Norfolk Island National Park Natural Resource Manger Abi Smith and friend modelling the new bird bands
It has been a stellar start to 2015 for Australia’s third most endangered parrot with 12 active nest sites in the first two months. This is the highest number of nesting green parrots ever recorded at one time and is double the amount of sites during the same period last year!
This incredibly positive result is and a true testament to the hard work by Norfolk Island National Parks staff and all the colleagues, partners and contractors that have help make this happen.
A big thank you must also go to everyone that has called in to Parks office with reports of seeing green parrots outside the Park in areas not previously noted, or returning to areas not seen for many years. Please keep them coming, we love to hear from you and appreciate your mirrored enthusiasm!
If you do see a green parrot please also take note of the presence or absence of a leg band, which leg it is found on and the colour of the band. A majority of fledged chicks since late 2013 have been given these uniquely coded leg bands to assist in identification. Males are banded on the right leg while the females are on the left.
In future the colour of the bands will designate the year the chicks fledged with 2015 chicks are all sporting bright red leg bands. These new, easier to place leg bands have been purchased thanks to a generous donation from conservation organisation – Wild Mob.
Earlier this week rangers were proud as punch to discover one of our banded males from mid 2014 is now a father himself. He was identified attending to his partner incubating a clutch of eggs in a nest site not far from what is believed to be his original nest.
Given the green parrot’s natural propensity to breed, a top priority for 2014 was the establishment of 79 predator proof nest sites. With this target successfully reached, the focus has shifted now to controlling the threats posed by feral animals. Thanks to support from Australia’s Threatened Species Commissioner, Norfolk Island National Park is pleased to announce a 3 year, $300 000 program to extend the rodent control network to include the Chord and Forestry section of the Park. Work has already begun in earnest with the aim of establishing an additional 1000 bait stations, which will more than double the existing network that is currently serviced monthly.
For mor information see the Norfolk Island Parks blog http://blog.parksaustralia.gov.au/category/norfolk-island-national-park/