Orange-bellied Parrot Recovery

The Orange-bellied Parrot is a small 'grass parrot' and as its name suggests, has an orange patch on its belly. They migrate between the Australian mainland and Tasmania, spending summer breeding in Tasmania and winter in coastal Victoria and South Australia. Orange-bellied Parrots nest in hollows of eucalypt trees near button grass plains in south-west Tasmania. Sadly, the OBP is one of Australia's most threatened species, with less than 50 parrots thought to exist in the wild today. It is protected under the Environment Protection and Biodiversity Conservation Act (1999) and is listed as Critically Endangered. Current threats to the species include: * Habitat loss and modification * Predation by cats and foxes * Spread of noxious weeds * Mortality caused by collisions with structures * Inbreeding due to small population and other genetic factors