Australian King Parrot

Alisterus scapularis

• Distribution:
  Native to eastern Australia and range from northern Queensland to southern Victoria
• Habitat:
  Found in a variety of habitats from high forested areas to lower more open spaces, but outside the breeding season, a common sight in parks and gardens in suburban Australia.
• Diet:
  Berries, seeds of eucalypts and acacia, blossoms, nectar and leaf buds
• Breeding:
  September to January
• Nest:
  Usually in a hollow limb of a eucalypt tree; there can be as many as 10 nests in one tree
• Eggs:
  Four to six eggs incubated for 20 days
• Chicks:
  Young leave the nest approx five weeks after hatching
• Predators:
  Humans and Australian native predators
• Conservation status:
   
  Least concern
• General:

  Until they are six months old, males resemble females in colouration. Adult male plumage is acquired at about 16 months. The male has a red head, breast and belly; the female a green head and breast. The colour contrast between the sexes is called sexual dimorphism.

  Australian King Parrot are usually found in small groups or pairs. They feed in the morning and late afternoon, roost in the shade in the hottest part of the day. They have a waddling gait when on the ground. They fly with sweeping wing-beats and make sharp turns by tilting the body to move though dense forest.