SPECIES: Pezoporus occidentalis — Night Parrot
CLASSIFICATION: Critically endangered
Once thought lost to time, the Night Parrot is the stuff of Australian legend – a small, green, ground-dwelling parrot that vanished for nearly a century before its dramatic rediscovery in 2013. With mossy plumage that blends into spinifex grass and a secretive, nocturnal life deep in the desert, it’s one of the world’s most mysterious birds. Its soft, whistling calls drift through the arid night, hinting at a life few have ever seen.
Now listed as Critically Endangered, the Night Parrot survives only in scattered pockets of spinifex country across Western Australia and Queensland. Fire, feral predators, and habitat loss threaten its fragile hold on survival. Careful land management and patient research are key to ensuring this once-lost species continues to move quietly through the moonlit deserts, a living reminder that even legends can return if given the chance.
Photo: Bruce Greatwich