Last Chance to See ?

If you haven’t already seen it, there is a write-up in the Fairfax media of the rear guard campaign to keep the OBPs going in the wild. see www.smh.com.au/good-weekend/can-a-lastditch-intervention-save-the-orangebellied-parrot-20170817-gxycg2.html … “Can a last-ditch intervention save the orange-bellied parrot”?

Part of the problem is caused by Pseudomonas aeruginosa a bacterium infecting the seed prepared at the Hobart Breeding Facility that is resistant to the disinfectant used to sterilise the seed.

If you haven’t already seen OPB’s in the wild, you should seriously consider popping down to Melaleuca this summer. I combined OBP time with a bushwalk to SW Cape [which involved Hooded Plovers and Ground Parrots and nice beach walking and camping]. I enjoyed watching the OBPs coming in to the feeder at the Deny King Museum [and logging their arrivals in the daily obs sheet]. Even better, I got to photograph an unbanded adult [which keeps the twitching purists happy].

There may be a time when OBPs only survive as aviary birds [a fate preferable to extinction], but if you want to see them in the Wild, the best option is to fly to Melaleuca. Par Avion has daily flights from Hobart [Cambridge airport] in summer. You can either do a day trip [take warm clothing and extra food as weather may delay the flights] or spend a couple of days in the SW – there are two bushwalkers huts at Melaleuca …

If you haven’t already seen OBPs, it may be your last chance to see them …

Regards, Laurie.