Names: Green Rosella, Tasmanian Rosella Scientific name: Platycercus caledonicus Conservation status: Least Concern Info: The Green Rosella measures 37 cm in length, the adult Green Rosella has a yellow head and underparts with blue cheeks and red frontal band above the beak. The feathers of the back and wings are black with narrow green margins, the is rump yellow-olive, and the long tail is green with blue outer feathers. The wings are black and violet blue. The irises are dark brown and the bill is pale-grey. The legs are grey. The male and female have similar external appearances, except the female may have an orange-red hue in the feathers on the front of the neck, and the female has a smaller beak than the male. Juvenile birds have an underwing stripe, which is not present in the adults. Juveniles also have dull yellow-green head and underparts and dull green upperparts. The Green Rosella is predominantly herbivorous, consuming seeds, berries, nuts and fruit, as well as flowers, but may also eat insect larvae and insects such as psyllids. They have also partaken of the berries of the common hawthorn, as well as Coprosma and Cyathodes, and even leaf buds of the common osier. The seeds of the silver wattle are also eaten. This rosella is reported to be hardier and easier to keep in captivity than other rosellas.
