Australian parrots are some of the country’s most recognisable birds, but bright colour alone can still make identification tricky. Start with overall size, crest, cheek colour, tail length and bill shape.
Rainbow Lorikeet — Photo: Cyron Ray Macey, CC BY 2.0, source.
Galah — Photo: Peter A, CC BY-SA 3.0, source.
Sulphur-crested Cockatoo — Photo: Donald Davesne, CC BY 4.0, source.
Australian King-Parrot — Photo: Glen Fergus, CC BY-SA 2.5, source.
Common parrots to compare
- Rainbow Lorikeet — blue head, orange-yellow breast, green wings and fast noisy flocking behaviour.
- Galah — rose-pink face and chest, grey wings and a short pale crest.
- Sulphur-crested Cockatoo — large white cockatoo with a tall yellow crest.
- Australian King-Parrot — long-tailed red-and-green parrot; females are much greener.
- Crimson Rosella — mostly crimson with blue cheeks and blue wings.
- Eastern Rosella — red head, white cheeks, yellow belly and patterned back.
- Little Corella — white corella with pale bill and bluish eye-ring.
- Long-billed Corella — white corella with a noticeably longer bill and reddish face/throat markings.
How to tell parrots apart
Cockatoos and corellas are generally stockier than rosellas and lorikeets. Rosellas have long tails and patterned plumage. Lorikeets are strong flower-feeders and often move noisily through flowering trees. King-Parrots are larger, long-tailed forest parrots with strong red-and-green contrast in adult males.
Also compare the red-headed birds and green birds guides.