Thanks Ian, very nice photos, particularly heartening to see so many in one photo! I should point out though that your comment with the photos on ‘flickr’, that ‘These could be the first pics of wild flying birds ever published’, is not true. Sorry, beaten by at least 17 years! See for example;
Carter, Mike (1993), ‘Bird to Watch: Alexandra’s or Princess Parrot’, Wingspan, December 1993, 32-35.
In any case, I might doubt your assertion that placement on the web constitutes ‘publication’ especially on one of the more ephemeral sites such as ‘flickr’. I hope that you will properly ‘publish’ a detailed report giving location and numbers when the furore eases. Your observations have considerable scientific and conservational significance. For those searching for this species, that article also contains information on distribution, habitat and food. I have high-resolution scans of the article which I can send to anyone interested, one page at a time, four in total.
I have news that the birds are frantically breeding now in at least two areas of out-back central Australia not publicly accessible. There are 15 pairs in one colony. So I see no need to rush out there as the irruption is likely to continue and spread. Of course the weather will get hotter.
Mike Carter 30 Canadian Bay Road Mount Eliza VIC 3930 Tel (03) 9787 7136
