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Red-rumped ParrotAlternate name(s): "Grass Parrot", "Red-backed Parrot"; Misnomer: "Ground Parrot" ![]() Size: 26-28 cm Weight: 60-65 g |
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Photos |
Not the photos you want? Or are you after even better quality? Have a
look here .
Race "haematonotus"
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ADULT |
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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 portrait of a male Red-rumped Parrot
[Eulah Creek, NSW, May 2013]
Near-frontal view of a male Red-rumped Parrot
(photo courtesy of
V. Collins)
[Near Eulah Creek, NSW, October 2020]
Near-frontal view of a male Red-rumped Parrot foraging in
grass
[Eulah Creek, NSW, April 2011]
Lateral view of a male Red-rumped Parrot
(photo courtesy of
V. Collins)
[Near Eulah Creek, NSW, October 2020]
Lateral/ventral view of a male Red-rumped Parrot
[Eulah Creek, NSW, October 2015]
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]
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 view of a male Red-rumped Parrot hiding in a
Grevillea robusta
[Eulah Creek, NSW, April 2013]
Dorsal view of an adult male Red-rumped Parrot; note the name-giving
red rump
[Eulah Creek, NSW, February 2008]
This male Red-rumped Parrot in flight also displays conspicuously its
red rump (photo courtesy of R. Druce)
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FEMALE |
Frontal view of a female Red-rumped Parrot with its head turned sideways
[Eulah Creek, NSW, August 2013]
Near-frontal view 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
[Tiger Bay, Warren, NSW, April 2017]
Lateral view of a female Red-rumped Parrot feeding
[Eulah Creek, NSW, May 2013]
Dorsal view of a female Red-rumped Parrot
[Tiger Bay, Warren, NSW, April 2017]
Near-dorsal view of a female Red-rumped Parrot
[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.
Lateral view of a female Red-rumped Parrot that has lost most
of the feathers on its head and back
[Narrabri, NSW, June 2018]
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]
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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]
Male Red-rumped Parrot in its colourful
plumage,
right, and well-camouflaged female, left
[Eulah Creek, NSW, July 2011]
Pair of Red-rumped Parrots foraging on the ground
(photo courtesy of M. Eaton)
[Bowra Station, near Cunnamulla, QLD, September 2017]
3 pairs of Red-rumped Parrots taking a bath
[Eulah Creek, NSW, April 2011]
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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
[Narrabri Lake, NSW, November 2012]
Lateral portrait of a juvenile female Red-rumped Parrot
[Eulah Creek, NSW, October 2020]
Lateral portrait of a juvenile female Red-rumped Parrot
[Eulah Creek, NSW, October 2020]
Dorsal view of a juvenile male Red-rumped Parrot; note the name-giving
red rump
[Eulah Creek, NSW, February 2008]
Three out of a clutch of five Red-rumped Parrot chicks; there is also a
photo of all five chicks
[Eulah Creek, NSW, January 2008]
Mum Red-rumped Parrot 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]
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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]
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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 nesting hollow
[Yarrie Lake, near Wee Waa, October 2011]
Female Red-rumped Parrot just after emerging from inside the nesting hollow
[Yarrie Lake, near Wee Waa, October 2011]
Another female Red-rumped Parrot at its nesting hollow; the dead tree
is standing in a swamp
[Yarrie Lake, near Wee Waa, NSW, February 2012]
Red-rumped Parrots inspecting a nesting box provided for, and in the
year before also occupied by, Eastern Rosellas
[Eulah Creek, NSW, July 2013]
Here the female Red-rumped Parrot can be seen working on the
opening
[Eulah Creek, NSW, July 2013]
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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 |
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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.
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, August 2021]
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 our
driveway; note how most birds are in the shady areas
[Eulah Creek, NSW, April 2013]
Red-rumped Parrots first having a collective drink...
[Killarney SCA,
NSW, November 2019]
... and then a collective bath
[Killarney SCA,
NSW, November 2019]
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, including a photo showing how a Red-rumped Parrot hid in dense growth.
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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.
Male Red-rumped Parrot feeding on grass seeds
[Eulah Creek, NSW, November 2012]
Male Red-rumped Parrot feeding on the seeds of weeds
[Bourke, NSW, September 2012]
Birds can find food in all kinds of strange places - here a male
Red-rumped Parrot finding seeds on a concrete footpath
[Narrabri Lake, NSW, May 2013]
Male Red-rumped Parrot feeding on
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]
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]
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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_20140109.mp3 |
haematonotus (NW NSW) |
Alarm/departure | © 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_20150909_4.mp3 |
haematonotus (NW NSW) |
Begging calls & answers | © 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 |
More Red-rumped Parrot sound recordings are available at
xeno-canto.org
.