-rumped Parrot looking sideways
[Tiger Bay, Warren, NSW, April 2017]

PBFD - psittacine beak and feather disease

A female Red-rumped Parrot was found by us in a very bad state of health suggesting that this species can contract the disease.

Near-dorsal view of a female Red-rumped Parrot that has lost most of the feathers on its head and back
[Narrabri, NSW, June 2018]

IMMATURE/JUVENILE

Lateral/ventral view of an immature male Red-rumped Parrot
[Eulah Creek, NSW, January 2011]

Near-frontal view of a probably immature (or moulting) female Red-rumped Parrot
[Eulah Creek, NSW, January 2008]

Frontal view of a juvenile, possibly female, Red-rumped Parrot in a casuarina tree; note the pale colours, the scalloping and the partly horn-coloured bill
[Narrabri Lake, NSW, November 2012]

Close-up near-lateral portrait of a juvenile female Red-rumped Parrot
[Eulah Creek, NSW, October 2020]

Close-up lateral portrait of a juvenile female Red-rumped Parrot
[Eulah Creek, NSW, October 2020]

Dorsal view of a juvenile male Red-rumped Parrot
[Eulah Creek, NSW, February 2008]

Lateral/ventral view of mum Red-rumped Parrot, right, who has three hungry mouths to feed
[Eulah Creek, NSW, October 2015]

Neighbours on a roost eye-balling each other: Tawny Frogmouth (right) and Red-rumped Parrot (left)
[Eulah Creek, NSW, May 2013]

Breeding information

Breeding season: Sep - Dec

Eggs: 4 - 7

Incubation period: 18 - 20 days

Fledging age: 28 - 35 days

Pair of Red-rumped Parrots working on the next generation...
[Eulah Creek, NSW, July 2015]

Nest

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

Type: Tree hollow

Material: Wood dust

Height above ground: 2 - 15 m

Pair of Red-rumped Parrots at the entrance to their nest hollow
[Yarrie Lake, near Wee Waa, October 2011]

Lateral view of a female Red-rumped Parrot taking off after emerging from its nest hollow
[Yarrie Lake, near Wee Waa, October 2011]

Frontal view of a female Red-rumped Parrot at its nest hollow; the dead tree is standing in a swamp
[Yarrie Lake, near Wee Waa, NSW, February 2012]

Frontal view of a pair of Red-rumped Parrots inspecting a nest box provided for, and in the year before also occupied by, Eastern Rosellas
[Eulah Creek, NSW, July 2013]

Female Red-rumped Parrot working on the opening of a nest box
[Eulah Creek, NSW, July 2013]

Eggs

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

Size: 24 x 19 mm

Colour: White

Shape: Rounded

Behaviour

Social behaviour: Communal

Mobility: Sedentary/dispersive

Elementary unit: Pair/small flock

As basically all male parrots and cockatoos, male Red-rumped Parrots need to prove their mettle prior to the breeding season. To show that they are good partners - and will feed the female while she is incubating the eggs - male Red-rumped Parrots feed their partners. Her begging calls resemble the calls of chicks begging for food.

Lateral view of a male Red-rumped Parrot, left, feeding its partner as part of a bonding ritual
[Eulah Creek, NSW, August 2013]

Male Red-rumped Parrot feeding its partner as part of a bonding ritual
[Eulah Creek, NSW, October 2022]

Red-rumped Parrots very conspicuously live in pairs and family units during the breeding season. During autmn/winter the pairs still form subunits inside small to medium-size flocks. This fact is prominent, because the males and females are so easy to distinguish. While the photos above show, apart from single birds, pairs and families, here we present a photo of a flock feeding with "safety in numbers". Non-breeders will also flock during the breeding season.

Flock of 40 Red-rumped Parrots feeding on grass seeds along a driveway; note how most birds are in the shady areas
[Eulah Creek, NSW, April 2013]

Lateral view of a male Red-rumped Parrot having a bath (photo courtesy of M. Eaton)
[Roma Bush Gardens, Roma, QLD, August 2022]

Near-lateral view of a sopping wet male Red-rumped Parrot in the bath (photo courtesy of M. Eaton)
[Roma Bush Gardens, Roma, QLD, August 2022]

Red-rumped Parrots are preyed upon by falcons, mostly Australian Hobbies and Peregrine Falcons. There is a separate page describing how various bird species reacted under threat from Australian Hobbies hunting.

Lateral view of a female Red-rumped Parrot hiding in dense growth while under threat from an Austranalian Hobby
[Eulah Creek, NSW, March 2011]

Food, Diet

Adults: Seeds

Dependents: Regurgitated seeds

Water intake: Daily

Like many parrots, Red-rumped Parrots are seed-eaters; primarily they take grass seeds, but are also found regularly foraging in reeds. We usually find them foraging on the ground. Only on one occasion they were observed by us feeding on eucalypt flowers, as e.g. Eastern Rosellas would normally do, by chomping on the flowers (rather than licking their nectar).

Near-frontal view of a male Red-rumped Parrot feeding on the seeds of an introduced weed
[Eulah Creek, NSW, November 2012]

Birds can find food in all kinds of strange places - lateral view of a male Red-rumped Parrot finding something edible on a concrete footpath
[Narrabri Lake, NSW, May 2013]

Close-up near-lateral view of a male Red-rumped Parrot feeding on a lawn (laced with clover)
[Eulah Creek, NSW, August 2013]

Female Red-rumped Parrot feeding on young shoots (photo courtesy of V. Collins)
[Narrabri, NSW, June 2021]

Close-up lateral view of a male Red-rumped Parrot taking grit to aid digestion
[Eulah Creek, NSW, October 2022]

Frontal view of a male Red-rumped Parrot drinking water
[O'Brien's Creek, Narrabri Lake, NSW, November 2011]

Lateral view of a male Red-rumped Parrot drinking water from a bird bath
[Eulah Creek, NSW, September 2007]

Pair of Red-rumped Parrots and two juvenile Red-winged Parrots drinking from a bird bath
[Eulah Creek, NSW, June 2023]

On a 45 C "stinker" of a day, these Red-rumped Parrots were not only having a drink, but also used the moisture picked up by the hot wind blowing over the ornamental pond as evaporative cooling
[Eulah Creek, NSW, January 2014]

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.

redrump_20200219.m4a	haematonotus (NW NSW)	Contact calls?	© MD
redrump_20170706_1.m4a	haematonotus (NW NSW)	Contact calls? (Q&A)	© MD
redrump_20141026.mp3	haematonotus (NW NSW)	Group passing over	© MD
redrump_20180516.m4a	haematonotus (NW NSW)	Pair arriving	© MD
redrump_20140130.mp3	haematonotus (NW NSW)	Group arriving	© MD
redrump_20140224.mp3	haematonotus (NW NSW)	Flock arriving	© MD
redrump_20140120.mp3	haematonotus (NW NSW)	In-flight	© MD
redrump_20140108_2.mp3	haematonotus (NW NSW)	In-flight	© MD
redrump_20170912_2.m4a	haematonotus (NW NSW)	Warning/departure	© MD
redrump_20190725.m4a	haematonotus (NW NSW)	Warning/departure	© MD
redrump_20140117.mp3	haematonotus (NW NSW)	Warning calls (+ Nankeen Kestrel)	© MD
redrump_20140109.mp3	haematonotus (NW NSW)	Alarm/departure	© MD
redrump_20231018.m4a	haematonotus (NW NSW)	Alarm calls (snake)	© MD
redrump_20150909_4.mp3	haematonotus (NW NSW)	Begging calls & answers	© MD
redrump_20241215.m4a	haematonotus (NW NSW)	Various (approaching water)	© MD
redrump_20170706.m4a	haematonotus (NW NSW)	Various	© MD
redrump_20141018_2.mp3	haematonotus (NW NSW)	Various	© MD

We have also recorded the wing beat of a Red-rumped Parrot.

redrump_20140723.mp3	haematonotus (NW NSW)	Undulating flight	© MD
redrump_20170912.m4a	haematonotus (NW NSW)	Arrival	© MD
redrump_20210112.m4a	haematonotus (NW NSW)	Departure	© MD
redrump_20230604.mp3	haematonotus (NW NSW)	Arrival, drink, departure (pair)	© MD

More Red-rumped 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.

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