Neophema chrysogaster (Latham, 1790)

Taxonomy and Size

The orange-bellied parrot, scientific name Neophema chrysogaster (Latham, 1790), is a small parrot around 20 cm (8 in) long.

Adult Male Plumage: Head and Upper Body

Adult males have bright green on the head, neck and upperparts, with yellow-green on the breast, abdomen and flanks. The feathers of the cheeks, neck and underparts are yellow-green with lime green tips and fringes, so they appear brighter green right after moulting and more yellowish as plumage wears. Crown feathers are bright green with darker green tips.

Adult Male Plumage: Frontal Band

It has a prominent two-toned blue frontal band: a horizontal dark blue band with a lighter blue border both above and below it. There is an oval orange patch around 2 cm in diameter on the belly.

Adult Male Plumage: Tail and Wings

Undertail coverts are yellow to pale yellow. The uppertail is green-blue with yellow sides. Under wing-coverts and flight feathers are dark blue, with paler blue median wing-coverts.

Adult Male Bill and Facial Features

The upper mandible of the bill is blackish grey with a greyish, orange-brown or salmon-coloured base and cutting edge, while the lower mandible is brownish orange with a grey-black tip. The cere is blackish grey with a pale brown tinge around the nostrils; the orbital eye-ring is light grey and the iris is dark brown.

Adult Male Legs and Feet

The legs and feet are dark grey with a red tinge between scales.

Adult Female Plumage

Adult females have slightly duller green plumage overall, with a paler blue frontal band. Their orange belly patch is around 30% smaller and less distinct.

Moulting Period

Moulting occurs in late winter and early spring.

Juvenile Plumage

Juveniles are duller green to yellow-olive overall, with a much less prominent blue frontal band above the eyes. They have a dull yellowish or orange bill that darkens to brown by the time the bird is three months old.

Contact Call

The orange-bellied parrot most commonly makes a single-note buzzing contact call that is repeated every one to three seconds. This call is generally produced while flying, and is also made by birds that see other individuals flying.

Alarm Call

The alarm call is a quickly repeated tzeet that has a buzzing quality, made by individuals when they are flushed from cover.

Sentry Call

A gurgle-buzz call is produced by birds acting as sentries at feeding areas; it is a mixture of the alarm call interspersed with chattering and hissing.

Feeding Call

When feeding, orange-bellied parrots may make soft low-pitched chitting sounds.

Similar Parrot Species

Blue-winged parrots and elegant parrots can be mistaken for the orange-bellied parrot. They can be distinguished by their tinkling alarm calls and lighter olive-green upperparts.

Similar Species Identification Markers

Their blue frontal bands only have a light blue border on one side. Blue-winged parrots and female elegant parrots have yellow plumage behind and above the eye.

Migratory Status

The orange-bellied parrot is one of only three migratory parrot species.

Breeding Range and Habitat

It breeds solely in South West Tasmania, where it nests in eucalypts that border button grass moors, generally within 30 km of the coast.

Winter Migration Route

The entire population migrates across Bass Strait to spend the winter on the coast of south-eastern Australia. On the way, the parrots may stop over, and occasionally overwinter, on King Island, particularly at Lake Flannigan.

Mainland Wintering Habitat

The few mainland wintering sites are estuaries and lagoons that hold the species' favoured salt marsh habitat, and are generally within 3 km of the coast.

Victorian Wintering Sites

These sites include locations in or near Port Phillip such as Werribee Sewage Farm, the Spit Nature Conservation Reserve, the shores of Swan Bay, Swan Island, Lake Connewarre State Wildlife Reserve, Lake Victoria and Mud Islands, as well as French Island in Western Port.

South Australia Sighting Records

In late 2017, there was a possible sighting at Canunda National Park in South Australia; the most recent confirmed sighting in the state had been five years earlier at Port MacDonnell.

Northwestern Tasmania Sighting Records

In July 2021, two individuals were recorded at Arthur River in northwestern Tasmania; it is unclear whether they returned early from the mainland or did not migrate across Bass Strait at all.