Superb Parrot - Nswfmpa.org

Animal Care Studies - Western Sydney Institute of TAFE, Richmond1 IntroductionThe Superb Parrot Polytelis swainsonii as the first described species of the totallyAustralian genus Polytelis and must be considered typical of this group of long tailed,slender bodied parrots with pronounced sexual dimorphism. The other members of thegenus are the Princess Parrot P. alexandrae and the Regent Parrot P. anthopeplus. Unlikethe other members of this genus P. swainsonii is predominantly bright green in colour.The wild population of P. swainsonii has a current conservation status of ‘Vulnerable’.The single sub-population of this species is estimated to contain a total breedingpopulation of probably less than 5000 breeding pairs and declining. Prior to theseestimates up to 1992 previous surveys indicated that the wild population has beendeclining at more than 1% per year for the last 10 years.The decline of the wild population of P. swainsonii has been attributed to the loss ofhabitat and contracting of its overall range in New South Wales and Victoria as a result ofthe clearance of box woodlands for agriculture, grazing, gathering of firewood and alsofrom fuel reduction burning. In particular the riparian River Red Gum forest habitat hasbeen adversely affected by logging for timber. There are also indications that the use ofchemicals such as fertilisers and pesticides; rural tree dieback; competition by otherspecies for tree hollows for nesting sites; road kills, poaching and trapping have alsocontributed to the decline of P. swainsonii.Recovery plans have been put into place in both New South Wales and Victoria, withrelevant government agencies being responsible for the implementation of appropriateland management practices. It has been suggested as part of the recovery plans for P.swainsonii that there may be potential for reintroductions to supplement local populationswhere nesting sites are available. This could assist in accelerating the extension of thespecies range and increase the probability of the long-term viability of local populations.Therefore it is appropriate that a captive breeding action plan should be devised.Probably the first breeding success for P. swainsonii is that mentioned by Arthur A.Prestwich in his Records of Parrots Bred in Captivity, 1951, when Monsieur Duval ofTheix, France was successful in 1881.This species has been successfully bred in captivity since that early record in 1881. InAustralia the first recorded reference to the breeding of this species is by Neville W.Cayley in his Australian Parrots, 1938, who states “Has bred in captivity in Australia onnumerous occasions but I have been unable to ascertain who was the first breeder”. Since1938 P. swainsonii is recorded as being successfully bred in both aviculture and zooholdings. The main captive breeding method has been with individual pairs in separateaviaries but colony breeding has also been successful.The current 2004 holdings of P. swainsonii within the Australasian Species ManagementProgram are 44 birds. There are no regional management programs established for thisKeith Naylor 28/3/2005 Version 3 7