The Night Parrot - no other bird quickens the pulse quite like this one

One of the benefits of working on an iconic and well-known species like the Night Parrot is that my research generates plenty of interest, not just from scientists but also the general public. This gives me plenty of opportunities to indulge in my favourite pass time – banging on about Night Parrots!

It also gives me the chance to hone my communication skills; species distribution models, habitat suitability indices and the critical weight range are all terms familiar to conservation scientists, but which make the average punter’s eyes glaze over. So, when I was recently asked by the Parrot Society of Australia to write a detailed article about my research for their member’s magazine, it was a challenge to explain the problem, the outcomes of my research and how they can be applied to conserve the Night Parrot, in a way that was engaging and informative for the non-scientist.

It was a good opportunity to break my research down to first principles. What do we know, where are the knowledge gaps, and what do we need to know to conserve this iconic species into the future? If you’re interested in the answers to those questions, and want to see some new photos of a bird that until 5 years ago had never been photographed, you can have a read here.