birding-aus

OBP's fate

To: "Birding-Aus" <>
Subject: OBP's fate
From: "Bill Moorhead" <>
Date: Wed, 5 May 2010 14:24:31 +1000
Thanks Sean for putting the current fate of the OBP's top of mind where it belongs.

As a kid in the 1970's I was lucky to see these fantastic little parrots when living in Victoria. It wasn't until last year that Geoff Jones, Karen Blake , Jack and myself saw 5 at the WTP. We had made several trips in previous years without seeing OBP's but meeting up with Chris T, Dean I and Sean D on previous trips. I understand that we may have been the only birders to see OBP's there last year (?). It was the most amazing birding experience......... A birding Top 10 anywhere in the world that I have been....The contact call like a light bulb about to give up the ghost; a tight little flock of neophemas dropping into their feeding ground; taking what seemed like forever to locate them with binos and the sheer exhilaration when we got them in the scope and confirmed their ID's. So 40 years had come and gone between sightings and I can honestly say that this second time was the most satisfactory. Some of you may remember me ringing you whilst I was looking at them for over an hour. I just had to tell others!

Back here is Bundaberg I am looking at a great photo of those 5 OBP's on my wall at work. Bundaberg is the epicentre of our other parrot extinction in Australia (Paradise Parrot) and the impending extinction of Coxen's race of Double-eyed Fig-Parrot. Jack ,myself and others have spend 100's of hours searching for the fig-parrot. It's numbers are probably even lower than the 50 or so wild OBP's.

Sean's kids and Jack's kids for that matter ,must have the same opportunity to experience what we saw last winter. So, if there is anything we, as the Australian birding community can do, we must do it. Climate change or not, this wild population has to be preserved at all costs.

Cheers,

Bill

PS Just saw a Square-tailed Kite circle out the window as I typed this!


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