03-08-2025
'Dazzling' parrot on brink of extinction threatens coal mine expansion
A parrot on the brink of extinction could thwart plans for an open cut coal mine expansion after records of the bird were discovered to be missing from the key database of species sightings.
As few as 500 critically endangered swift parrots are thought to be left in the wild, but the rare migratory species is a regular visitor to the Maules Creek Coal Mine area in north-eastern NSW.
The operator, Whitehaven Coal, is applying to extend the life of the mine near Narrabri by a decade to 2044.
This expansion would mean the clearing of about 50,000 trees swift parrots use for food, including large flowering white boxes, according to a new report commissioned by environmental group Lock the Gate.
Ecologist and reporter author, John Muchan, found swift parrots - which migrate north onto mainland Australia each year from Tasmania - were regular visitors to Leard State Forest where Whitehaven plans to expand.
"This return rate suggests the species is exhibiting high site fidelity to the Leard when flowering conditions are suitable," Mr Muchan said in the report.
He also discovered 17 separate observations of the parrot in the region over the past 13 years, including by nearby coal mining operator Idemitsu, were missing from the BioNet Atlas.
This is the NSW government's central database of species sightings which helps determine biodiversity management across the state.
A spokesperson for the environment department said the records had since been updated with the observations Mr Muchan uncovered.
"State government biodiversity databases are a critical resource to accurately inform ecological impact assessments," the ecologist told ACM, the publisher of this masthead.
"Swift parrots are listed under the federal environment act as critically endangered - one step below extinct in the wild.
"Of all the records to be included in - or missing from a database - those of federally listed critically endangered species are extremely important."
Given the parrot's survival as a species is so precarious, the new report could affect Whitehaven's proposal to extract an extra 117 million tonnes of coal and clear 660 hectares of Leard State Forest to do it.
The plan is on public exhibition as a state significant proposal while Whitehaven seeks federal environmental approval at the same time.
"The [expansion site] is clearly within 'habitat critical to the survival' of the swift parrot as defined in the national recovery plan for the swift parrot," Mr Muchan said in his report.
"Swift parrots have been recorded feeding on the nectar of flowering white box ... in the Leard on numerous occasions since 2012."
He said it also qualified as a priority area for species under the NSW "saving our species" strategy - and the adjacent state forest should be listed as an important bird and biodiversity area to help ensure the swift parrot survives beyond the decade.
A spokesman for Whitehaven said the company had taken recorded sightings of swift parrots in and around its Maules Creek mine into account already.
"All of these records were comprehensively reviewed and considered by an independent expert as part of the environmental impact statement (EIS), including the observations that were not originally recorded in the NSW government's BioNet Atlas," he said.
Sean Dooley from BirdLife Australia said the coal mine expansion would be "detrimental".
"Due to our inadequate national nature laws, swift parrots continue to be pushed to the precipice of extinction," he said.
"If we can't save a beautiful, charismatic and popular species - it won 'Bird of the Year' in 2023 - then what hope do we have for saving lesser known species."
To lose any swift parrot habitat around Leard forest and Maules Creek would be "a cruel blow", Mr Dooley said.
"It is a beautiful, dazzling parrot with a unique life history that is part of a whole suite of woodland birds that are in serious trouble," he said.
"The trouble in protecting swift parrots is that they don't just rely on the same sites and habitat each year.
"They move around according to the conditions. So you can't protect just a couple of sites and think the job is done."
Lock the Gate, which campaigns against risky coal and gas mining, said about 40 per cent of Leard State Forest had now been cleared for three coal mines - Maules Creek, Tarrawonga, and Boggabri.
A parrot on the brink of extinction could thwart plans for an open cut coal mine expansion after records of the bird were discovered to be missing from the key database of species sightings.
As few as 500 critically endangered swift parrots are thought to be left in the wild, but the rare migratory species is a regular visitor to the Maules Creek Coal Mine area in north-eastern NSW.
The operator, Whitehaven Coal, is applying to extend the life of the mine near Narrabri by a decade to 2044.
This expansion would mean the clearing of about 50,000 trees swift parrots use for food, including large flowering white boxes, according to a new report commissioned by environmental group Lock the Gate.
Ecologist and reporter author, John Muchan, found swift parrots - which migrate north onto mainland Australia each year from Tasmania - were regular visitors to Leard State Forest where Whitehaven plans to expand.
"This return rate suggests the species is exhibiting high site fidelity to the Leard when flowering conditions are suitable," Mr Muchan said in the report.
He also discovered 17 separate observations of the parrot in the region over the past 13 years, including by nearby coal mining operator Idemitsu, were missing from the BioNet Atlas.
This is the NSW government's central database of species sightings which helps determine biodiversity management across the state.
A spokesperson for the environment department said the records had since been updated with the observations Mr Muchan uncovered.
"State government biodiversity databases are a critical resource to accurately inform ecological impact assessments," the ecologist told ACM, the publisher of this masthead.
"Swift parrots are listed under the federal environment act as critically endangered - one step below extinct in the wild.
"Of all the records to be included in - or missing from a database - those of federally listed critically endangered species are extremely important."
Given the parrot's survival as a species is so precarious, the new report could affect Whitehaven's proposal to extract an extra 117 million tonnes of coal and clear 660 hectares of Leard State Forest to do it.
The plan is on public exhibition as a state significant proposal while Whitehaven seeks federal environmental approval at the same time.
"The [expansion site] is clearly within 'habitat critical to the survival' of the swift parrot as defined in the national recovery plan for the swift parrot," Mr Muchan said in his report.
"Swift parrots have been recorded feeding on the nectar of flowering white box ... in the Leard on numerous occasions since 2012."
He said it also qualified as a priority area for species under the NSW "saving our species" strategy - and the adjacent state forest should be listed as an important bird and biodiversity area to help ensure the swift parrot survives beyond the decade.
A spokesman for Whitehaven said the company had taken recorded sightings of swift parrots in and around its Maules Creek mine into account already.
"All of these records were comprehensively reviewed and considered by an independent expert as part of the environmental impact statement (EIS), including the observations that were not originally recorded in the NSW government's BioNet Atlas," he said.
Sean Dooley from BirdLife Australia said the coal mine expansion would be "detrimental".
"Due to our inadequate national nature laws, swift parrots continue to be pushed to the precipice of extinction," he said.
"If we can't save a beautiful, charismatic and popular species - it won 'Bird of the Year' in 2023 - then what hope do we have for saving lesser known species."
To lose any swift parrot habitat around Leard forest and Maules Creek would be "a cruel blow", Mr Dooley said.
"It is a beautiful, dazzling parrot with a unique life history that is part of a whole suite of woodland birds that are in serious trouble," he said.
"The trouble in protecting swift parrots is that they don't just rely on the same sites and habitat each year.
"They move around according to the conditions. So you can't protect just a couple of sites and think the job is done."
Lock the Gate, which campaigns against risky coal and gas mining, said about 40 per cent of Leard State Forest had now been cleared for three coal mines - Maules Creek, Tarrawonga, and Boggabri.
A parrot on the brink of extinction could thwart plans for an open cut coal mine expansion after records of the bird were discovered to be missing from the key database of species sightings.
As few as 500 critically endangered swift parrots are thought to be left in the wild, but the rare migratory species is a regular visitor to the Maules Creek Coal Mine area in north-eastern NSW.
The operator, Whitehaven Coal, is applying to extend the life of the mine near Narrabri by a decade to 2044.
This expansion would mean the clearing of about 50,000 trees swift parrots use for food, including large flowering white boxes, according to a new report commissioned by environmental group Lock the Gate.
Ecologist and reporter author, John Muchan, found swift parrots - which migrate north onto mainland Australia each year from Tasmania - were regular visitors to Leard State Forest where Whitehaven plans to expand.
"This return rate suggests the species is exhibiting high site fidelity to the Leard when flowering conditions are suitable," Mr Muchan said in the report.
He also discovered 17 separate observations of the parrot in the region over the past 13 years, including by nearby coal mining operator Idemitsu, were missing from the BioNet Atlas.
This is the NSW government's central database of species sightings which helps determine biodiversity management across the state.
A spokesperson for the environment department said the records had since been updated with the observations Mr Muchan uncovered.
"State government biodiversity databases are a critical resource to accurately inform ecological impact assessments," the ecologist told ACM, the publisher of this masthead.
"Swift parrots are listed under the federal environment act as critically endangered - one step below extinct in the wild.
"Of all the records to be included in - or missing from a database - those of federally listed critically endangered species are extremely important."
Given the parrot's survival as a species is so precarious, the new report could affect Whitehaven's proposal to extract an extra 117 million tonnes of coal and clear 660 hectares of Leard State Forest to do it.
The plan is on public exhibition as a state significant proposal while Whitehaven seeks federal environmental approval at the same time.
"The [expansion site] is clearly within 'habitat critical to the survival' of the swift parrot as defined in the national recovery plan for the swift parrot," Mr Muchan said in his report.
"Swift parrots have been recorded feeding on the nectar of flowering white box ... in the Leard on numerous occasions since 2012."
He said it also qualified as a priority area for species under the NSW "saving our species" strategy - and the adjacent state forest should be listed as an important bird and biodiversity area to help ensure the swift parrot survives beyond the decade.
A spokesman for Whitehaven said the company had taken recorded sightings of swift parrots in and around its Maules Creek mine into account already.
"All of these records were comprehensively reviewed and considered by an independent expert as part of the environmental impact statement (EIS), including the observations that were not originally recorded in the NSW government's BioNet Atlas," he said.
Sean Dooley from BirdLife Australia said the coal mine expansion would be "detrimental".
"Due to our inadequate national nature laws, swift parrots continue to be pushed to the precipice of extinction," he said.
"If we can't save a beautiful, charismatic and popular species - it won 'Bird of the Year' in 2023 - then what hope do we have for saving lesser known species."
To lose any swift parrot habitat around Leard forest and Maules Creek would be "a cruel blow", Mr Dooley said.
"It is a beautiful, dazzling parrot with a unique life history that is part of a whole suite of woodland birds that are in serious trouble," he said.
"The trouble in protecting swift parrots is that they don't just rely on the same sites and habitat each year.
"They move around according to the conditions. So you can't protect just a couple of sites and think the job is done."
Lock the Gate, which campaigns against risky coal and gas mining, said about 40 per cent of Leard State Forest had now been cleared for three coal mines - Maules Creek, Tarrawonga, and Boggabri.
A parrot on the brink of extinction could thwart plans for an open cut coal mine expansion after records of the bird were discovered to be missing from the key database of species sightings.
As few as 500 critically endangered swift parrots are thought to be left in the wild, but the rare migratory species is a regular visitor to the Maules Creek Coal Mine area in north-eastern NSW.
The operator, Whitehaven Coal, is applying to extend the life of the mine near Narrabri by a decade to 2044.
This expansion would mean the clearing of about 50,000 trees swift parrots use for food, including large flowering white boxes, according to a new report commissioned by environmental group Lock the Gate.
Ecologist and reporter author, John Muchan, found swift parrots - which migrate north onto mainland Australia each year from Tasmania - were regular visitors to Leard State Forest where Whitehaven plans to expand.
"This return rate suggests the species is exhibiting high site fidelity to the Leard when flowering conditions are suitable," Mr Muchan said in the report.
He also discovered 17 separate observations of the parrot in the region over the past 13 years, including by nearby coal mining operator Idemitsu, were missing from the BioNet Atlas.
This is the NSW government's central database of species sightings which helps determine biodiversity management across the state.
A spokesperson for the environment department said the records had since been updated with the observations Mr Muchan uncovered.
"State government biodiversity databases are a critical resource to accurately inform ecological impact assessments," the ecologist told ACM, the publisher of this masthead.
"Swift parrots are listed under the federal environment act as critically endangered - one step below extinct in the wild.
"Of all the records to be included in - or missing from a database - those of federally listed critically endangered species are extremely important."
Given the parrot's survival as a species is so precarious, the new report could affect Whitehaven's proposal to extract an extra 117 million tonnes of coal and clear 660 hectares of Leard State Forest to do it.
The plan is on public exhibition as a state significant proposal while Whitehaven seeks federal environmental approval at the same time.
"The [expansion site] is clearly within 'habitat critical to the survival' of the swift parrot as defined in the national recovery plan for the swift parrot," Mr Muchan said in his report.
"Swift parrots have been recorded feeding on the nectar of flowering white box ... in the Leard on numerous occasions since 2012."
He said it also qualified as a priority area for species under the NSW "saving our species" strategy - and the adjacent state forest should be listed as an important bird and biodiversity area to help ensure the swift parrot survives beyond the decade.
A spokesman for Whitehaven said the company had taken recorded sightings of swift parrots in and around its Maules Creek mine into account already.
"All of these records were comprehensively reviewed and considered by an independent expert as part of the environmental impact statement (EIS), including the observations that were not originally recorded in the NSW government's BioNet Atlas," he said.
Sean Dooley from BirdLife Australia said the coal mine expansion would be "detrimental".
"Due to our inadequate national nature laws, swift parrots continue to be pushed to the precipice of extinction," he said.
"If we can't save a beautiful, charismatic and popular species - it won 'Bird of the Year' in 2023 - then what hope do we have for saving lesser known species."
To lose any swift parrot habitat around Leard forest and Maules Creek would be "a cruel blow", Mr Dooley said.
"It is a beautiful, dazzling parrot with a unique life history that is part of a whole suite of woodland birds that are in serious trouble," he said.
"The trouble in protecting swift parrots is that they don't just rely on the same sites and habitat each year.
"They move around according to the conditions. So you can't protect just a couple of sites and think the job is done."
Lock the Gate, which campaigns against risky coal and gas mining, said about 40 per cent of Leard State Forest had now been cleared for three coal mines - Maules Creek, Tarrawonga, and Boggabri.
