Yellow Rosella
Yellow Rosella
On my recent visit to Loxton in the Riverland region of South Australia I saw several Yellow Rosellas. This is a species I have not observed very often. This photos on this post are not brilliant but they are the first and only shots I have of this beautiful species.
The Yellow Rosella is a race of the Crimson Rosella. The Crimson Rosella is a bright red in colour. Similarly, the orange coloured Adelaide Rosella found in the Mt. Lofty Ranges of the Adelaide area in South Australia, is also a race of the Crimson Rosella. The Yellow Rosella and the Adelaide Rosella are known to interbreed in the Mannum-Morgan region where their ranges overlap.
Yellow Rosella
Yellow Rosellas are found primarily along the Murray-Darling River systems. Their preferred habitat includes eucalyptus woodlands and nearby grasslands but usually near water. I have once recorded this species here in Murray Bridge, well downstream than any other known record.
Click on the photos to enlarge the image. Further Reading:
- Birding on a trip to Loxton
- Blue Bonnet Parrots
- Adelaide Rosella – with photos
- Eastern Rosella – another colourful parrot
UPDATE: Below is a better photo taken a few months later in New South Wales.
Yellow Rosella
woooooow they are petty nice
In our town of Narrandera NSW you can see these in practically every street, no doubt due to our location along the Murrumbidgee. There is a pair that comes to my front yard daily, picking at the flowers of the Chinese elm and gobbling up the birdseed from the feeders. A juvenile turned up today but was promptly chased away by the two regulars!
Hi Ben,
Sorry – this comment slipped through without a reply from me. Your comment was over 2 years ago. How time flies. A few weeks ago on our way home from visiting the grandchildren in Sydney my wife and I stayed for 4 nights in Narrandera. Every time we drove through or stayed a night we said we must take a few days to explore your area.
After 3 days of exploring the surrounding bushland I concur with your comment that the Yellow Rosella is very common there. We had a great time and discovered some of the lovely places around the district. I will be writing about our sightings in the coming weeks.
We had a Yellow Rosella in our yard in Sale,Gippsland. It seemed quite unusual for this area. I took some good photos and a video. It was quite cooperative. I even thought it may have been a pet!
Cheers Darrell
Hi Darrell,
Sorry about the long delay in replying.
You are right – Sale is quite a long way out of the normal range of the Yellow Rosella.
The most logical conclusion is that the bird you saw was an escaped pet. It happens more frequently than most people realise.
The real test is: have you seen any more Yellow Rosellas in you area?
Have just spotted a pair of yellow rosella at the mouth of the Marne River on the Murray
Hi Michael,
Thanks for alerting me to your sighting. As I said in the above article, Murray Bridge is about as far south as this sub-species can be found. The Marne River is not all that far north of here.
The Marne River is one spot I must visit soon. Did you see many birds there?
Hi Trevor
You may be interested to know that a pair of yellow rosellas have taken residence in our school library . We are located in suburbia west Adelaide and while I have had plenty of crimsons and adelaides nest in various locations around the schoola this is a first time I have seen rosellas nest under the eaves of our library located opposite a new two story building still in construction
I was asked to check what was going on as the noise was a little confronting for our staff …absolutely delighted to find a thriving nest of young yellows and the very diligent parents keeping up with the demands of their brood while timing the visits between lessons and the noise of lesson change over
The nestlings have not fledged yet but I expect the first to jump very soon . The cock bird in particular has the most exquisite blue wings and seems to be very attentive to the family
Hi Rianne,
Sorry about the delay in commenting on your interesting observation.
It was interesting that these birds decided to nest in a very busy and noisy part of the school. I retired a few years ago after teaching for 35 years and I know how noisy a school yard can get. Well done, rosellas.
Obviously they found a hollow allowing them to access the roof cavity to make their home, and the school environment must have enough food sources to sustain a rapidly growing family.
What puzzles me is the fact that these Yellow Rosellas are way out of their usual range. (I am assuming that you are confident of your identification.) They are usually found only along the Murray River and within fairly close proximity to the river and some of its tributaries. I have recorded them in the Murray Bridge area near where I live, and in Mannum and Swan Reach. There have been no reports of this species in the Adelaide metropolitan area. I can only deduce that they have either escaped or been released from someone’s aviary. Having said all that, it is not all that far for them to fly from The Murray to your school.
Very interesting observation.
Hi Trevor
I live in Lenswood in the Adelaide Hills and see lots of Adelaide Rosella’s but today I have just seen a yellow rosella in my bird feeder. We are surrounded by bushland. It is common to see the Yellow in the Adelaide Hills region?
Hi Ann, Thanks for visiting my site and for your question.
Both the Adelaide Rosella and the Yellow Rosella are sub-species of the Crimson Rosella which is common in the SE of SA and in the eastern states. There is much variation in plumage colours of both sub-species.
The Adelaide Rosella is common throughout the Adelaide Hills and the mid-north of the state, and is becoming established here in Murray Bridge – we occasionally see them in our garden or nearby. In the south of its range it can be quite orange-red but in the north the orange it quite washed out.
The Yellow Rosella is common along the Murray – Murrumbidgee river systems as far down stream as about Mannum. I have never seen them in the the Adelaide Hills – but that doesn’t mean that they don’t occasionally roam that far. They could well be extending their range, and the environment around Lenswood could suit them.
The other possibility is that the bird you saw has escaped (or been released) from someone’s aviary nearby. They are a common cage bird.
Hi Again Trevor
I was interested in your reply
I have some photos of the two ‘yellow’ rosellas I wondered if I can send them to you out of interested in case these are not yellow – but they look like your photos above. Also I have now seen 3 in a group on my bird feeder so I don’t think they are escapees!
They are timid like the other rosellas around here
just interested….
We also have heaps of small bush birds as well including robins, yellow whistlers (I think), scrub wrens and a wide variety of honey eaters including the common ones like Eastern Spinebills and New Holland HE.
Ann
Very interesting.
I would be happy to have a look at your photos – send them via the email “Contact” form at the top of the page. I am quite busy today, but I will try to have a look at them this evening.
Hi Trevor
I have just sent a couple of photos via you FB page using the message box
I am not a big user of FB so I hope you get them
thanks for taking the interest – I love birds but not an expert!
regards
Ann
Hi Trevor,
I live in Bedford Park, in Adelaide’s Southern suburbs, and found your site after identifying a type of Rosella in the garden I had never seen before – a Yellow Rosella. It was also notable for its behaviour – perched on top of a lavender bush and eating the flowers, which is something I have never seen the other types of Rosella do. I am recording this sighting on your site as, judging from the other recent sightings in Adelaide, perhaps they are indeed extending their range rather than being cage escapees.
Hi Ros,
Sorry about the delay in replying – computer problems. Aaarrrggh.
Thanks for your observations – very interesting. It could mean that this sub-species of the Crimson Rosella is becoming established in the Adelaide region.
Hello Trevor,
Further to the above post, I live in Metung, which is situated on the Gippsland Lakes in Victoria. We have had recent visits by at least two Yellow Rosellas. It does seem that they are “indeed extending their range”.