Orange-bellied Parrots (OBP) have continued to return home to Melaleuca this year.
The 2025 census has revealed that 86 birds have returned from their overwinter migration.
This year’s returns include 51 males and 35 females. 66 were wild born, and 20 are captive-bred birds that were released as juveniles in previous seasons.
Another year of promising return numbers demonstrates the hard work of our dedicated volunteers and staff as part of the successful OBP Tasmanian Program.
The Program undertakes a range of activities to support birds in both captive and wild environments, as part of coordinated efforts to conserve the species.
While the numbers were not as high as last year’s recent record of 91, this is the second highest number recorded since reliable annual monitoring began.
Given the small year-on-year increases in return numbers we’ve seen over the past five seasons, an occasional dip in numbers is anticipated.
However, these results show that while conservation efforts are delivering encouraging progress, the wild OBP population remains precarious and continues to rely on active, ongoing management – including the release of captive bred juveniles.
The first fledglings of the season have also started to arrive at the Department of Natural Resources and Environment Tasmania (NRE Tas) Five Mile Beach Wildlife Facility. Some of the young born at Five Mile Beach this season will be released at Melaleuca in late summer to supplement the wild population.
More information on OBPs is available on the NRE Tas OBP Tasmania Program latest update webpage.
