All about the rainbow lorikeet:

• Home
• Classification Information
• Phylogenetic Tree
• Habitat and Geography
• Adaptation
• Nutrition
• Reproduction
• Interactions
• Interesting Facts
• About the Author
• References

 

 

 

 

 

 

Interactions- Who are their friends and foes?

Rainbow lorikeets are listed as omnivores on the food web.  As mentioned in the Nutrition section, rainbows mostly eat pollen and nectar, but occasionally they will feed on an insect, plant, flower, or seed.  They are preyed upon by larger birds, especially goshawks and peregrine falcons.  Rainbow lorikeets are sometimes seen flying with red-collared lorikeets and scaly-breasted lorikeets.  Every once in awhile, these 2 species will mate with each other, creating a hybrid lorikeet.  A rainbow lorikeet is willing to try and interact with humans, as shown in the picture below, usually if the human is willing to give it food.

As beautiful as they look, rainbow lorikeets still are not perfect. Because of their specialized diet and short gut passage (which leads to huge amounts of feces produced), rainbows tend to easily receive bacterial and fungal infections in their digestive tracts.  As mentioned in the Habitat and Geography page, rainbows are native to mainly eastern Australia, but in the state of Perth, which is located in the west,  rainbow lorikeets have been declared a major agricultural pest.  These feisty birds have been damaging the state’s $245 million fruit and nut growing industry, in particular grapes, apples, peas, and corn.  They are also a major concern at the Perth Airport, where a big group of screeching birds poses a hazard to air traffic.  Even though they cause some problems, these still are amazingly beautiful birds.

Click here to learn some more information about the rainbow lorikeets.