COSMOS MAGAZINE

Our favourite parrot stories from 2024

Parrots squawk with accents A study has found that, like people, parrots have different dialects – and they’re shifting as their environment changes.

A yellow-naped amazon. Credit: Getty

Kākāpō changed colour to escape largest ever eagles Genetic analysis has revealed why New Zealand’s native flightless parrot, kākāpō, are just as likely to have green or olive-coloured feathers.

A green kākāpō named Sinbad. Credit: Jake Osborne, DOC.

Night parrot’s full genome offers hope for the elusive species… The mysterious night parrot was long thought extinct, but a handful of birds were found to be clinging on in the 2010s. Now, Australian scientists have another way to help it: they’ve sequenced and annotated the night parrot’s genome.

The night parrot specimen. Credit: © Arianna Urso / Western Australian Museum

Largest known population of night parrots found The known population of night parrots doubled this year, with the discovery of a new population in the Ngururrpa Indigenous Protected Area.

Credit: Rachel Murphy