Rock Parrot

Neophema petrophila

John Gould was the first to describe the species, in 1841.

Neophema combines the Greek neos (new or different) and euphema, a generic name no longer in use, itself derived from the Greek euphemos (auspicious or laudatory); petrophila combines the Greek petros (rock) with philos (loving).

William T. Cooper, Rock Parrot (Neophema petrophila) 1970 (adult male)

John Gould (artist), Henry Constantine Richter (lithographer), Euphema petrophila (Rock Grass-Parrakeet) 1848

Author’s note: This illustration is the first published of the species.

John Gould reported that the Rock Parrot bred in the holes of the most precipitous cliffs, often those over water, making access difficult for the Aboriginal people who gave him this information. Today it breeds mostly on rocky offshore islands where there are no mammalian predators, making it safe for it to nest under rocks or vegetation.