Latin name: Trichoglossus haematodus

Colourful Acrobats!

• The lorikeets have long, narrow and brush-tipped tongues that are adapted for collecting pollen as well as nectar from flowers.  

• They are true acrobats! They use their feet and beaks to move about in trees and are even able to feed with their heads upside down. 

• The lorikeets are gregarious and nomadic. They can be very loud! At night time, tens of thousands might gather together. During the day, they travel in smaller groups of about a dozen individuals and get together in larger numbers where an abundance of food is available.  

• The lorikeets are great pollinators within their natural surroundings. In some Australian states however, their populations are controlled since they can destroy up to 90% of some fruit crops. 

• The most serious threat weighing on this species is loss of habitat and the disappearance of old trees with cavities in which they nest.