Sprinkles – the Rainbow Lorikeet

 

This rainbow lorikeet really has the Aussie colours down pat!

This shot was taken by Jayde Parrey at her home in North Rothbury, in the Hunter Valley of New South Wales. Jayde says “In January I got a few photos of what I believe is a pied mutation rainbow lorikeet. This particular rainbow lorikeet has visited me twice now. It has always been with other rainbow lorikeets and happily feeds, drinks, talks, plays and flies with them.”

According to avian expert Professor Bob Doneley from the School of Veterinary Science, UQ, all signs point to the bird being a pied mutation of a rainbow lorikeet. The colour of the beak indicates it is an adult, Bob says, but I can’t tell which sex. Bob says the most likely explanation for the pied mutation is that the bird has escaped from an aviary, or, far less likely, it’s a fluke natural occurrence.