Australia: Swift parrot critically endangered

ACTON, Australia, May 6 (UPI) -- In light of new research, Australia's government has decided to change the status of the Tasmanian swift parrot from "endangered" to "critically endangered."

Last year, the research, conducted by a team scientists at the Australian National University, moved the International Union for the Conservation of Nature to upgrade the threat level faced by the swift parrot, Lathamus discolor.

A number of conservation organizations offer various classifications for vulnerable species, but when it comes to legal protections, the classification issued by the government -- and the institutional support that comes with it -- is the most important.

"The reclassification is a major milestone for swift parrots and highlights the importance of finding a solution to the extreme effects of sugar glider predation, and of protecting their habitat," Dejan Stojanovic, a scientist with the ANU Fenner School of Environment and Society, said in a news release.

The efforts of Stojanovic and his colleagues revealed the severity of the threat of sugar glider predation to the iconic parrot.

The sugar glider, Petaurus breviceps, is a nocturnal gliding possum of the marsupial infraclass. Researchers believe the species was introduced unnaturally to the island of Tasmania.

If significant conservation efforts are not taken -- and if habitat loss and sugar glider predation continues unchecked -- researchers estimate the parrot population will halve every four years.

"The next goal for our research group is to figure out what needs to happen to turn the swift parrot trajectory around, because they are only one step from extinction," Stojanovic said.

Researchers say the parrot's extinction would have wide-ranging ecological consequences.

"Swift parrots are major pollinators of blue and black gum trees which are crucial to the Tasmanian environment and economy including forestry and tourism," added Rob Heinsohn, a professor at the Fenner School. "We congratulate the Commonwealth for listening to the scientific evidence, and giving swift parrots a fighting chance."