In a groundbreaking discovery, Indigenous outback rangers in Western Australia have found up to 50 night parrots, one of Australia’s most elusive and critically endangered birds. This article explores the significance of this finding and the ongoing efforts to protect this remarkable species.
A Rare Bird Rediscovered
Photo The night parrot is a birding gem. After more than a century absence the other population discovered alive in 2013 was minuscule only dozens of birds survived. And finding as many as 50 night parrots in the Great Sandy Desert, Western Australia is quite extraordinary then.
Eating seeds and shooting into the silent darkness of its burrow for a few minutes at night parrot is one of the hardest birds to see as the winding sections in thick spinifex which this nocturnal species conjure only with more than 150 years of knowledge. The bird also has a rich cultural value — Rowe says in some parts of Indigenous knowledge systems the owl is considered one of the most secretive, supernatural birds and that its mythological otherworldly call was even thought to be an evil spirit. Not only does this latest discovery provide a glimpse as to how big and where the hard-to-find bird is, but it also raises hope that it exists.
Success Secrets: It Takes Two… Teamwork and Technology
I think this success is down to the fact that it has also embraced general methodological principles which are a credit to both: the indigenous rangers and scientifically-minded folk like me. The Ngururrpa Rangers, who manage the area in which the night parrots were found assisted scientists to develop this plan that involved fitting baited sound recorders to identify their unique babble.
Before deploying the sound recorders, rangers worked with investigators to map geological units associated with these sites as well as combined ranger-based knowledge of landscape/habitat complexity and water/seed resources from each watering hole which lead to the identification of 31 likely roosting sites. Analysis of the acoustic data also allowed for detection of night parrots at 17 sites, with ten being verified as active roosts.
From here, the researchers could describe how many night parrots there were at the Ngururrpa Indigenous Protected Area to be around 40-50 birds. This catalyst to unite time-worn ecological knowledge with contemporary scientific techniques has been central in revealing the secrets of the animal that has long lived among in solitude.
Conclusion
The discovery is exciting and provides a glimmer of hope for darting parrots that this most elusive Australian bird may yet have camera only, future cross to the near side-corner. Indigenous rangers assisting scientists have for the first time carried out a comprehensive audit of night parrot habitat and new evidence from thousands of audio recordings has found malurids are calling in numerous locations.
So it is now down to protecting this population and long term monitoring. These will include targeted fire management, predator control and establishing a night parrot research hub on Ngururrpa Country. Local knowledge and science could help the mycoidea recover in the outback, but conservation efforts are required.
