Bushfires threaten rare parrot home
Monday, January 31, 2011 at 0:52 
Western Ground Parrot. Image by Brent BarrettEfforts to save Western Australia's critically endangered Western Ground Parrot have suffered a setback after bushfires destroyed some of their habitat over the weekend.
The fires, sparked by lightning, burnt out over 6000 hectares of the Cape Arid National Park in the state's south east, near Esperence, home to around 120 of the rare birds.
It's the largest population of the birds left in the world.
ABC radio reports that one of six areas within the park known to contain parrots was lost to the flames when fire fighters were pulled out of the area due to the dangerous conditions.
Manager of the Department of Environment and Conservation's Esperence office Klaus Tiedermann says it's too early to tell how many of the birds have been lost.
"We are still trying to put the fire out," he said this afternoon, "and until that happens we won't be able to get in there and see what damage has been done to the population."
"It's just possible the parrots have flown to another part of the park where the fire wasn't burning,' Mr Tiedermann said.
"There's another patch of suitable habitat just a couple of kilometres away so we hope the birds have made their way there and have survived the fire."
Western ground parrots are one of Australia's rarest and most cryptic birds, rarely seen among the coastal heaths they seem to prefer. One of the reasons for their demise is thought to be the lack of suitable habitat, which includes areas which haven't been burnt for many years.
The Department of Environment and Conservation estimates there are fewer than 200 birds left in the wild.