{{Short description|Endangered Australian species of bird}} {{Use dmy dates|date=August 2020}} {{Use Australian English|date=August 2020}} {{Speciesbox | status = CR | status_system = IUCN3.1 | status_ref = <ref name="iucn status 21 July 2022">{{cite iucn |author=BirdLife International |date=2022 |title=''Pezoporus occidentalis'' |volume=2022 |article-number=e.T22685237A211825128 |doi=10.2305/IUCN.UK.2022-3.RLTS.T22685237A211825128.en |access-date=22 July 2022}}</ref> | status2 = CITES_A1 | status2_system = CITES | status2_ref = <ref>{{Cite web|title=Appendices {{!}} CITES|url=https://cites.org/eng/app/appendices.php|access-date=2022-01-14|website=cites.org}}</ref> | image = Pezoporus occidentalis Bird illustration by Elizabeth Gould for Birds of Australia, digitally enhanced from rawpixel's own facsimile book666.jpg | image_caption = Illustration from 1890 by Elizabeth Gould | genus = Pezoporus | species = occidentalis | authority = (Gould, 1861) | synonyms = ''Geopsittacus occidentalis'' | range_map = Night-Parrot-dist.svg | range_map_caption = Historical (light red) and recent sightings with year (red dots) }}
The '''night parrot''' ('''''Pezoporus occidentalis''''') is a small parrot endemic to the continent of Australia. It has also been known as '''porcupine parrot''', '''nocturnal ground parakeet''', '''midnight cockatoo''', '''solitaire''', '''spinifex parrot''' and '''night parakeet'''. It is one of the most elusive and mysterious birds in the world, with no confirmed sightings of the bird between 1912 and 1979, leading to speculation that it was extinct. Sightings since 1979 have been extremely rare and the bird's population size is unknown, though based on the paucity of records it is thought to number between 50 and 249 mature individuals, and it is classified by the IUCN as a critically endangered species.
A few sightings or recordings of its presence, with varying degrees of certainty, have occurred in the Pilbara region of Western Australia, south-western Queensland, the Lake Eyre basin in South Australia and the Northern Territory. However, some of the evidence produced by wildlife photographer John Young has been called into question, and in March 2019 the Australian Wildlife Conservancy (AWC) retracted some of the records created by Young and published by the AWC.
==Taxonomy== Ornithologist John Gould described the night parrot in 1861,<ref name="gould 1861">{{cite journal|last=Gould|first=John|date=1861|title=On a new genus and species of parakeet from Western Australia|journal=Proceedings of the Zoological Society of London |pages=100–01|url=https://www.biodiversitylibrary.org/page/28672608}}</ref> from a specimen—the holotype—that was collected 13 km southeast of Mt Farmer, west of Lake Austin in Western Australia. Its specific epithet is Latin ''occidentalis'' "western". The species was originally placed within its own genus (''Geopsittacus'') by Gould,<ref>{{cite book |author1=Forshaw, Joseph M. |author2=Cooper, William T. |name-list-style=amp | date = 1981 | title = Parrots of the World | edition = 3rd | publisher = Press | location = Willoughby, Australia}}</ref><ref>{{cite book | author = Gould J. | author-link = John Gould | title = Handbook to the Birds of Australia | location = London | orig-date = 1865| year = 1972 | publisher = Lansdowne Press| title-link = Handbook to the Birds of Australia }}</ref> though consensus soon swung in favour of placing it in ''Pezoporus''; James Murie dissected a specimen, observing that it was very similar in anatomy and plumage to the ground parrot.<ref name="murie 1868">{{cite journal|last=Murie|first=James|date=1868|title=On the nocturnal Ground Parakeet (''Geopsittacus occidentalis'' Gould)|journal=Proceedings of the Zoological Society of London |pages=158–65|url=https://www.biodiversitylibrary.org/page/28664657}}</ref> Gould had posited a relationship to the kākāpō based on similarity of the plumage,<ref name="gould 1861"/> however Murie concluded they were markedly different anatomically.<ref name="murie 1868"/> Despite its close relationship with the ground parrot, its placement in the genus ''Pezoporus'' was uncertain, with some authorities leaving it in its own genus, as data on the night parrot was so limited. A 1994 molecular study using the cytochrome b of several parrot species confirmed the close relationship of the taxa and consensus for its placement in ''Pezoporus''. It also revealed that the kākāpō was not closely related to ''Pezoporus''.<ref name=leeton>{{cite journal|author=Leeton, Peter R. J.|author2=Christidis, Leslie|author3=Westerman, Michael|author4=Boles, Walter E.|name-list-style=amp |year=1994|title= Molecular phylogenetic relationships of the Night Parrot (''Geopsittacus occidentalis'') and the Ground Parrot (''Pezoporus wallicus'')|journal=Auk|volume=111|issue=4|pages= 833–43 |url=http://sora.unm.edu/sites/default/files/journals/auk/v111n04/p0833-p0843.pdf|doi=10.2307/4088815|jstor=4088815}}</ref> Analysis of mitochondrial and nuclear DNA sequences in a 2011 study showed that the night parrot most likely diverged from the ancestor of the eastern and western ground parrots around 3.3 million years ago.<ref name="Joseph">{{cite journal|title=Molecular systematics of two enigmatic genera ''Psittacella'' and ''Pezoporus'' illuminate the ecological radiation of Australo-Papuan parrots (Aves: Psittaciformes)|author1=Leo Joseph |author2=Alicia Toon |author3=Erin E. Schirtzinger |author4=Timothy F. Wright |year=2011|journal=Molecular Phylogenetics and Evolution |volume=59 |pages=675–684 |doi=10.1016/j.ympev.2011.03.017 |issue=3 |pmid=21453777|bibcode=2011MolPE..59..675J }}</ref>
Alternative common names include porcupine parrot, nocturnal ground parakeet, midnight cockatoo, solitaire,<ref>{{cite book | last=Olsen | first=Penny | title=Night Parrot: Australia's Most Elusive Bird | publisher=CSIRO Publishing | year=2018 | page=12 | isbn=978-1-4863-0299-4 | url=https://books.google.com/books?id=OjpuDwAAQBAJ&pg=PA12}}</ref> spinifex parrot and night parakeet.<ref name="birdfinder">{{cite book |last1=Morcombe |first1=Michael |title=The great Australian birdfinder |date=1986 |publisher=Lansdowne Press |location=Sydney |isbn=978-0-7018-1962-0 |page=316}}</ref>
==Description== A relatively small and short-tailed parrot, the species' colour is predominantly a yellowish green, mottled with dark brown, blacks and yellows. Both sexes have this coloration. It is distinguished from the two superficially similar ground parrot species by its shorter tail and different range and habitat. Predominantly terrestrial, taking to the air only when panicked or in search of water, the night parrot has furtive, nocturnal habits and—even when it was abundant—was apparently a highly secretive species. Its natural habitat appears to be the spinifex grass which still dominates much of the dry, dusty Australian interior; other early reports also indicate that it never strayed far from water. It may also inhabit chenopod shrublands, eucalyptus woodlands, and mallee shrublands. One of the vocalisations of the night parrot has been described as a croak and identified as a contact call.<ref>{{cite journal|last1=Murphy|first1=S. A.|last2=Austin|first2=J. J.|last3=Murphy|first3=R. K.|last4=Silcock|first4=J.|last5=Joseph|first5=L.|last6=Garnett|first6=S. T.|last7=Leseberg|first7=N. P.|last8=Watson|first8=J. E. M.|last9=Burbidge|first9=A. H.|title=Observations on breeding Night Parrots (Pezoporus occidentalis) in western Queensland|journal=Emu|volume=117|issue=2|pages=107–113|date=28 Feb 2017|doi=10.1080/01584197.2017.1292404|bibcode=2017EmuAO.117..107M |s2cid=89725902|url=https://figshare.com/articles/journal_contribution/5084689 |url-access=subscription}}</ref> Other calls, mostly short "ding-ding" whistles, and a more drawn out whistle, have been recorded from Queensland and Western Australia.<ref name="nightparrot.com.au">{{cite web|url=https://nightparrot.com.au/|title=Leading Night Parrot Conservation|website=nightparrot.com.au|access-date=18 July 2017|archive-date=11 June 2020|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20200611092429/https://nightparrot.com.au/|url-status=dead}}</ref>
==Diet== [[File:Triodia hummock grassland.jpg|thumb|''Triodia'' grass]] Historic sources indicate that the night parrot eats seeds of grasses (especially ''Enneapogon purpurascens'' and ''Triodia'') and herbs.<ref>Collar, N., De Juana, E., & Sharpe, C. (2020). Night Parrot (Pezoporus occidentalis). Birds of the World. https://doi.org/10.2173/bow.nigpar2.01</ref>
==Conservation status== The population size of this species is not known, but assumed to be continuing to decline. {{as of|July 2022}}, it is listed on the IUCN Red List as Critically endangered. According to the IUCN Red List the night parrot has a population of 40–500, or possibly larger.<ref name="iucn status 21 July 2022"/> It is listed as Endangered under the ''Environment Protection and Biodiversity Conservation Act 1999'' by the Australian government.<ref name="sprat">{{cite web |url=http://www.environment.gov.au/cgi-bin/sprat/public/publicspecies.pl?taxon_id=59350 |title=''Pezoporus occidentalis'' — Night Parrot|author=Department of the Environment, Water, Heritage and the Arts |date=2008 |work=Biodiversity: Species Profile and Threats Database |publisher=Australian Government |access-date=10 August 2015}}</ref>
===Important Bird Areas=== Sites identified by BirdLife International as being important for night parrot conservation are the Diamantina and Astrebla Grasslands of western Queensland, and the Fortescue Marshes of the Pilbara.<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.birdlife.org |title=Night Parrot |access-date=2012-10-31 |work=Important Bird Areas |publisher=BirdLife International |year=2012 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20070630122358/http://www.birdlife.org/ |archive-date=June 30, 2007 }}</ref>
==Sightings== The night parrot remains one of the world's most elusive and mysterious birds. Reliable records of the bird have been few and far between, with efforts to locate the species proving fruitless after an authenticated report from 1912.<ref name="leeton" />
Local reports of sightings continued regularly over the following century, but for many decades none were accompanied by enough evidence for skeptics to conclude that they were reliable.<ref name="audubon2018"></ref> In 1979, ornithologist Shane Parker from the South Australian Museum spotted an apparent flock of the birds in the far north of South Australia.<ref>John Blyth: [http://www.dec.wa.gov.au/pdf/plants_animals/threatened_species/irps/pez_occ_irp4.pdf Night Parrot (''Pezoporus occidentalis'') Interim Recovery Plan for Western Australia. 1996 to 1998] {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20080731094716/http://www.dec.wa.gov.au/pdf/plants_animals/threatened_species/irps/pez_occ_irp4.pdf |date=2008-07-31 }}. dec.wa.gov.au</ref> A roadkill specimen was discovered in 1990 by scientists returning from an expedition in a remote part of Queensland.<ref name=roberts/><ref>{{cite journal|author1=Boles, Walter E. |author2=Longmore, N. W. |author3=Thompson, M. C. |name-list-style=amp |year=1994|title= A Recent Specimen of the Night Parrot ''Geopsittacus occidentalis''|journal=Emu|volume=94|issue=1|pages= 37–40|doi=10.1071/MU9940037|bibcode=1994EmuAO..94...37B }}</ref>
===21st-century sightings===
====April 2005: Minga Well sighting====
Three individuals seen near Minga Well, Pilbara region of Western Australia and near the Fortescue Marshes.<ref name=roberts/><ref name=Davis>{{cite journal |last=Davis |first=Robert A. |author2=Brenden M. Metcalf |year=2008 |title=The Night Parrot (''Pezoporus occidentalis'') in northern Western Australia: a recent sighting from the Pilbara region |journal=Emu |volume=108 |issue=3 |pages=233–236 |doi=10.1071/MU07058 |bibcode=2008EmuAO.108..233D |s2cid=85412524 }}</ref>
The approval of the {{AUD|2 billion}} Cloud Break mine project through the then–Minister for the Environment, Ian Campbell, was criticised because of a number of endangered species in the area of the future mine, among them the night parrot.<ref>[http://www.abc.net.au/news/2006-07-24/campbell-stands-by-cloud-break-mine-approval/1808690 Campbell stands by Cloud Break mine approval] ''ABC News'', published: 24 July 2006, accessed: 9 November 2010</ref> In order to gain EPA approval, the mine had to implement a management plan to ensure that mining activities would not have a negative effect on the species survival in the area. The occurrence of the night parrot in the future mining area, at Minga Well on 12 April 2005, was discovered during a 2005 survey commissioned by FMG, which was carried out by two contract biologists, Robert Davis and Brendan Metcalf, who sighted a small group of the birds. Unconfirmed sightings of the bird had been made previously in a nearby area in 2004.<ref name="Manage">[http://www.epa.wa.gov.au/docs/cloudbreak/PER_Cloudbreak_AppL2.pdf Management Plan] {{webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20110706123751/http://www.epa.wa.gov.au/docs/cloudbreak/PER_Cloudbreak_AppL2.pdf |date=2011-07-06 }} EPA website, published: April 2005, accessed: 9 November 2010</ref><ref>[http://www.environment.gov.au/cgi-bin/sprat/public/publicspecies.pl?taxon_id=59350 Pezoporus occidentalis — Night Parrot] Department for Sustainability, Environment, Water, Population and Communities website, accessed: 9 November 2010</ref>
The sighting was at dusk, and Davis and Metcalf were not able to obtain a photograph of the three birds they saw, but are confident that they spotted three night parrots. The detailed descriptions of their sighting were accepted by the Birds Australia Rarities Committee (BARC), making it the first accepted night parrot sighting in modern times. Based on this acceptance by scientific peers, a paper describing the sighting was published in the Australian ornithological journal, ''Emu'', in 2008. The two biologists carried out further searches at Minga Well and Moojari Well the following five nights after the sighting, but were unable to see the birds again.<ref name="Manage" /> A follow-up survey of the Fortescue Marsh area in May 2005 was unsuccessful in finding any conclusive evidence of the species.<ref>[http://www.parliament.wa.gov.au/pq/qsearch.nsf/179ca7006fb68a1848256db4002455cd/4f3123757d2f2c78482570b6007b9d2e?OpenDocument Fortescue Wetlands Area, Presence of Endangered Species] Parliamentary Question, Parliament of Western Australia, published: 8 November 2005, accessed: 9 November 2010</ref>
==== September 2006: Dead individual==== Dead female, flown into a barbed wire fence in Diamantina National Park in south western Queensland.<ref>{{cite journal|author1=Andrew McDougall |author2=Gary Porter |author3=Maree Mostert |author4=Robert Cupitt |author5=Sue Cupitt |author6=Leo Joseph |author7=Stephen Murphy |author8=Heather Janetzki |author9=Adrian Gallagher |author10=Allan Burbidge |year=2009|title=Another piece in an Australian ornithological puzzle – a second Night Parrot is found dead in Queensland|journal= Emu |volume=109|issue=3|pages= 198–203|doi=10.1071/MU08018|bibcode=2009EmuAO.109..198M |s2cid=84859858 }}</ref><ref name=roberts>Roberts, Greg: ''[http://www.theaustralian.news.com.au/story/0,20867,21234252-30417,00.html Bad news for one night parrot, good for species] {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20070217112826/http://www.theaustralian.news.com.au/story/0,20867,21234252-30417,00.html |date=2007-02-17 }}'', ''The Australian'', 16 February 2007. Retrieved 16 February 2007</ref><ref>{{cite web |url = http://www.brisbanetimes.com.au/news/national/twitchers-cry-foul-in-case-of-the-deceased-parrot/2007/06/22/1182019367467.html.com?page=fullpage#contentSwap1 |title = Twitchers cry foul in case of the deceased parrot |work =Brisbane Times |access-date= 9 April 2008 |date = 2007-06-23}}</ref><ref>''[http://www.abc.net.au/news/newsitems/200702/s1850780.htm Ex-parrot sighting in Qld sparks interest]'', Australian Broadcasting Corporation, 19 February 2007. Retrieved 19 February 2007</ref>
Following up on this record, John Young said he heard a pair from close range in April 2007.<ref name="audubon2018">{{cite news |last1=Borrell |first1=Brendan |title=A Naturalist With a Checkered Past Rediscovered a Long-lost Parrot . . . Then Things Got Interesting |url=https://www.audubon.org/magazine/naturalist-checkered-past-rediscovered-long-lost-parrot-then-things-got-interesting |access-date=8 May 2026 |work=Audubon Magazine |date=Fall 2018}}</ref>
==== May 2013: John Young's photograph ==== In May 2013 naturalist and wildlife cinematographer John Young, who had previously been accused of falsifying the discovery of the purported blue-browed fig parrot, claimed to have taken the first ever photographs and video footage of a living night parrot.<ref name=":0" /><ref>{{cite news|title=Is this a sighting of Australia's most elusive bird, the night parrot? |last=Tony |first=Koch|date=29 June 2013|work=The Australian}}</ref><ref>{{cite web| url=http://www.abc.net.au/news/2013-07-03/man-claims-to-have-filmed-the-rare-australian-night-parrot/4796342 | title= Queensland bird enthusiast presents museum with photos of elusive night parrot |work=ABC news |author=Worthington, Elise |date= 4 July 2013 | access-date= 10 July 2015}}</ref> Young said that he had captured the images and 17-second video after seventeen thousand hours in the field over 15 years of searching.<ref name=ABCMar2019/> He revealed his results during an invitation-only press conference on 3 July 2013,<ref name=ag>{{cite web |last=Pickrell |first=John |title=Night parrot: tantalising clues revealed |url=http://www.australiangeographic.com.au/journal/mysterious-night-parrot-caught-on-film.htm |publisher=Australian Geographic |date=3 July 2013 |access-date=4 July 2013 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20130707135207/http://www.australiangeographic.com.au/journal/mysterious-night-parrot-caught-on-film.htm |archive-date=7 July 2013 }}</ref><ref>{{cite web|url=http://theconversation.com/found-worlds-most-mysterious-bird-but-why-all-the-secrecy-18000|title=Found: world's most mysterious bird, but why all the secrecy?|author=Leo Joseph|date=29 December 2013|work=The Conversation}}</ref> but kept the exact range in Queensland where he had observed this individual secret. It was later revealed to be the area now known as Pullen Pullen Reserve.<ref name="audubon2018"></ref><ref name="roberts2024">{{cite news |last1=Roberts |first1=Greg |title=Fate of these special Australian birds hangs the in balance amid 17-year mystery |url=https://www.theaustralian.com.au/inquirer/fate-of-these-special-australian-birds-hangs-the-in-balance-amid-17year-mystery/news-story/eaeee40da4c23d46e432118d12429acd |access-date=13 February 2024 |work=The Australian |date=10 February 2024}}</ref>
Though subsequent records from Young would eventually be discredited, his 2013 photo would continue to be accepted as real even by his critics.<ref name="audubon2019">{{cite news |last1=Borrell |first1=Brendan |title=John Young Rediscovered the Australian Night Parrot, but Did He Lie About His Later Findings? |url=https://www.audubon.org/news/john-young-rediscovered-australian-night-parrot-did-he-lie-about-his-later |access-date=8 May 2026 |work=Audubon |date=4 April 2019}}</ref><ref name="roberts2024"></ref> However, some colleagues held suspicions that Young may have illegally captured the bird in order to photograph it. This grew into a major controversy after an uncropped version of the photo was published in ''Audubon'' magazine in 2018, appearing to reveal a cage-like mesh in one corner.<ref name="audubon2019"></ref><ref name="audubon2018"></ref> The accusation was supported by a prominent book, ''Night Parrot: Australia’s most elusive bird'' by Penny Olsen, which had gone to press prior to the ''Audubon'' article.<ref name="guardian2018"></ref><ref>{{cite news |last1=Carvan |first1=Tabitha |title=The truth behind the quest to find the elusive night parrot |url=https://reporter.anu.edu.au/all-stories/the-truth-behind-the-quest-to-find-the-elusive-night-parrot |access-date=8 May 2026 |work=ANU Reporter |publisher=The Australian National University |date=2 March 2023}}</ref> Young had previously denied having captured the bird, and his version of the story was supported by an associate who had reportedly been with him at the time the photo was taken.<ref name="audubon2018"></ref><ref name="guardian2018"></ref>
Young also provided five feathers in 2013 from a purported roost site in the Lake Eyre basin to the Western Australian Museum's Molecular Systematics Unit, where DNA analysis conclusively matched the feathers to DNA samples of dead ''Pezoporus occidentalis'' birds.<ref>{{cite web|url=http://museum.wa.gov.au/about/latest-news/dna-confirms-elusive-night-parrot-found|title=DNA confirms elusive Night Parrot found – Western Australian Museum|work=Western Australian Museum |date=9 August 2013 }}</ref><ref>{{Cite web |url=http://www.theaustralian.com.au/news/health-science/dna-test-confirms-rare-night-parrot-find/story-e6frg8y6-1226694526899 |title=DNA test confirms rare night parrot find|website =The Australian|first=Andrew|last= Fraser|access-date=9 Aug 2013 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20130810102145/http://www.theaustralian.com.au/news/health-science/dna-test-confirms-rare-night-parrot-find/story-e6frg8y6-1226694526899 |archive-date=10 Aug 2013 }}</ref>
====April 2015: Live individual capture==== thumb|right|Live night parrot held by ornithologist Steve Murphy On 4 April 2015, ornithologist Steve Murphy and partner Rachel Barr captured and radio tagged a live individual, whom they nicknamed "Pedro", in southwestern Queensland. Photographs of the bird in Murphy's hand were released to Australian media on 10 August 2015, while keeping the precise location secret.<ref name="Milman">{{cite news|url=https://www.theguardian.com/environment/2015/aug/10/night-parrot-capture-and-tagging-hailed-as-holy-grail-moment-for-bird-lovers|title=Night parrot capture and tagging hailed as 'holy grail' moment for bird lovers|last=Milman|first=Oliver|date=10 August 2015|work=The Guardian|publisher=Guardian News and Media Limited|access-date=10 August 2015}}</ref><ref name="Grewal">{{cite news|url=http://www.theaustralian.com.au/news/nation/looking-for-a-night-parrot-in-a-haystack-found-one/story-e6frg6nf-1227476639242|title=Looking for a night parrot in a haystack? Found one|last=Grewal|first=Jessica|date=10 August 2015|work=The Australian|publisher=News Ltd.|access-date=10 August 2015}}</ref> A conservation reserve covering some 56,000 hectares has been created in the area to protect the species.<ref name=abc730>{{cite news|url=http://www.abc.net.au/news/2015-08-10/night-parrot-nature-reserve-created-queensland-endangered-bird/6680392|title=Night parrot conservation reserve created in Queensland for endangered and elusive bird|last=McLeish|first=Kathy|date=10 August 2015|work=ABC News|access-date=10 August 2015}}</ref>
Sean Dooley of ''Birdlife: The Magazine'' described the find as, "The bird watching equivalent of finding Elvis flipping burgers in an outback roadhouse".<ref name=":0">{{Cite web|url=https://www.bbc.co.uk/programmes/w3csy5bg|title=BBC World Service - Discovery, The Chase, Back from the Dead|website=BBC|language=en-GB|access-date=2019-02-26}}</ref> South Australian Museum collection manager Philippa Horton called the find, "One of the holy grails, one of the world's rarest species probably".<ref name=abc730/>
====2016–2021 ==== *'''2016:''' Nicholas Leseberg, PhD student at the University of Queensland, photographed a fledgling in 2016 in the Pullen Pullen Reserve in Western Queensland.<ref name=AusGeoFeb2018>{{cite news|title=Critically endangered night parrot fledgling photographed on Queensland reserve|url=http://www.australiangeographic.com.au/news/2018/02/baby-night-parrot-photographed-on-queensland-reserve|work= Australian Geographic | date=8 February 2018}}</ref> * '''January 2017:''' Whistle call attributed to night parrot recorded in southern Northern Territory by zoologist Chris Watson and colleague Mark Carter.<ref>{{Cite web|url=https://www.abc.net.au/news/2017-05-24/night-parrot-possibly-found-in-central-australia/8553916|title='Probable' night parrot found in Central Australia thanks to audio recordings|date=2017-05-24|website=ABC News|first=Katrina|last= Beavan|access-date=27 Feb 2019}}</ref> *'''March 2017:''' Photograph of a living specimen in Western Australia, seen by four birders from Broome.<ref>{{cite news|title=Night parrot sighting in Western Australia shocks birdwatching world|first= Ann|last= Jones|url=http://www.abc.net.au/news/2017-03-23/night-parrot-sighting-in-wa-shocks-birdwatching-world/8377624|work=ABC News (ABC Radio National)|publisher=Australian Broadcasting Corporation|date=23 March 2017}}</ref><ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.birdguides.com/webzine/article.asp?a=6271|title=Night Parrot rediscovered in Western Australia|date=23 March 2017|publisher=Bird Guides}}</ref> *'''February 2018:''' Image of a young bird, aged 3 to 5 months old, is recorded by Nicholas Leseberg, in Pullen Pullen Reserve.<ref name="AusGeoFeb2018" /> *'''June 2017 – April 2018:''' Targeted environmental survey confirms the presence of night parrots around Kumpupintil Lake in Western Australia.<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.epa.wa.gov.au/sites/default/files/PER_documentation2/E2%20Night%20Parrot%20Survey%20Report.pdf|title=Night Parrot Survey Report Lake Disappointment: Potash Project |publisher=Reward Minerals Ltd|date= July 2018|edition=Version 3|first=Greg |last=Harewood }}</ref> *'''November 2018:''' Second known photo captured in the Great Sandy Desert in the Kimberley region of Western Australia by Indigenous rangers, the Indigenous Desert Lions.<ref>{{cite web | last=Borrello | first=Eliza | title=Second known photo of rare night parrot taken in the Kimberley | website=ABC Radio | date=10 October 2003 | url=https://www.abc.net.au/radio/programs/am/second-known-photo-of-rare-night-parrot-taken-in-the-kimberley/10551472 | access-date=22 August 2020|format=audio}}</ref> *'''August 2020:''' Indigenous rangers of the Martu people and University of Queensland record night parrot sounds in the Pilbara desert, around salt lakes - the fifth confirmed location in Western Australia.<ref>{{cite web | title=Night parrot located by KJ rangers on Martu country in the Pilbara |first1= Karen |last1=Michelmore|first2 =Laura |last2 =Birch| website=ABC News |publisher =Australian Broadcasting Corporation | date=21 August 2020 | url=https://www.abc.net.au/news/2020-08-21/elusive-night-parrot-discovered-in-the-pilbara/12581900 | access-date=21 August 2020}}</ref><ref>{{cite web | last=Barry | first=Derek | title=Night parrot pops up in Western Australia | website=The North West Star | date=21 August 2020 | url=https://www.northweststar.com.au/story/6890105/night-parrot-pops-up-in-western-australia/ | access-date=22 August 2020}}</ref> *'''August 2021:''' The Martu Rangers capture the fourth confirmed photograph of the parrot in flight in a remote region of Western Australia.<ref>{{Cite web|last=Hannam|first=Peter|date=2021-08-27|title=Rare night parrot photograph 'gives us hope there are more out there'|url=https://www.smh.com.au/environment/conservation/rare-night-parrot-photograph-gives-us-hope-there-are-more-out-there-20210827-p58mkb.html|access-date=2021-08-27|website=The Sydney Morning Herald|language=en}}</ref>
=== 2016-2018 disputed records === Subsequent to John Young's 2013 photo of the bird, he claimed to have found the species several more times: * 2016: Young announces he has found night parrots in Diamantina National Park, adjacent to the Pullen Pullen nature reserve. Seven sightings are recorded, including a pair and three active nests with eggs.<ref name="Audubon_2016-11-01">{{Cite web | title = Yes! More Australian Night Parrots Have Been Discovered | last = O'Donnell | first = Jenna | work = National Audubon Society | date = 1 November 2016 | access-date = 2016-11-02 | url = http://www.audubon.org/news/yes-more-australian-night-parrots-have-been-discovered }}</ref><ref name="Guardian_2016-10-25">{{Cite news | title = Night parrot population discovered in Queensland national park | last = Wahlquist | first = Calla | newspaper = The Guardian | date = 25 October 2016 | access-date = 2 November 2016 | url = https://www.theguardian.com/environment/2016/oct/25/night-parrot-population-discovered-in-queensland-national-park }}</ref> * September 2016: Camera trap records what appears to be a night parrot on property owned by the AWC, Kalamurina Station in the northern Lake Eyre region, SA, but the photo is not clear.<ref name="SA discovery">{{cite news|last1=McCarthy|first1=Marty|title=Night parrot feather discovery proves Australia's most elusive bird is alive in South Australia|url=http://www.abc.net.au/news/2017-09-14/night-parrot-south-australia-wildlife-researchers-discover-proof/8942462|website=ABC News|date=13 September 2017 |publisher=Australian Broadcasting Commission|access-date=14 September 2017}}</ref> * July 2017: Single night parrot feather found in a finch nest on the Kalamurina property, by John Young and Keith Bellchambers from the Australian Wildlife Conservancy.<ref name="SA discovery" /> *September 2018: Recording of a night parrot call, downloaded from an acoustic monitor at Kalamurina.<ref name=awcreport>{{cite web|url=https://www.australianwildlife.org/awc-receives-findings-from-independent-night-parrot-review-panel/| title=AWC receives findings from independent Night Parrot review panel| website=Australian Wildlife Conservancy| date=29 March 2019| access-date=22 Aug 2020}}</ref>
In October 2018, Australian Wildlife Conservancy (AWC) commenced an investigation into accusations that some records by Young, who was working at the organization at the time, might be spurious. This coincided with public controversy over accusations that he had secretly and illegally held a night parrot captive in order to procure his 2013 photograph. Young resigned from the AWC in September 2018,<ref name="guardian2018">{{cite web|url=https://www.theguardian.com/environment/2018/oct/12/wildlife-group-investigates-claim-night-parrot-photos-were-staged|title=Wildlife group investigates claim night parrot photos were staged|work =The Guardian |access-date= 13 October 2018 |date = 12 Oct 2018|first=Luke |last=Henriques-Gomes}}</ref> and the AWC removed all information about the night parrot from its website.<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.abc.net.au/news/science/2018-10-12/night-parrot-australian-wildlife-conservancy-evidence-in-doubt/10364842|title=Night parrot: 'questions about the veracity' of evidence for back-from-the-dead bird appearing in SA|work =ABC News |access-date= 13 October 2018 |date = 12 Oct 2018|first=Tegan|last= Taylor}}</ref>
In March 2019, Young's reports were found to have issues relating to robustness of much of his work done in Queensland and South Australia, labelled as unscientific, deceptive and damaging to the AWC. In 2019, the AWC retracted its reports based on work done by Young.<ref name=ABCMar2019>{{cite news|title=Night parrot research labelled 'fake news' by experts after release of damning report|url=https://www.abc.net.au/news/2019-03-22/report-confirms-dubious-night-parrot-research/10925900?pfmredir=sm|work = ABC News (Background Briefing)|first1=Ann |last1=Jones |first2=Benjamin|last2= Sveen|first3= David|last3= Lewis|publisher= Australian Broadcasting Corporation | date=22 March 2019}}</ref> A panel of experts had looked at the nest and eggs found at Diamantina (2016); the feather found at Kalamurina (2017); and the recording of the call (2018). They found that each one had separate issues and none could be said to provide robust evidence of the parrot's presence.<ref name=awcreport/>
===2024: A stronghold of up to 50 individuals=== In September 2024, a team of Ngururrpa rangers and scientists announced in the CSIRO publication, ''Wildlife Research'', that they had detected a stronghold of up to 50 night parrots, the largest known population of the species, living on the Ngururrpa Indigenous Protected Area, Great Sandy Desert, in Western Australia.<ref name="abc 2024-09-23">{{cite news |last1=de Kruijff |first1=Peter |title=Australia's largest night parrot population may be protected by dingoes, but mining in remote WA habitat planned |url=https://www.abc.net.au/news/science/2024-09-23/desert-dingoes-night-parrot-population-conservation/104170308 |access-date=2024-10-05 |work=ABC News |date=2024-09-23 |language=en-AU}}</ref><ref name="tg 2023-09-23">{{cite news |last1=Stock |first1=Petra |title='Equivalent of Tasmanian tiger for bird watchers' discovered in Western Australia desert |url=https://www.theguardian.com/world/2024/sep/23/night-parrot-found-great-sandy-desert-australia |access-date=2024-09-23 |work=The Guardian |date=2024-09-23}}</ref> The rangers also found a breeding area for the first time, and saw nests, eggs and feathers.<ref name="tg 2023-09-23"/> The authors of the announcement suggested that the remnant population may have survived due to the presence of cat-eating dingoes.<ref name="abc 2024-09-23"/>
Commenting on the announcement, a report published by ABC News observed that a sulphate of potash mine proposed for nearby Lake Mackay, and supported by local Aboriginal communities, might present environmental challenges to the newly detected night parrot population. However, the report also noted that Agrimin, the promoter of the proposed mine, was planning conservation measures including fire management, a control program for feral cats and red foxes (but not dingoes), and, perhaps most importantly, a curfew on haulage over the private road that would serve the proposed mine.<ref name="abc 2024-09-23"/>
=== 2026: a new population in south-west Queensland? === Audio recordings taken in south-west Queensland suggest that another population of night parrots may be in the area. Although the location was not disclosed, it was described as being more than {{Convert|150|km}} from the other Queensland population at Pullen Pullen Reserve.<ref>{{Cite news |date=2026-04-22 |title=Recordings point to second Queensland population of rare night parrot |url=https://www.abc.net.au/news/2026-04-22/critically-endangered-night-parrots-detected-qld-outback/106587514 |access-date=2026-04-23 |work=ABC News |language=en-AU|last=Byrne|first=Conor|last2=Richardson|first2=Holly}}</ref>
==References== {{Reflist}}
==Further reading== *{{cite web | title=Nick Leseberg on Night Parrot research | website=Bush Heritage Australia | url=https://www.bushheritage.org.au/news/videos/nick-night-parrot-update|format=audio|date=25 Mar 2019 |first=Nick|last=Leseberg }} * Weidensaul, S. (2002). ''The Ghost with Trembling Wings: Science, Wishful Thinking, and the Search for Lost Species'', North Point Press (New York), {{ISBN|0-86547-668-3}}, pp. 75–81.
==External links== {{Commons category|Pezoporus occidentalis}} {{Wikispecies|Pezoporus occidentalis}} * [https://nightparrot.com.au/ Night Parrot Recovery Team] {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20200611092429/https://nightparrot.com.au/ |date=11 June 2020 }} - Night Parrot Recovery Team * [https://australian.museum/learn/collections/natural-science/ornithology/ornithology-collection-night-parrot/ Night Parrot] – Australian Museum * [https://search.macaulaylibrary.org/catalog?taxonCode=nigpar2 Night Parrot] Internet Bird Collection * [https://parrots.org/encyclopedia/night-parrot/ Night Parrot]. Parrot Encyclopedia, World Parrot Trust * [https://datazone.birdlife.org/species/factsheet/night-parrot-pezoporus-occidentalis Night Parrot ''Pezoporus occidentalis'']. BirdLife Species Factsheet, BirdLife International
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night parrot Category:Endangered fauna of Australia Category:Nature Conservation Act endangered biota Category:Endemic birds of Australia night parrot