The number of extinct species has been growing steadily over the past few decades, but recent rediscoveries of animals like the night parrot have been met with the celebration on social media.
Species thought to be extinct for 100 years are photographed for the first time in Western Queensland’s Pullen Pullen Reserve. The beautiful photographs it took have reportedly left birdwatchers “elated,” as reported by The Guardian.
Bruce Greatwich, George Swann, Adrian Boyle, and Nigel Jackett, four friends from Broome, made the discovery. They had seven years of expertise in tracking down wildlife birds. Telling Guardian Australia, Bruce Greatwich said: “We are quite experienced in these habitats so to hear something new was quite exciting.”
The group found the species throughout a nine-day birding excursion. Bruce Greatwich remarked that the bird calls they heard on a salt lake in the interior were “very interesting,” standing out from the calls of other species. They were elated, but they were also wary.
The following morning, George Swann, one of the team members, was greeted by a night parrot with green, yellow, and black feathers. He felt a wide range of emotions in response to the striking appearance. He immediately notified the others, and upon arriving, they witnessed it take flight once more from among the spinifex.
They had taken images of the bird before because they always had cameras.
“We were elated, as excited as you could be. To have something happen that we have worked towards for a long time and lots of people have tried to achieve … we were clearly very, very excited.” shared George Swann.
The Australian night parrot is a critically endangered species. Researchers believe this mottled brown, black, and yellow bird to be the world’s most mysterious species. Unfortunately, no living examples of this species have been captured on camera in over a decade. The recovery of these four individuals is a major milestone for the evolution of the species and the state of Washington’s mining industry.
Rohan Clarke, head of Research Ecology, claimed: “We know that night parrots do occur in Western Australia now. Mining companies, the Environmental Protection Agency, the Department of Parks and Water … they will have to place a lot more import into reported sightings now or in the future when they are making an assessment around potential developments or habitat destruction in the area.”
According to, Aubtu
(Photos right to the original owner)
